Did you know there are 185 Cognitive biases that affect decision making? That is an overwhelming number to think about so here are 5 important biases Dani and I identified during our research for our latest Distinction podcast that leaders should keep in mind:
1: Confirmation bias: The tendency to listen more often to information that confirms our existing beliefs.
2: Optimism Bias: We tend to overestimate the likelihood that good things will happen to us, while underestimating the probability that negative events will impact us
3: Anchoring Bias: The tendency to be overly influenced by the first piece of information that we hear
4: Authority Bias: An incorrect belief that information verified or provided by a person in a position of authority is correct
5: The Availability Heuristic: The tendency to estimate the probability of something happening, based on recent examples that readily come to mind
Bias is difficult to eliminate, and we often don’t have the time to evaluate every decision for bias. However, it can be extremely useful when faced with critical decisions to reflect on the different biases.