How Cognitive Bias Can Sabotage Your Resolutions
In light of the new year, a lot of us find ourselves exploring novel habits, routines, and hobbies to invest our time and effort into in 2021. Whether it’s eating healthier and going to the gym more, or learning a new language to exercise our brains, these goals require some level of planning, especially if we want to be effective and efficient. We need to start thinking long term, and move away from improvising what to do at the dawn of each new day.
The issue is, planning for the future doesn’t come naturally to us. We’re all familiar with different versions of procrastination and the myriad vices associated with it: video games, social media, Netflix, you name it. We’re very aware of these distractions but still find ourselves falling victim to them. When we feel a burst of hope and tell ourselves that tomorrow will be different, we actively try our best to start fresh and vow never to fall into the same trap. But slowly, we trickle back down to what seems like our natural state: laziness.
It’s really disheartening, and as someone who’s been frustrated by this for a long time, I wanted to find answers. We each have biological and environmental differences, so how is it possible that we all share this seemingly ingrained flaw? And how can we strengthen ourselves so that we make better decisions?
Stick with me as we work through the historical and psychological explanations for these phenomena, which will give us the necessary insight into how we can increase our productivity, make better choices, and build a happy and successful life for ourselves.
So let’s get started. What does history teach us about the origins of our inability to make effective decisions?
About the Author
Sohail Mohammad
Sohail Mohammad is currently a Software Developing Intern at a startup, striving to become a Machine Learning Engineer. He is an undergraduate student at The University of Texas at Dallas studying Cognitive Science, pursuing his Masters in Applied Cognition and Neuroscience. Sohail is interested in the intersection of Neuropsychology, Philosophy, and Islam, and enjoys writing and reading about these topics in his free time.
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