There are many forms of bias. Confirmation bias is my favorite because it explains why people, including myself do a lot of silly things. Confirmation bias is favoring information that confirms your existing beliefs or biases.

Examples:

  • You read/watch the news that supports your political party.
  • You hang out with people that think your awesome (i.e. your Mom 😜).
  • You research all the reasons why your product idea will work.

Confirmation Bias

I use confirmation bias on a daily basis to keep myself in check. I ask myself… “why are you doing this?” It’s often because I’m trying to confirm my belief. Confirming your beliefs feels good in the short-term… but it prevents you from getting to the inevitable truth.

I also use confirmation bias to understand the motives of others around me. I question their thinking internally. Why is this person sending me a link about the product idea they haven’t made yet? Why is this person telling me how great their political party is? You’ll quickly see that a lot of people’s actions are driven by confirmation bias.