Some bugs live in code. Others live in us. Developers hit the same invisible thinking traps over and over — misreading logs, assuming intent, pattern-matching incorrectly, or being absolutely certain something “can’t be the problem” right up until it is. These cognitive bugs shape architecture decisions, debugging habits, and the mistakes that only appear under pressure.

In this talk, we’ll explore the psychology of software engineering: why your brain misleads you, how cognitive shortcuts sabotage debugging, and why teams repeatedly make the same architectural mistakes even when they know better. Then we’ll look at practical engineering patterns that compensate: slow-thinking triggers, review rituals, guardrails, and workflow designs that protect you from your own mind.

It’s funny, a little uncomfortable, and extremely useful.