30 Useful Concepts about Bullshit

The piece presents thirty concise concepts that map the ways we generate and spread bullshit in politics, media, work, and everyday life. Each concept, from simple bullshitting to the Vibes Theory of Money, serves as a mental shortcut for spotting hidden agendas and status-driven narratives.

Key examples include self-bullshitting-rationalizing bad actions to avoid guilt, confabulation-fabricating explanations when we don't know why we acted, and social brain theory, which argues our enlarged brains evolved to manage status games rather than pure tool use. The article also names mechanisms like anti-status, sacred value, and the opinion game that let groups mask their true motives behind noble sounding labels.

For a technical leader, recognizing these patterns means cutting through jargon-filled meetings, spotting when a status game is inflating estimates, and defusing conflict that stems from hidden prestige contests. By applying the models, you can steer discussions toward concrete trade-offs, improve decision-making, and keep the team focused on real progress instead of invisible social signaling.