Discovering Delusions
Years ago I worked for a company that had a softball team I played on. After a big win, we had dinner afterward and reflected on the twists and turns of the game. One infielder voiced the opinion his defence had been particularly stellar, and as he did so we all looked at one another with amazement: was this guy serious? Indeed, his defence had been such a liability it was a factor why the game was close at all! It turned out he seriously thought his play should have been highlighted on ESPN SportsCenter--so great were his delusions. He overlooked all the errors he made on the field (as if they had not happened) and viewed his routine plays as requiring the utmost athleticism and skill. While some people may be overly critical of themselves for making errors, my teammate illustrated how self-delusion can blind us from seeing ourselves in truth. Had my teammate kept his thoughts to himself, he would have remained comfortable in his very positive ...