There's something in your brain you can't control

The Daily Drip

Slow and steady wins the race.

The early bird gets the worm.

The second mouse gets the cheese.

Yawn. How many more of these truisms do we need to hear before we realize that they're not really rooted in any functional logic.

Sure, the phrase "slow and steady wins the race" might apply to a marathon runner--but it definitely doesn't apply to a 100m runner.

There are all of these little phrases that we use to validate widespread beliefs but they may only be valid for a small group of circumstances.

Humans do this weird thing called the "Confirmation Bias."

It means that when we hold a belief about something, we are less likely to consider evidence that suggests we're wrong. In fact, this phenomenon states that we're more likely to believe sub-par information from sub-par sources as long as it aligns with our existing viewpoint.

I'm now at the point where I'm so sick of hearing people say things like "I'm not biased," or "well, that won't bias me."

That's not how biases work. Biases work at a non-conscious level and you don't get a choice. It's part of being a human brain owner. They occur in your brain before you even know about it. They're part of that network that feels things before you know things.

You are biased. So am I. Even though we're aware that biases exist.

When we hear a truism or a platitude, we have a feeling about it before we know it. Does that platitude agree with or disagree with an existing belief?

Consider introspecting about what phrases you believe and how they got into your head. This will help you be a more critical thinker and develop a habit of skepticism in the misinformation age. As far as I know, there's no cure for biases. Only awareness can help us challenge ourselves.