From Bogeys to Blown Fuses: Navigating Self-Doubt [E239]

From Bogeys to Blown Fuses: Navigating Self-Doubt [E239]

From Diagnosing the Aftermarket A to Z by Matt Fanslow

June 3, 2026 · 26 min · Episode 239

About this episode

Matt Fanslow discusses self-doubt and cognitive psychology through the lens of personal accomplishments and diagnostics in the automotive industry.

Thanks to our Partners, Pico Technology, and Autel Watch Full Video Episode In this episode, Matt starts on the golf course and ends up right back in the service bay, because apparently, even a decent round of golf can turn into a cognitive psychology lesson. After shooting a personally strong nine-hole score, Matt catches himself doing what many technical and mechanical specialists do every day: ignoring the accomplishment and obsessing over the shots, tests, tools, or decisions that could have been better. That leads into a discussion of discounting the positive, upward counterfactual thinking, hindsight bias, expert bias, and the curse of knowledge. The point is not to stop improving. The point is to stop rewriting reality after the fact. A two-hour intermittent short diagnosis may feel “obvious” once the problem is found, but it was not obvious when the vehicle came in. The same applies to repairs, removals, procedures, and every job where experience only becomes obvious after you earn it. Matt also closes with some listener-driven Mount Rushmore talk, including an all-time basketball starting five featuring Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, LeBron James, and Hakeem…

People in this episode

Host: Matt Fanslow

Topics covered

  • self-doubt
  • cognitive psychology
  • discounting the positive
  • hindsight bias
  • expert bias
  • diagnostics
  • reflection

Keywords

  • self-doubt
  • cognitive psychology
  • diagnostics
  • hindsight bias
  • expert bias
  • reflection
  • automotive

Sponsors

Pico Technology, Autel

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