The comfortable lie of doing nothing (and what to do about it)

Omission bias. It screws us over. Don't let it screw with you.

There are moments when you stand there: hands in your pockets, eyes darting around, waiting for life to sort itself out. You don’t make a move. You wait. Let the storm pass. Let someone else handle it. Maybe it’ll all fix itself. It’s easier, safer. And when it falls apart? At least you didn’t do anything wrong.

Welcome to the twisted comfort of omission bias. It’s that little trick your mind plays on you, making you believe that doing nothing is safer, cleaner, less of a mess. You hate your job, but you don’t make a move. Your relationship makes you miserable, or you hate where you live, but you ride it out. You’re lonely, your friends suck, and you want a life partner – but you sit back and wait for things to change. You think, "If I don’t act, I can’t screw it up." If you don’t hit the gas, you can’t crash the car. Right?

Wrong. Inaction isn’t innocent, and it isn’t free.

Why We Do Nothing

Doing nothing feels safer. If you make a decision and things don’t go well, what happens becomes …