If you watch your mind as it tries to solve almost any problem, you can detect this strategy: Look at the situation you are in. Figure out what is wrong. Look to the past. Analyze it. Try to understand how you got here. Look to the future. Analyze it. Apply the understanding you have of the past and the present to the process of getting what you want from the future. Most forms of therapy encourage this process, suggesting that it’s the main way to come to terms with past experiences, particularly painful ones.