When someone assumes what another person thinks, or predicts that an event will go badly, this printable CBT handout helps them slow down and examine the thought more carefully. It focuses on jumping to conclusions, especially mind reading and predictive thinking, with examples and reflection prompts that can be used in counselling, therapy, wellbeing support, or personal self-help.
This Jumping to Conclusions CBT worksheet PDF is designed to help people notice when anxious predictions or assumptions are being treated as facts. It is suitable for adults and older teenagers who experience worry, low mood, stress, self-criticism, social anxiety, or repeated overthinking. The handout introduces jumping to conclusions as an unhelpful thinking style and explains two common forms: mind reading, where a person assumes they know what someone else is thinking, and predictive thinking, where they expect a negative result before there is enough evidence.
Clear examples make the idea easy to recognise, such as believing someone is bored because they looked at a watch, or deciding a presentation will go badly even when past experiences suggest it may be manageable. The worksheet section encourages the reader to record the situation, the automatic thought, and the feelings that followed, creating a simple starting point for discussion or personal reflection.
Use this resource in CBT sessions, counselling appointments, wellbeing check-ins, anxiety management work, or home learning between sessions. It can also support lesson activities around thoughts, feelings, and behaviour, or be printed as a self-help prompt for revisiting difficult situations more calmly.
Download or print the worksheet to guide structured reflection, challenge cognitive distortions, and practise looking for balanced alternative thoughts. Produced by the Centre for Clinical Interventions.
