11 Reasons Why Your Brain Is A Total Dick

There's one of those chirpy motivational quotes that floats around places like Pinterest along the lines of "You see all your own outtakes, and everyone else's showreel". 

Naww, sweet. 

Airy fairy as this is, it's not all that far from the truth. The reason why it looks like everyone else is much smarter, funnier, more popular and successful than you, is due to the fact that your brain is frankly sick to death of you.

The effect is possibly caused by the same process that makes babies think you've actually disappeared during a game of peekaboo, you're just no good at putting yourself in other people's shoes. 

Because you're constantly exposed to every stupid thought that crosses your mind, and hopefully none (or significantly fewer) of the ones that cross other people's minds, your brain's pattern-spotting faculties will lead you to conclude that other people don't experience them.

Then, the brain's handy skills in confirmation bias kick in, and you just use whatever evidence you have to confirm your worst fears. This means you'll probably ignore the times that Nige has thought it was a good idea to put get his arse out in a club, and agonise over the fact that he always seems to tell good jokes. Nige is probably thinking the exact opposite.

Just think about it. You're with you all the time.

Imagine if you were with another person (particularly an irritatingly perfect one) all the time. Not only that, but you can also hear every thought that goes through their head - they'd get pretty annoying, pretty quickly wouldn't they?

Well, the good news is that when you think that everybody else has their life sorted but you, it isn't true, we're all just winging it. The bad news is that we're all just winging it and it's all going to hell in a handbasket.