In psychology FORTUNE telling refers to the tendency to make conclusions and predictions based on little to no evidence and holding them as truth.
This is a MAJOR player in anxiety & mood disorders.
Examples:
A single female predicts that she will never find love based only on the fact that she has not found it yet and that last boyfriends were jerks. There is simply no way for her to know how her life will turn out, but she sees this prediction as fact rather than one of several possible outcomes. This will provoke anxiety if you consistently predict worst case scenario outcomes. It may also lead to self-fulfilling prophecies.
Another example… say you expect to blow your next job interview, since you are expecting that you will choke the pressure feels enormous. Your nervous system is aroused, your blood pressure is elevated, You can’t think straight. You then freeze up and underperform & don’t get the job.
“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it”
