How Do You Know If You Are Right?

Generally speaking, by default humans get caught in the trap of CONFIRMATION BIAS. That is, seeing people’s actions, having experiences, viewing social media posts (you know what I’m talkin’ about!) that all point in one direction, affirming our worldview. It’s like our eyes have special lenses that filter out that which does not fit with our opinion of a person, a situation, work, or any other topic.

Sure there’s some EGO-CENTERED COMFORT in affirming our opinion (“Ha! I’m right! I knew it!), but it limits us from experiencing the full range of what is REALLY happening in the world around us.

I had a person tell me a couple of years ago, “You know, the first time I saw you, I wasn’t even sure you spoke English.” He wasn’t joking. Maybe in his worldview, a person with brown skin is likely a recent immigrant who probably does not speak English? Wow! And never mind the fact that later I found out that his late father’s doctor was of Indian descent and had numerous interactions with his son IN ENGLISH.

When you find yourself SO SURE about your worldview, I invite you to ask yourself “WHAT IF THAT WASN’T TRUE?”. And work on decreasing your confirmation bias. You might be surprised by what you find out. 

Take good care,