Watch Out for Common Thinking Mistakes

Know the thinking mistakes: Even careful people make the same thinking mistakes. Knowing their names helps you catch them.

Three common traps: Three common ones:

• Following the crowd. "Everyone is doing it, so it must be right." The crowd can be wrong, especially on social media.
• Only seeing what agrees with you. You notice the posts and people who agree with your first idea, and ignore the rest.
• Fear of loss. You keep a bad choice because you already spent money or time on it. The money is already gone. Ask only: is this still the right choice now?

Ask what you'd tell a friend: When you catch one of these thoughts, pause and ask: what would I advise a good friend in my place?

Example

Hassan's unwanted course: Hassan has paid for a course he does not like. He keeps going only because he already paid the fee.

The free-course test: A friend asks him: "If the course was free, would you still go?" He says no. The fee is already spent either way.

Letting go was right: He stops the course and uses his evenings for a better one. Letting go was the good decision.

Key Terms

• Following the crowd (بھیڑ کی پیروی) — copying others without thinking
• Confirmation bias (تصدیقی تعصب) — only noticing what agrees with your first idea
• Sunk cost (ڈوبی ہوئی لاگت) — money or time already spent, which should not decide the future

Fresh diagram to be drawn: Three small warning cards, one for each thinking mistake, with a one-line example each, in Project Desk colours.