Extremes and how they are detrimental

I have been pondering my next blog for several weeks and thanks to recent sessions, I realized that this subject has been part of my counseling consistently.
When I started getting interested in counseling, my mother purchased a book that I continue to use to this day: "Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy" by David Burns. It's pretty thick and kind of long to read but the 10 cognitive distortions that Burns discusses in this book have become my bread and butter for most of my counselling career.
One of the distortions that he discusses at length is "all or nothing" thinking.  I don't want to go thru the whole theory but the short version of this faulty thinking process is when an individual thinks in extremes, making statements with words such as "always", "never", "all the time", and such.
Why do we do this? I think that is a very complicated yet logical explanation.  In fact, I can think of 3 good explanations. The first one is that it simplifies our analysis of a situation. If you can classify it in two boxes, it makes it easy to remember, as well as simplify our emotional understanding of a situation. Think about the last time a misfortune happened to you at a restaurant. How did you react? It is so much easier to say it "always" happens to you instead of thinking of exceptions. This simplifies your emotional response instead of thinking of other factors happening such as a new staff, a busy night, shortage of certain ingredients, or even your own role in this situation. This last sentence complicates your emotional reaction and " gut instinct". No one likes to complicate their lives like that, do they?
Secondly, it can also be what I have nicknamed the "us versus the world" mentality. If "everyone" is against you and "no one" understands because it has "always" been that way, doesn't this type of thinking simplify things for you? I also have dubbed it the narcistic response. I am special, unique, one of a kind. Do you recognize other all or nothing statements there? And frankly, are we that special?
Finally, it distracts you from the true issues. When you think this way, you don't  have to look at yourself and you can blame others, faith, the world, the situation, your upbringing. And change will be "impossible".
How do you change this? It is both easy and hard. You must be able to accept to challenge yourself and your thoughts. And this is a lifetime challenge. You have to learn that black and white does not work. Life belongs in the middle, in shades of gray. If you learn to do this regularly, the extremes will fade. It will not disappear but it will get easier to reach.
In my practice, it is a common subject of treatment. But it is not always discussed...