thinking-debiasinglisted

# Cognitive Debiasing ## Overview Based on Daniel Kahneman, Dan Lovallo, and Olivier Sibony's research, this skill provides a systematic checklist to identify cognitive biases that distort decisions. Awareness of biases alone doesn't prevent them—structured checklists and processes do. **Core Principle:** Your brain is systematically wrong in predictable ways. Use checklists to catch errors your intuition will miss. ## When to Use - Before making or approving major decisions - Evaluating recommendations from others - When stakes are high and errors costly - When you feel very confident (overconfidence is a bias) - During investment, hiring, or strategic decisions - When a decision "feels right" but you can't articulate why ## System 1 vs System 2 | System 1 (Fast) | System 2 (Slow) | |-----------------|-----------------| | Automatic, effortless | Deliberate, effortful | | Emotional, intuitive | Analytical, logical | | Pattern-matching | Rule-following | | Prone to biases | Can catch biases | | Default mode | Requires activation | **Goal:** Activate System 2 for important decisions using structured processes. ## The 12-Point Decision Quality Checklist Before approving any significant recommendation, evaluate: ### Self-Interest Biases **1. Is there self-interest at play?** - Does the recommender benefit from this decision? - Would they recommend the same if incentives were different? - Are there conflicts of interest? **2. Is there emotional attachment (affect heurist