Your brain processes roughly 11 million bits of information per second but consciously handles only a tiny fraction of that. To cope, it relies on shortcuts — heuristics — that are usually helpful but occasionally distort judgment in predictable ways.
Confirmation Bias
You notice and remember information that confirms what you already believe, while unconsciously discounting evidence that contradicts it. This is why two people can watch the same debate and both walk away feeling validated.
Availability Heuristic
You judge the likelihood of an event by how easily examples come to mind. Plane crashes feel more common than they are because they are heavily reported; routine car accidents barely register despite being statistically far more dangerous.
Sunk Cost Fallacy
You continue investing time or money into something simply because you already have, even when the rational move is to walk away. The past cost is gone either way — only the future outcome should matter.
Dunning-Kruger Effect
People with limited knowledge in a domain often overestimate their competence, because the same skills required to be good at something are required to recognize you are bad at it.
Loss Aversion, Anchoring, and the Halo Effect
Losses feel roughly twice as painful as equivalent gains feel good, first numbers presented unconsciously anchor every judgment that follows, and one positive trait (like attractiveness) bleeds into how competent or trustworthy we assume someone is. None of these biases are moral failings — they are default settings. Naming them is the first step to catching them in the moment they fire.
