Psychology & Behavior
Section 1
Core Idea
Egocentric bias is the tendency to overestimate our own contribution, perspective, or importance relative to others. We remember our inputs more vividly, weigh our opinions more heavily, and assume others see the world as we do. The core idea: we're the protagonist of our own story, and that distorts how we evaluate credit, blame, and judgment. Correct by actively seeking other perspectives and discounting your default self-assessment.
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Section 2
How to See It
Team & Credit
You're seeing Egocentric Bias when multiple people on the same project each believe they did most of the work. If you asked everyone their percentage contribution, the total would far exceed 100%.
Decisions & Strategy
You're seeing Egocentric Bias when a leader assumes their reasoning is obvious to everyone else, or that their priorities should naturally be the team's priorities. The gap between "what I think matters" and "what others think matters" is the bias in action.
Section 3
How to Use It
Assume you're overweighting your own contribution and perspective. Before claiming credit, ask others what they see. Before assuming alignment, check. Use structured feedback — 360 reviews, retrospectives, shared credit practices — to calibrate. When making decisions, deliberately adopt someone else's vantage point before committing.
Decision filter
"Am I overestimating my role or assuming others see it as I do? If I asked the other people involved, would they tell the same story?"
As a founder
Founders are especially prone to egocentric bias because the company revolves around them early on. As the team grows, actively credit others, check your assumptions about shared priorities, and build feedback loops that correct your self-centred defaults.
Section 5
Founders & Leaders
Ed CatmullCo-founder of Pixar; creative leadership and feedback systems
Catmull built Pixar's Braintrust — a structured feedback process where directors receive candid criticism from peers — precisely to counteract egocentric bias. He recognised that creators naturally overvalue their own vision and undervalue outside input. The Braintrust worked because it separated feedback from authority: no one could override the director, but the director had to listen. Founders can apply this by creating formal spaces where their assumptions get challenged. Egocentric bias is strongest when you're closest to the work. Build systems that force you to hear what others actually see, not what you assume they see. Catmull's insight: the process of correcting for ego is itself the creative advantage.
Section 7
Connected Models
Reinforces
Self-Serving Bias
Self-serving bias credits success to ourselves and blames failure on others. Egocentric bias inflates our perceived role in everything. Together they distort both credit and accountability. Counter both by tracking contributions objectively.
Reinforces
Blind Spot
We see others' biases but not our own. Egocentric bias makes us think our perspective is more accurate and central. Blind spot prevents us from seeing the egocentric bias itself. Use outside feedback to break both.
Tension
Fundamental Attribution Error
We attribute others' behaviour to their character but our own to circumstances. Egocentric bias centres our story; fundamental attribution error misreads theirs. The tension: we're simultaneously too generous with ourselves and too harsh with others.
Section 8
One Key Quote
— Michael Ross & Fiore Sicoly, researchers on egocentric bias"Individuals tend to accept more responsibility for a joint product than other contributors attribute to them."
Section 11
Summary & Further Reading
Egocentric bias inflates our sense of contribution, centrality, and correctness. Counter it by assuming you're overweighting your own perspective, seeking structured feedback, and crediting others proactively. Build systems that surface how others actually see the situation, not how you assume they do.