How To Refute The Irrefutable.
By: Timmy Brain
Tags: Psychology

After an intense look deep into the skies, you easily conclude the sky is blue. Straight to Google you searched “Is the sky blue?”.

That’s the beginning of confirmation bias.

You really want to validate what you already believed to be true (that the sky is blue).

People are ready to believe a lie because they want it to be true. I don’t know where exactly I read it but I see it so evident in our nature.

The reason why little children learn faster than adults is simply because they have little to no presumptions on how the world works.

Kids are very open to learning anything new, since they previously know nothing about the subject matter. To them, it is an exciting opportunity to learn.

But, for the most of us, our openness to knowledge come to a plateau at certain ages while becoming adults.

At this point, we create for ourselves lens through which we access the world. Our opinions have been rock formed.

Even when we are unsure about what a discovery is all about. We only pick our conclusions and start a ‘research’ on our biases on the topic.

We are only curious as much as the findings are resembling our pre-conclusions.

What does that have to do with success?

Confirmation Bias is what happen when all links to make money online are probably another ponzi scheme.

In fact, you had concluded you don’t need to follow the link. Since you already figure what it is all about.

Similarly, you will conclude you cannot be an entrepreneur because you have always believe you are ‘called’ to be a teacher, lawyer or office worker.

They are all biases in our minds. You all crave to validate what we already believe.

What I have come to embrace in life is there are no truths, we can only try strive to be less wrong.

When the leadership guru, pastor and founder of EQUIP, John Maxwell wrote the book 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership in 1998, he was so sure about his ‘laws’ that he labeled them as ‘irrefutable laws’ (maybe the promoters pick that title).

However, in his revised and updated edition released in 2008 two of the Irrefutable laws were actually refuted by him.

This is not to tarnish the image of legendary leadership expert. In fact, I admire and respect him the more for accepting to be vulnerable in his attempt to be less wrong.

In essence, this simple art taught me a great lesson. You have to be ready to forgo your old limiting beliefs even if it means refuting the irrefutables.

Our culture of foolish consistency will not take us to higher grounds. When you don’t know something for sure be ready to learn the living truth about it. Going to the library with assumptions you are not ready to refute will do you no learning.

Reality is never real. If something challenge your reality but seat right with your logic, be ready to accept the new.

In business, forgo your preferences all today. The market is both the judge and the jury for what is worth their hard earned money.

Learn from your customers what they want and not what you think they want.

Pick books on how elite marketers go about marketing and not assume you already have the perfect PR team with the most astounding public stunts to make your products go viral.

Be open to new insights and be ready to refute the irrefutables!

Timmy Brain is a serial entrepreneur, author and business developer. I challenge popular thoughts on life, success, purpose and business. You can always reach me via my email or call me 08119933754