Collective Illusions - Part 1 - Important Illusions

To improve our positions in the minds of others we must find shared values. One of the problems in doing this is that there is a measurable difference between what we think privately and what we believe most others think. We adapt our public opinions to those of others because of our desire to fit in. However, if most of us publicly claim one set of values while keeping our true values quiet, we have real problems in aligning our goals.

These false beliefs about popular opinions are called “collective illusions.” They ar measured by an organization known as Populace, which does surveys comparing private opinions with judgments about public opinion. In recent years, they find the number of those illusions is growing dramatically. The result is an increasingly dysfunctional society, but my concern is more about your personal strategy for living the lives you want. In this article, we will discuss some of the most strategically important ones.