part0008

There are literally hundreds and even thousands of different types of cognitive bias, including some that we create ourselves in our own minds. However, switching from personal to business, we want to focus on recognizing these very common types of bias so that if you happen to find yourself in a similar situation, you are able to move through it. Having a hang-up in a business setting can land you in hot water. You want your work to be not only perfect, but thorough and thought-through. Our own cognitive bias can definitely get in the way of that.

Using mental models takes a lot of thought, a lot of work, and an understanding of the different situations that you will come across. Sometimes, if it's easier, if you find yourself stuck in any of the following bias types, you can switch up your mental model for something that will clear the system and get you running again. It all depends on you and your ability to surpass your own roadblocks. When it comes to cognitive bias, unfortunately, there is no one that can help you. You have to be able to spot these hang-ups before they take your project or your decision down the wrong path .

Some mental models will work out despite your use of bias in decision making, but that doesn’t mean that the ultimate end goal shouldn’t be to increase the quality of your work. If you are using mental modeling in your everyday life and you allow these biases to continue, then you are setting yourself up for a poor quality of life and a backup of these biases. By reinforcing them, you are telling your brain that you don’t disagree, and, therefore, every time you come across a similar issue, decision, or project, you will find yourself in the same position.

Whether we are looking at confirmation bias or the heavy weighted anchor bias, they are all stop signs on your way to making a decision, choice, or setup for your projects. On a business level, these types of dilemmas aren’t positive in any light. They will also recondition a team or staff to expect time delays in the future. Decisions in both your personal life and your career should be free of bias - or at least as free as you can possibly muster. Let’s take a more in-depth look at some of the most common types of cognizant biases .

The ambiguity effect is something that we’ve all demonstrated once or twice in our lifetimes. It is the tendency to purposefully overlook the options that have a probability of positive outcomes as an unknown factor. Basically, we are picking the winners and not even attempting to take a chance on something that may or may not work out.

Confirmation bias happens when we tend to take new concepts we have recently come to understand and apply them to a belief we hold.

The availability heuristic refers to when someone comes to a conclusion based on the concepts and ideas that enter their mind immediately after thinking about a particular subject or topic .

The halo effect refers to when a person uses a subject to come up ideas about a completely different topic.

The self-serving bias can be one of the most frustrating kinds to deal with. Someone who demonstrates this is very straight forward, upfront, and oftentimes loud and proud of everything that they do. When you have a self-serving bias, you tend to claim more of the responsibility of the successes and less of the failures. With this type of bias, it is also natural to see people interpret information in a way that is self-serving. This type of bias does not produce the kind of decision making, or project plan, in mental modeling that will be successful long term .

This bias is a hiccup - an inability to fully engross yourself in the mental model - because of everything that is going on around you. Life is full of distractions, and your brain can’t help but pull them in and process them. If you aren’t careful, you could find yourself missing pertinent steps or options because your mind is not fully immersed within the information you should be processing. While multitasking can be a positive trait when it comes to hands-on projects, mental models require your full attention.

The actor-observer bias is a social bias that leads to long and overdrawn tendencies of explanation of other people’s behavior to emphatically emphasize their positive personality and push down their influence on negative situations. It also works the opposite way when personality traits that are shown by others cause negative consequences but the situations are positive. This bias has a tendency to comingle with self-serving biases as well .

Functional fixedness bias is a behavior bias that creates a barrier of creativity for the person engaged in the mental model. Someone with a functional fixed bias has an inability to use an object in any other way than it is traditionally used. Within corporate settings, this can be a negative attribute since oftentimes creativity is the key to completing the work at hand. On a personal level, this will work against someone in situations such as budgeting, design, or even personal care.

The anchoring bias is much like the trait within mental models; it involves losing the ability to fully see the model in your head due to an anchor or one piece of information that is factual which has been presented. That one piece of information may create a personal or professional bias or a memory - something that you can’t help but tether yourself to. This tether is going to affect your ability to fully see all of the options within your mental model .

The misinformation effect is a memory bias. It doesn’t necessarily affect the creator on a regular basis, but it does create a less accurate memory of past events due to the interference of post-event information. In a work setting, this could be the last project finished. In a personal setting, it could refer to the events that happened the day before - This could include daydreaming about the date you had or the fight you experienced while attempting to keep your mind in a mental model.

The false consensus effect is a social bias that is often found among celebrities and even political heads. The false consensus bias leaves you with the tendency to overestimate how much others agree with you. This can lead to rash decisions being made based on a lack of input from others as well as an inability to fully listen to what they have to say. You may make decisions based on your own choices, having ingrained it in yourself that others are completely on the same page as you. This can lead to both professional and personal trouble, as well as a lack of understanding all of the options within your mental model .

The optimism bias doesn’t seem that bad at first glance, as someone with this bias has a tendency to be overly optimistic, happy, and always expecting a favorable and happy outcome. Unfortunately, when working on solving problems and making decisions, you have to be able to incorporate the negative aspects of information and actions. You must have the ability to weigh the pros and cons. Optimism bias can completely cloud you from taking risks, understanding risks, and catching errors before they destroy the plan created within your mental model .

The automation bias is incredibly important to focus on. We live in a world of apps, chats, project software, online lists, and the cloud. Even when you go to some grocery stores, all you have to do is pull up your phone number and all of your coupons are digitally available. The problem with digital reliance is the inability to think outside of the box. When you have a million-plus options for a decision, you need to be able to understand as many of those options as possible. The computer and digital world will only scratch the surface. You are a thinking, living, breathing person, while the computer communicates to you through a language of ones and zeroes, only answering the specific questions that you ask. When you have an automation bias, you are so reliant on those automated systems that you have a tendency to second guess your own creative mind. You may create a mental model in your head, but it's so much easier to press the delete button on the computer than to work through issues to get where you want to be.

Everyone grows up being taught to mind your manners, to avoid rocking the boat, to be pleasant, to be agreeable, and to work hard. Unfortunately, life is not that kind. When someone has a courtesy bias, they tend to tone down their options and decisions to make them more socially correct. This keeps them from finding those hard and possibly even controversial answers to and options for their mental model. Rocking the boat is something you should strive to do. There is far too much kindness in the world already, and though you don’t want to be a tyrant, your job is to create and decide. Those two things need an honest mind and an honest answer.

These are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to cognizant bias. There are so many other things that create a rift between you and your mental model. If used correctly, the mental model can open up many doors for your career and your life as a whole. Understanding the major players in biased thoughts will prepare you to key your eye out for them, understand them, and above all, avoid them in any way that you can.

Mental models, as discussed earlier in this book, can cover every part of your life. Productivity, problem solving, and decision making are actions that you have to take almost every day. To do this, you need to have a thorough understanding of what the issue is and of the model that fits it perfectly. That way, before you even lift a finger to begin the project, you’ve mapped it out in your head so clearly that there was no doubt that you were on the right track.

In the following chapter, we will dive further into the world of mental modeling. We will discuss the most famous mental models and where they stand within the productive realm of problem solving. Additionally, we will discuss the people behind the models, showing that mental models aren’t just for the everyday person; they have been used to make millions of dollars for people.