5 Costly Mental Errors That Shape Our Lives (And What To Do About It)

These biases can have a big impact on your ability to make good decisions.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

We don’t always make the right decisions.

Even though, as humans, we have the most advanced intelligence, we often find ourselves falling victim to the most costly cognitive biases.

Back in the 1970s, psychologists Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman first discovered that we’re prone to mental errors.

You may find yourself in a situation where there’s a rational and logical thing to do, but your mental biases will hold you back from making decisions or taking actions that are in your best interests.

This article highlights 5 such biases that influence our lives and what to do to avoid them.

Overconfidence bias: When you think you can do better than most

Most people have over-inflated ideas about themselves. They believe they have better skills and talent, and can do a better job than those others.

In Seeking Wisdom, Peter Bevelin rightly noted that most of us believe we’re better performers, more honest and intelligent, have a better future, have a happier marriage, are less vulnerable than…