Intuitively, we know that first impressions count. But not only do they count, they are very difficult to change.

The work of Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman demonstrates some startling biases that we humans exhibit.

One, that he calls Confirmation Bias, describes a tendency towards confirmatory evidence. Once we form an impression of someone / something (psychologists call them schemas) we will favour evidence that confirms our “theory” and disregard contradictory evidence. It has been shown that disconfirming evidence can in fact strengthen a pre-existing belief.

For further reading try Thinking…Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman or for an intersting and extreme example click here

Watch your biases and don’t forget to work hard to make your first impressions count.