Unpacking Bias: How Hidden Beliefs Impact Our Relationships and Work Culture

Have you ever made a snap judgment about someone only to realize later that you were wrong? Maybe you dismissed a colleague’s input too quickly or assumed something about a person based on their background, gender, or age. These quick judgments aren't always intentional, but they’re often rooted in something deeper: bias.

We all have biases. They don’t make us bad people, but left unchecked, they can affect how we treat others, shape our decisions, and damage our ability to build meaningful, respectful relationships both personally and professionally.

Bias is a tendency to favor, or disfavor, something, someone, or a group, often in a way that’s unconscious or automatic.

What Is Bias?

Bias is a tendency to favor, or disfavor, something, someone, or a group, often in a way that’s unconscious or automatic. It’s shaped by our upbringing, culture, media exposure, and life experiences. Biases can be explicit (conscious and deliberate) or implicit (unconscious and automatic).

Examples include:

• Believing men are naturally better leaders

• Assuming a person of color is less qualified without evidence

• Thinking an older colleague isn’t tech-savvy

• Preferring input from someone who shares your background or communication style

How Bias Impacts Relationships

In personal relationships, unchecked biases can:

• Prevent us from truly knowing or understanding others

• Create misjudgments and assumptions

• Lead to unintentional harm or microaggressions

• Make others feel dismissed, stereotyped, or invisible

  
  

When we allow bias to filter how we interpret someone's behavior, we may shut down conversations, limit trust, or even damage the relationship entirely. For instance, assuming a friend who struggles financially is irresponsible, rather than considering systemic barriers, can lead to judgment instead of empathy.

How Bias Shapes Workplace Culture

Bias in the workplace doesn’t just impact individuals. Bias impacts entire systems.

Unchecked workplace biases can:

• Influence hiring, promotion, and performance evaluation

• Silence diverse voices in meetings or decisions

• Reinforce inequities and create hostile environments

• Undermine psychological safety, innovation, and employee retention

  
  

Employees who don’t feel seen, heard, or valued are more likely to disengage or leave, taking their talents with them. Conversely, organizations that acknowledge and address bias are more likely to create equitable, inclusive, and high-performing teams.

Signs Bias May Be at Play

• You’re repeatedly favoring certain people for roles or opportunities

• You “just don’t click” with someone and haven’t explored why

• Someone is consistently being interrupted or overlooked in meetings

• You feel uncomfortable around people who are “different” from you and aren’t sure why

Becoming aware of bias isn’t about blame, but more about growth.

What Can We Do to Challenge Bias?

1. Acknowledge That Bias Exists: We all have bias. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s awareness.

2. Educate Yourself: Take an Implicit Association Test (IAT) through Harvard’s Project Implicit to uncover unconscious preferences. Read and listen to voices different from your own.

👉 https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html

3. Slow Down Decisions: When making a judgment or decision, ask yourself the following:

• “What facts am I basing this on?”

• “Could bias be influencing my perspective?”

• “Whose voice am I missing?”

  
  

4. Invite Feedback: Create space for others to share when they feel dismissed, judged, or excluded—without defensiveness. Commit to doing better.

5. Practice Empathy and Curiosity: Replace assumptions with questions. Get to know people as individuals. Expand your worldview.

Final Thoughts

Bias may be invisible, but its impact is not. By choosing to become more aware, we can create a ripple effect of strengthening our personal relationships and transforming the places we live and work.