In 2017, at my wife’s insistence, we took a vacation to an all-inclusive resort in Cancun. Since I traveled so much back then, I wanted somewhere without crowds and, selfishly, without kids. After years of Disney trips, I was ready for a break surrounded only by adults. An all-inclusive sounded perfect.
Until I read an article in USA Today. It detailed cases of alcohol poisoning at all-inclusive resorts in Cancun. Over 30 people reported getting sick after drinking at the resort bars. Some blacked out and later discovered they had been sexually assaulted or robbed. Others wound up in hospitals, forced to withdraw cash from ATMs to pay for treatment. It shook me.
Then I read about gang shootouts in downtown Cancun that left innocent bystanders, including tourists, dead or wounded.
Suddenly, the trip felt dangerous. I travel internationally, but I had real reservations about this one.
We went anyway.
What I realized was that 30 poisoning cases over several years is insignificant when you factor in the sheer volume—over 100 all-inclusive resorts in Cancun and Playa del Carmen, and hundreds of thousands of tourists, all drinking and having a good time.
I survived. Even with alcohol (though I still avoided the water). I’m here to tell the tale.
And that tale is about Availability Heuristic Bias.
This bias happens when we let fear take root and then go looking for evidence that validates it. I was afraid of being shot or poisoned, so I read every article I could find on those dangers—feeding my fear instead of weighing it against reality. A little simple math would have eased my mind.
But don’t we all do this? We latch onto something we fear, then seek out news—even credible news—that confirms it. We justify our avoidance or inaction.
And in doing so, we often miss out on experiences that are perfectly safe and could even be fun.
So here’s the takeaway: Fear is cheap. Facts take work. Don’t let what’s loud and available in your head rob you of what’s possible in your life. Run the numbers. Check the source. And when the math makes sense, go. Live. Enjoy it.
Your next breakthrough—or your next great memory—might be waiting on the other side of the fear you almost talked yourself into believing.