During the month of August, I will step away from the usual economic matters. I will talk about behavior: about those little quirks of our mind that influence how we buy, work, argue, choose, and spend. I love the analysis of human behavior! In fact, that's why I like economics so much.The phenomenon I want to write about today is called the "spotlight effect". It consists of overestimating the attention others pay to us. We believe that our mistakes, our appearance, or our gestures are much more visible than they really are.We leave the house with a stain on our shirt and think that everyone has seen it. We say something foolish during a dinner and, when we go to sleep, we continue reconstructing the scene, even losing sleep over it. We put our foot in it during a work meeting, convinced that the next day the whole room is still thinking about it. Normally, almost no one has noticed any of these things.The explanation is as follows: each person lives at the center of their own movie. It's the movie of our lives. We hear our own thoughts, know our own insecurities, and remember every little mistake. It's hard for us to understand – and remember! – that others are starring in another movie, just as absorbing, in which we barely appear as supporting characters.The spotlight effect has economic consequences. We buy clothes to make an impression that perhaps no one will register. We choose a car thinking about what it will communicate. We pay more for a brand because we imagine it will be observed and interpreted. We also hide mistakes at work, avoid asking questions, and reject opportunities for fear of appearing clumsy. The supposed judgment of others conditions real decisions.Social networks have reinforced this illusion. We post a photo and measure the reactions of "lovers" and "haters". We turn our lives into a small shop window. However, those who look at the screen spend a few seconds on each image before returning to the subject that interests them most: themselves.In fact, a large part of social anxiety is born from confusing the intensity with which we live our lives with the attention we attract outside of ourselves. They are two completely different magnitudes.Understanding this bias brings immediate relief. We can dress more freely, ask what we don't know, and more naturally accept our stumbles. Most of our mistakes are forgotten much sooner than we think.We think we live under a spotlight. In reality, each person carries their own on top. And they are too busy illuminating themselves to carefully examine others.