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In this book, the authors discuss how most of the time, humans act out of selfish reasons and try to deceive themselves and others about these motives. However, it also discusses how being aware of these motives can have some benefits, such as being more self-aware and understanding our hypocrisies.
The human brain is designed to deceive itself to hide its motives from other people. Self-deception is a ploy our brains use to look good while behaving badly. It's also important to understand that our hidden motives are part of a larger cluster of concepts that go beyond just selfishness. For example, being competitive and social animals, we are also designed to deceive ourselves when it comes to our social status.
The research on self-deception points out that humans are "strangers to ourselves", and that we rely on self-deception to function smoothly in social situations. Many cognitive and social psychological studies have been conducted which suggest that self-deception is a common and effective mechanism by which we deceive others.
People are always judging each other. People might judge someone's motives based on their actions or thoughts. For example, someone might judge someone's motives for wanting to be friends with them, or for wanting to be their ally. People might also judge someone's motives for wanting to be a leader. People might think that someone's motives are selfish, but in reality, someone's motives might be pretty.
Why we hide our motives?
Social grooming is an act that primates use to cleanse themselves and build trust with one another. Primates groom each other because it helps them form alliances and improves their chances of survival. Grooming also has a political function- it conveys messages like "I'm willing to help you" and "I'm comfortable around you."
For example, Babbler males in groups compete for dominance and mates by helping each other and the group in a variety of ways, but the benefits to the individual are primarily prestige status and mating opportunities. Higher-ranked babblers often try to take over from the gamma male from guard duty, for example, and so by helping others they increase their chances of survival.
The author argues “Self Interest” as the root of this altruism. Baboons may groom each other without knowing the political consequences, and humans may disguise their intentions.
Competition
The trees in a dense forest compete to get the most sunlight and are therefore more likely to survive. Human beings are similar to redwoods in that their intelligence is most apparent in environments where there is competition. The social brain hypothesis is the idea that our ancestors got smart to compete against each other in social and political scenarios.
Social status is a measure of respect and influence in a group. It can be either dominance, which is the result of being able to intimidate others, or prestige, which is the result of being an impressive human specimen. Dominance is often associated with competition, while prestige is less competitive. Both forms of status can produce positive side effects, such as art, science, and technological innovation, but the prestige-seeking itself is more nearly a zero-sum game, which helps explain why we sometimes feel pangs of envy at even a close friend's success.
Norms
In a situation where someone else cuts in line ahead of you, you may feel an adrenaline rush, your heart races, and your face may flush red. This is a behavioral toolkit that humans inherit from our forager ancestors- behaviors and reactions that may not always make sense in a modern context, but are useful in situations where people are facing people they know rather than strangers on the street. Most norms, which are conventions about how members of a community should behave, are beneficial and help to suppress competition.

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