Confirmation Bias (also known as "MySide Bias") is a phenomenon where people select the information that supports their presuppositions. In other words, if you think something will happen you will be on the lookout for evidence that proves you were right. Your "confirmation" of your hypothesis is completely biased.
This affects professional relationships, alliances, and channel partnerships in many ways. We all want to be right whether we are looking for some positive outcome or, maybe more powerfully, even if we predict a less than stellar outcome.
Before we really dive into how to deal with confirmation bias, think about that last sentence again. We all want to be right, even if we predict something that we don't want. Is it possible that you could have a negative opinion about how a business relationship will work out and then proceed to look for reasons why it is failing to reach its goals?
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy - This is what happens when we predict an outcome that we can control and we (usually sub-consciously) work toward that outcome. The more controllable prophecy is usually the one that predicts failure since it is much easier to produce failure than success. It's possible that you have fears that something won't work and then go ahead and make decisions and/or take actions that lead straight to failure. What's worse, you're probably not doing it on purpose. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This can manifest itself in a lot of different forms. Small tasks and short-term projects can be sabotaged for all sorts of reasons and long-term goals can be derailed in the slightest ways that take you far from your desired outcome over long periods of time. If you think something will happen you are likely to work toward that end result, whether you are doing it on purpose or not.
How can this be stopped, you ask? I have a few ideas:
