Something’s burnt! For chronically punctual people, a time wasted is a time lost. What could’ve been spent on something useful and productive all went down the drain. Agree? The modern concept of positive thinking disagrees. It’s called the ‘Burnt Toast Theory’ coined on TikTok — a silver lining, basically. It teaches us to view our experiences differently when something takes us off course only to find out that it’s actually a good thing.
So, why the name, you ask? Imagine yourself going on your usual early morning routine. You grab a piece of bread, put it on the toast, set the timer, and wait for it to finish. Except this time, something went wrong, and the bread was burned— looking all unsalvageable. You redo the process taking another 5 minutes from your usual routine. As you hop in your car, you see a car accident on the same route you usually take. You learned that the accident happened 5 minutes ago. It then made you realize that had you left your house on time, it would’ve been you in that car accident. What caused the delay? The burnt toast.
The burnt toast theory is another way of reframing the setbacks and inconveniences we experience by looking at them as redirections instead of failures or rejections. As it is, when for some odd reason, a thing you know so well to work eventually stops serving its purpose can be a sign of something else. For the believers, it could be faith or the universe pushing them in a different direction.
Redirections here and there
We know it’s already sounding like a broken record when people say we don’t always get what we want, but that’s the reality. In the endless desires of men, we can’t always have the things we wish to have because there is something else better. You don’t get what you desire; you get what you deserve. The concept of the burnt toast theory applies to general life events at home, in school, or at work.
Missed the quota for the course you wanted in college only for your second choice to give you the speed ticket to your dream job? Classic redirection. The project you’ve been working on tirelessly for months got discontinued, but a better one came that also offers quality work-life balance. Dodged a bullet. Or a purchase that was canceled only to receive exactly the same thing as a prize during a company gathering? Cheers to that!
The burnt toast theory is a speed reminder to stay calm in times of stress and stay positive during times of uncertainty. Do not waste your energy worrying. Instead, be excited to find out what the future holds. When something doesn’t make sense, simply trust the process and know that things will eventually fall into place. They always do. Say thanks to gravity. Now, carry on and claim the goodness in life.
