There are extremes on both scales, to be sure. What makes the (far more common) negative outliers most vexing to deal with is not just that they're +10x-ers in

There are extremes on both scales, to be sure. What makes the (far more common) negative outliers most vexing to deal with is not just that they're +10x-ers in their own minds -- but that they're mistaken for such in the minds of upper managers (and/or their investors) -- for a great, great while, in many cases. And having to explain to someone that they need to "flip" their +/- 10x bit on one of their "star performers" can be a really, really awkward situation to be in.