Welcome to The Simplify Your Life Podcast, where we talk about how to create a life youĀ wonāt need an escape from! Iām Coach Simona, author of the book ā111 Ways to Simplify YourĀ Lifeā, and Iām glad you decided to tune in!
Now, before get into status quo bias and someĀ helpful examples when it comes to this cognitive distortion, I want to remind you that this is theĀ twelfth episode of my series on Cognitive Biases, and there will be 3 more to come in theĀ upcoming months, so stay tuned for that. If you havenāt listened to the previousĀ episodes, I will leave links to them inĀ the description box below. Now, before we explore status quo bias in-depth, letās clarify what aĀ cognitive bias actually means.
A cognitive bias is a systematicĀ error in thinking that affects the decisions and judgments that youĀ make. Another popular term that has the exact same meaning as cognitiveĀ biases is cognitive distortion. Now, as we mentioned, the cognitive bias weāre going to explore in-depthĀ today is called status quo bias.
What does this cognitive distortion actuallyĀ mean? Status quo bias refers to having an emotional preference for the current situation, causing you to make non-rationalĀ decisions to stay where you are.
āFinding a new job isĀ scary, so I'm going to stay in this one.ā Another example of status quo bias isĀ when you go to the same restaurant and order the same meal every single time,Ā although you want to try something new. You prefer to order the āsafeā option andĀ keep the status quo, instead of risking it. āāStatus quo bias is at play here. When youāreĀ making the decision, youāre not viewing the
situation objectively. Youāre trying to keepĀ yourself safe, and instead of going for something new and exciting, you prefer to do what youāveĀ always done so you donāt disappoint yourself. As with any other cognitive bias, statusĀ quo bias can be difficult to detect, so we need to be aware of its manifestations to be able to spot our error in thinking and chooseĀ a better, more objective view of the situation.
do we all struggle withĀ status quo bias or is that something that only happens to a handful of us? TheĀ short answer is: probably yes. While we canāt confirm that that is the caseĀ for every single person on planet Earth, itās definitely something thatāsĀ quite common for us, humans. We all have cognitive biases and blind spots,Ā so although we may not struggle with status quo bias per se, weāll definitely have problems withĀ other cognitive biases. Iāve actually made a free
downloadable cheat sheet with the top 15 cognitiveĀ biases that might be holding you back. So if you want to download it, just click the linkĀ in the description box below or head over to: bit.ly/15biases Now, letās go back to status quo bias. Here are a few examples to illustrate this bias: Letās say you have a subscription to a streamingĀ service, and even though there are many other platforms, you stick with your current oneĀ simply because it's what you're used to.
Another example of status quo bias isĀ not being open to new ideas at work on how to do things better. Thereās anĀ easy way to spot if thatās whatās going on. You might be having thoughts like,Ā āBut weāve always done it like that.ā Dealing with status quo bias doesnāt mean thatĀ thereās anything wrong with you or that youāre
being overly conservative or rigid whenĀ it comes to trying out new things. This is a cognitive bias, which means itās going toĀ happen whether or not you want it to happen. So how can you change that? One thing you can do to become more aware of status quo bias is toĀ realize why it happens in the first place. As humans, we tend to always try toĀ conserve energy and seek stability. The familiar feels safe and requires lessĀ mental effort than exploring new options.
Status quo bias is often driven by our fear ofĀ making the wrong decision or having regrets. Thereās a direct correlation between dealing withĀ status quo bias and our amygdala, which is the part of our brain responsible for processingĀ emotions. It generates a sense of comfort and stability, making it difficult for us to breakĀ free from our current habits and routines.
The more objective you areĀ about your own cognitive biases, the easier it would be to spot status quo biasĀ next time you feel hesitant to go outside your comfort zone and try out something new instead. As you can see, before we come to any conclusions, it would be beneficial to step back and view theĀ situation objectively. So, how can we do that? What can help a lot when itĀ comes to spotting status quo bias is to ask yourself the following questions: 1. Is this a fact?
2. What evidence can I collect to support this statement? 3.Am I being rational here, or is this a cognitive bias? 4.If this is a cognitive bias, which one is it? These questions will make even more senseĀ as we go deeper into the Cognitive Biases series. If youāre curious to see what elseĀ weāre going to cover in the next few months, make sure to download yourĀ free cheat sheet by visiting: bit.ly/15biases
Thanks so much for tuning in! IfĀ you enjoyed this podcast episode, please like it, subscribe, andĀ Iāll see you in the next one!