I find it useful to think of my brain's motivations as different than my own. Sounds weird, but hey, whatever works.
As many have pointed out (*Why Choose This Book?: How We Make Decisions 
*, for example), the brain is *expensive*. It is about 2% of your body weight but consumes about 20% of available energy (glucose).
As a consequence, it's reasonable to think of the brain as an organ that has evolved to take efficient shortcuts whenever it can. Reason and consciousness are "expansion packs" that are mainly for solving problems that can't be solved more cheaply. (See also Your Body Is a Gross Kludge.)
As a result, it's depressingly easy to *think* we're reasoning creatures and ignore the degree to which our decisions and reactions are influenced by mental activities not under our control. Thinking of my brain as separate from *me* helps me (or it?) be more skeptical.
See Royce 1970 for an example.