Your memory is unreliable.
Let me repeat that with added emphasis. Your memory is unreliable. I’m talking about you. The person reading this article right now.
Please don’t take that as an insult.
It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone’s memory is unreliable. My memory is unreliable too.
In fact, to show you we’re in this together, if you read to the end, I’ll share an embarrassing story about my own unreliable memory.
Cognitive Flaws Apply to Everyone, Including You
Most well-educated people know that memory is unreliable in general. But they exclude themselves from this basic fact of human biology.
They think they can trust their own memories. That their recollection of events is always correct.
But this just isn’t the case.
You are a human. Human memories are unreliable. Hence, your memory is unreliable.
This false belief in one’s own infallibility leads to a lot of unnecessary fights, strained relationships, and misery.… Read more