How do I practice confirmation bias?

The most direct way to practice confirmation bias is through a focused exercise: Pick a belief you currently hold with high confidence — about a colleague's competence, a technical decision, a political position, anything that feels obviously true. Set a five-minute timer and write down only evidence that contradicts that belief. Not evidence you then rebut. Evidence you let stand. Notice how your mind resists. That resistance is confirmation bias operating in real time.

Common pitfall: Treating confirmation bias as something other people have. You'll read this lesson, agree with it intellectually, and then within the hour evaluate a piece of information in a way that confirms something you already believe — without noticing. The bias doesn't announce itself. That's what makes it a bias and not a preference.

This practice connects to Phase 5 (Observation Without Judgment) — building it as a repeatable habit compounds over time.