What is the success delusion?

The success delusion is the mistaken belief successful people often have that their success is a direct result of their current behaviors, rather than other factors.

How does positive reinforcement cause the success delusion?

People are conditioned to repeat behaviors that are met with positive reinforcement. Successful leaders receive so much positive feedback that they believe their actions are the cause of their success, even if they aren't.

Why are senior leaders prone to the success delusion?

As leaders become more senior, their subordinates are more likely to give them positive feedback and agree with them, regardless of their actual performance. This is often a reaction to their authority, not the quality of their ideas.

The Success Delusion in Leadership

Understanding the Success Delusion

Any animal, including a human, will tend to repeat behavior that is followed by positive reinforcement. For people in leadership positions, this can lead to a common cognitive trap known as the success delusion. The more successful a leader becomes, the more positive reinforcement they receive, making them more susceptible to this fallacy.

The logic of the success delusion follows a simple but flawed pattern:

I behave this way. I am successful. Therefore, I must be successful because I behave this way.

This correlation-causation fallacy can stifle growth and insulate leaders from critical feedback, as they incorrectly attribute their success to their current habits and behaviors.

How Positive Reinforcement Masks Reality

The higher a leader moves up the organizational ladder, the more their employees and subordinates let them know how wonderful they are. Behavior is often followed by positive reinforcement, even when this behavior makes no sense. This dynamic creates an echo chamber where a leader’s ideas are always "wise" and their jokes are always funny.

A Lesson in Leadership

Marshall Goldsmith shares a story of a wise, experienced military leader sharing his learnings with a newly-minted General. The older leader asked the new General if he had recently noticed that when he tells jokes, everyone erupts into laughter, and when he says something "wise," everyone nods in solemn agreement.

"Why, yes, I have," the new General replied.

The older General laughed and offered a crucial piece of advice: "Let me help you. You aren’t that funny, and you aren’t that smart! It’s only that star on your shoulder. Don’t ever let it go to your head."

This anecdote serves as a powerful reminder for all leaders: the positive reinforcement you receive might be directed at your position, not your performance. Recognizing this is the first step to overcoming the success delusion.

Best Practice Institute

Best Practice Institute is the research organization behind Most Loved Workplace® certification, the SPARK Model, the Love of Workplace Index™ (LOWI™), and The Workplace Report.

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