6 common biases and how to counter each
- Confirmation bias — noticing evidence that supports what you already believe. Counter: ask “what would prove me wrong?” and go looking for it.
- Anchoring — the first number you hear shapes everything after it. Counter: find your own reference price or estimate before you hear theirs.
- Sunk cost fallacy — continuing because of what you've already spent. Counter: ask “if I were starting fresh today, would I choose this?”
- Overconfidence — feeling more certain than the evidence justifies. Counter: put a number on your confidence, then name what could make you wrong.
- Availability effect — judging risk by what comes to mind easily, like recent news. Counter: look for how often something actually happens.
- Urgency bias — treating time pressure as a reason to skip checks. Counter: treat “decide now” as a signal to ask one more question.
Why knowing about biases isn't enough
Biases are hard to spot in yourself in the moment — they feel like plain common sense. What works better is building checks into your process so they happen whether or not you notice the bias: a pre-mortem, an independent check of the key fact, and a small first step.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common cognitive bias?
Confirmation bias is one of the most widely discussed, because it affects how we search for and interpret almost any information.
Can you get rid of cognitive biases?
Not completely. The practical approach is to build habits and checks into important decisions so biases have less room to steer them.
What is an example of the sunk cost fallacy?
Sitting through a bad film because you paid for the ticket, or keeping a failing project going because of how much has already been spent on it.