Confirmation biases are a doozy. Now that I know about them I see them everywhere! Except not in myself, thats for sure.

Now they are something I cant not see, I find myself chatting to people and when they express an opinion, my first thought is "What bias is this that they are falling for?".

Our project on irrationality/rationality and decision making really blew the doors open on it for me. I realised how irrational we all are, and how, as Herbert Simon said, "Human beings, viewed as behaving systems, are quite simple. The apparent complexity of our behavior over time is largely a reflection of the complexity of the environment in which we find ourselves."

I wondered. What about Beginners Mind? According to Wikipedia, Beginners Mind "refers to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject, even when studying at an advanced level, just as a beginner in that subject would." This felt like the crux of the exercise I was doing, which was writing an essay about "why people who buy from your competitors are right". It asked for a deep dive into peoples rational and irrational behaviour and choices. Ultimately, it thought me a huge lesson in having the humility to accept other people's viewpoint.

When I was struggling during my essay-writing, I did long for the ability to "empty my mind" and start from a place where I could analyse the "competitors" mindset, without my own mind chattering away at me. I wondered if this practice would be a good place for everyone embarking on such a thinking session to start from. Empty your mind. Then fill it full of the right stuff.

What is the right stuff? Whatever challenges you and changes the way you, and others, see the world.