Learn to Think in Color

Why Are We So Confident in Memories That Are Quietly Wrong? How your brain turns fuzzy footage into a high-definition story Framing the Question (and how to use this post) We trust our memories the way we trust a favorite old sweater: a little worn, maybe, but basically reliable. Yet psychology shows that many “crystal clear” memories are partly—sometimes totally—wrong, even as our confidence soars. In this post, we’ll unpack  why we feel so sure  about memories that quietly drift from reality. We’ll look at how memory actually works (more like Wikipedia than a hard drive), why emotion and repetition boost confidence but not accuracy, and what this means for conversations, leadership, and decision-making. By the end, you’ll understand how to question your own “I’m sure of it” moments without becoming cynical or paranoid. How Memory  Actually  Works (Spoiler: It’s a Story Engine) We imagine memory as a video archive: hit “play,” and you get a replay of what happened. ...

  Why do we feel anticipation? How “not yet” wires your brain for excitement, stress, and action Framing the question Why do we feel anticipation so intensely—sometimes as a thrill, other times as dread? At its core, anticipation is your brain’s way of running the future in advance and deciding how much it matters. That pulls in memory, emotion, culture, and biology all at once. When you feel anticipation, your nervous system is predicting what might happen, weighing the stakes, and reacting to uncertainty. Understanding why we feel anticipation helps you design better experiences, support others through waiting, and manage your own mix of hope and anxiety about what comes next. The brain’s prediction engine: why “next” feels so alive Anticipation starts with prediction. Your brain is constantly guessing what’s about to happen so it can prepare you—like a movie studio cutting a trailer for the future. Based on past experience and current cues, it builds expectatio...

 What Do Questions Do to Your Brain? How curiosity rewires, refocuses, and fuels your mind Big Picture Framing What do questions do to your brain? They don’t just prompt answers—they trigger a cascade of neural activity that changes how we think, learn, and relate. From sharpening attention to lighting up reward systems, questions act like internal searchlights, guiding the brain toward insight. This isn’t just theory; it’s grounded in neuroscience, psychology, and creative practice. Whether you’re coaching a team, leading a project, or journaling, understanding how your brain responds to questions helps you think better—and help others do the same. Questions Create Cognitive Open Loops The moment someone asks you something, your brain shifts into problem-solving mode—whether you answer or not. That’s the Zeigarnik Effect: we remember incomplete tasks better than completed ones. A question, especially an unanswered one, becomes an open loop your brain wants to close. It’s like hear...

What Do We Most Remember About Any Given Day? Hint: It’s Not the Whole Day—It’s the Peaks and the End What shapes our memory of a day isn’t the clock—it’s the emotional curve.  Researchers and psychologists alike agree: what we remember most from any given day isn’t a sum of all its parts. Instead, we recall standout moments—the emotional highs or lows—and how the day wrapped up. Understanding this pattern helps us craft more meaningful experiences, both personally and professionally. If you’re trying to make an impression, end strong and aim for moments that stir emotion or reflection. The main keyword here is  what we remember about a day , and it plays a central role in both our personal fulfillment and professional impact. The Peak-End Rule: Your Brain’s Shortcut to Memory The “Peak-End Rule,” coined by psychologist Daniel Kahneman, explains how our memories of experiences are shaped less by duration and more by two key moments: The peak  (the most intense emotional m...