As a leader, it’s crucial to make objective and unbiased decisions. However, our brains are wired to make decisions based on certain biases. Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) can help you identify and overcome these biases, allowing you to make more informed and fair decisions. In this article, we’ll explore 10 common biases in decision-making and how NLP can help you overcome them.
Our brains like to take shortcuts. It’s no surprise. Scientists have measured the amount of data that enters the brain and found that an average person living today processes as much as 74 GB of information a day (1). We use what we’ve learned from our experience and environment to make quick assumptions, and decisions, about whom to trust, how to behave, and what to say.
Using bias is a good way for our brains to organise information quickly. In reality, we can’t always trust our brains. We have to learn to slow down, reflect and assess what decisions we’re making. Bias shows up at lightning speed, like a fleeting whisper in the brain. It’s easy to miss; making it even more important to take time to question it.
Since our daily experience changes every day based on our emotional state, energy levels, and the new information we receive, we want to question our tendency for bias regularly. In fact, including an exploration of our potential biases in our daily reflection can be a powerful way to deliver more consistency in our decision-making.
What Are 10 Common Biases You May Want To Consider?
There are many different types of biases that we are capable of, but here are some of the most common ones:
- Confirmation bias: We have the propensity to seek out information that confirms our preexisting beliefs or opinions, and to ignore or delete information that contradicts them.
- Availability heuristic: When we overestimate the likelihood of events that are more readily available in memory, such as recent or dramatic events.
- Hindsight bias: The tendency to believe, after an event has occurred, that we would have predicted or expected it to happen, even if we did not actually make that prediction beforehand.
- Anchoring bias: When we rely too heavily on the first piece of information we receive when making a decision or judgment, even if it is not necessarily the most relevant or accurate.
- Self-serving bias: When we attribute our successes to internal factors, such as our own skills or abilities, while attributing our failures to external factors, such as bad luck or other people’s actions.
- Stereotyping: When we make assumptions or judgments about individuals or groups based on their membership in a particular category or social group.
- In-group bias: We like people like us. This is when we favour individuals or groups who are similar to ourselves or who belong to the same social group or category as us.
- Out-group bias: Triggered by fear of the unknown or our basic survival triggers, we may hold negative attitudes or stereotypes toward individuals or groups who are different from us in culture, upbringing or experience, or who belong to a different social group or category.
- Overconfidence bias: The tendency to overestimate our abilities, knowledge, or predictions, and to underestimate the likelihood of negative outcomes. We don’t always consider the best, average, and worst possible outcomes.
- Negativity bias: Often triggered by anxiety, we may have a habit of focusing more on negative information or experiences than on positive ones. This results in being more affected by negative events than by positive ones.
How To Identify Your Own Biases - Self-Reflection
The first step in overcoming biases in decision-making is to identify your own biases. This process can be challenging, as our biases are often unconscious and deeply ingrained.
However, by reflecting on your own thought patterns and decision-making processes, you can uncover biases influencing your decision-making.
You can take it a step further by working with a coach or mentor who can identify limitations in your speech that may indicate bias. By probing your statements with appropriate questions, a coach can guide you to notice any assumptions or biases that may lie deep in your unconscious mind or core values. I discuss an example of this below.
Another helpful approach is to journal your thoughts and decisions, and review these regularly to look for patterns or biases.
Beyond that, you can also seek feedback from trusted colleagues or mentors to gain a different perspective on your decision-making. As you identify patterns or common biases, you can take steps to overcome them and make decisions from an expanded awareness.
Understanding NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) - Expanding The Partial View
Neurolinguistic programming (NLP) is a technique that helps individuals understand how their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are interconnected.
It involves using language and communication to explore and reprogramme the mind, giving you the choice to overcome negative patterns of thinking and behaviour. NLP can be used to improve communication skills, overcome phobias and fears, coach and mentor team members, and enhance personal and professional development by developing a broader connection with people.
One of the major benefits of the questioning process of NLP language is that it allows you to remove yourself from the associated position and perceive your life and specific situations from a dissociated perspective. This viewpoint opens our eyes to how we may limit opportunities and choices with a partial view. We can then take action based on an expanded perspective.
Using NLP techniques to challenge your biases, you can become a more effective and objective leader, making better decisions for yourself and your team.
Use NLP Techniques To Challenge Your Biases.
So, we already know that NLP is a powerful tool for challenging biases in decision-making. NLP techniques can help you identify and reframe limiting beliefs, change negative thought patterns, and develop effective communication skills.
The most insightful NLP language technique to identify and manage bias is ‘reframing’. This involves looking at a situation using a different perspective to gain new insights and possibilities.
Example Exploration
Let’s try a quick exercise. Let’s practice first with an example of a statement and a subsequent probing of that sentence.
“These people are introverts and they’ve never had leadership training. As a result, they can’t be expected to have the desire or the skills to manage people effectively or in a way that will support the growth of the company.”
Let’s explore what we can question in this statement.
These people…
Which specific people are you referring to here? You seemed to have grouped people together. Does everyone in the group operate in exactly the same way? Do they all have the same experience, values, beliefs, personality, and behaviour?
are introverts …
In your mind, how does being an introvert or an extrovert impact leadership ability?
they’ve never had leadership training …
Does a person always have to have experienced leadership training to know how to lead? What if they have the qualities of self-leadership? Could they guide people based on that knowledge? What if a person is a parent? Can this experience equate in any way to leadership skills? How did you learn to lead, did you learn by experience, training, or a combination of the two? Are you certain that not one person in the group has received leadership training of any kind?
leadership training …
There are many aspects of leadership and several different types and approaches to leadership training. What type of leadership training do you believe these people could benefit from? What will happen if they receive leadership training? What will not happen if they don’t?
As a result …
This phrase suggests that you’ve already decided that introverts that have not received leadership training can’t manage people effectively or support company growth. Is that really true for you? Do you think that’s a reasonable assumption? What would happen to your opinion and thought process if you unlinked these ideas and looked at them separately?
they can’t be expected to have the desire or the skills to …
Who is expecting them to have the desire or skills? What are your expectations around this issue? When you say this statement to yourself, how do you feel? What specifically is being expected or requested of them that you believe they’re not delivering?
the desire or the skills to manage people effectively …
Have you ever met anyone who you perceived to be an effective people manager and then discovered that they didn’t really have the desire to manage people? Do we need desire to manage people, or can we achieve this with another skill, emotion, or character trait? How does someone manage people effectively? Can you give me an example of managing people ineffectively?
or in a way that will support the growth of the company …
Is the company not growing? How is the company growing or not growing? Are these people not supporting the growth of the company in any way? What growth are you expecting that is not being supported? What’s missing in this situation in your mind? Do people have to have leadership skills to support the growth of a company?
Having considered all of these questions, what do you think is the most effective way to overcome the solution to this situation? What have you already done about it that you may not have noticed? What do you want to do about it now? How many different ways have you already solved this?
Now You Can Practice!
- Now, consider a statement that you made in a recent meeting or decision-making process.
- Write it down, so you can see it and study it.
- Have you linked any concepts together? For example, do you have any A leads to B or A=B patterns in your statement? What happens to your assumptions if you break the link? For example, what would happen if A did not lead to or equal to B? What if A=C?
- Study each adjective or adverb you used. What made you choose that particular modifier? What is the meaning of those words for you? What do they represent?
- What nouns are in the statement? What do they represent for you? How can you question them?
- Have you grouped several people together? Does that group equal sameness for you? What happens when you separate them and consider them as individuals?
- Are there any time concepts in your statement? How are they real and how are they relevant?
- Have you made any limited statements? For example, “the only way, the only problem, we can’t do it this way.” Question them using “What if…?” questions.
What insights did you gain by working through this questioning process? What new approaches or opportunities can you now see? Remember you didn’t have the resources or perspective to see those opportunities prior to questioning yourself in this way – be kind!
Practice Active Listening And Empathy To Support The Process
One of the key ways to overcome biases in decision-making is to practice active listening, compassion, and empathy. This means taking the time to truly understand the perspectives and experiences of others, without judgment or preconceived notions.
By actively listening and empathising with others, you can gain new insights and perspectives that can help you make more informed and unbiased decisions. Take the time to fully understand how others think and feel.
Additionally, practicing empathy can help you build stronger relationships with your team members, which can lead to better collaboration and more effective decision-making overall.
When your team members trust that you are open to receiving diverse viewpoints and opinions they are more likely to trust you and speak freely in meetings.
Since every human on the planet has a slightly different perception of every situation, two minds are better than one, and five minds offer more choices than two.
Encourage Diverse Perspectives And Feedback
Another way to overcome biases in decision-making is to actively seek out diverse perspectives and feedback. This means intentionally seeking input from individuals with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives than your own. By doing so, you can gain a more well-rounded understanding of the current situation and make more informed decisions.
Additionally, by encouraging diverse perspectives and feedback, you can create a culture of inclusivity and respect within your team or business.
No matter how you choose to explore your potential biases, the act itself of diving into your values and belief frameworks has profound benefits. Simply, every time you delve into your thought patterns you gain self-insight that gives you more choices. With increased levels of self-awareness, you can choose whether your current mindset supports your highest level intention, your goals, and your desired outcomes, or whether you’re limiting yourself in some way. This powerful perspective increases your capacity for self-leadership and consistent performance.
Want To Work On Overcoming Biases In Decision-Making With Me?
References
(1) Bohn, R., and Short, J. 2012. Measuring consumer information. Int. J. Comm. 6:980–1000.
