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It seems to me that CEOs are often hired specifically for their ability to cheat and get away with it.

bdcravens 7y ago
Confirmation bias - media always reports on bad apples.
jmpman 7y ago
I remember a study conducted by the military to determine what characteristics predicted leadership. Ultimately it concluded that the ability to tell a believable lie had the best correlation. Extrapolate that fun fact as you wish.
- phkahler 7y ago
  Your comment forced me to think. People are all imperfect. People in competitive environments are unforgiving. That means covering your shortcoming or mistakes is important, and that's inherently deceptive.
  - ivm 7y ago
    But from here one can conclude that wealthy and powerful people are inherently immoral because otherwise they wouldn't be able to attain and maintain these positions.
    - jmpman 7y ago
      I’d suggest reading The Prince.
- domnomnom 7y ago
  I wonder if it just has more to do with confidence. I don't think there are any good indicators of someone lying.
  - toasterlovin 7y ago
    > I don't think there are any good indicators of someone lying. Some people are much better at lying than others. I know because I am absolutely terrible at lying and anybody who knows me reasonably well can tell when I'm lying. And I've come across plenty of people who are great at it.
- Theodores 7y ago
  Extrapolated: War is the art of deception and the first casualty of war is the truth.
- nkurz 7y ago
  I'd be interested if you can remember any more details that would help me find this study. I tried searching based on the terms you used here, but didn't find anything that seemed to match.
- bubble_talk 7y ago
  Unfortunately, when it comes to leadership, the key word in that sentence is "believable" and not "lie". The vast majority of people are just waiting for someone to come and convince them that the reason they don't get what they want in life is because of "that outsider over there", and not their own shortcomings. The cheats just figure this out and supply an item which is already in tremendous demand - absolution of responsibility. Of course, over time the cheats will think they can get away with anything and go on to use this skill in all aspects of their life. And some get caught, but not enough for the cycle to stop repeating. :-)

Confirmation bias - media always reports on bad apples.

I remember a study conducted by the military to determine what characteristics predicted leadership. Ultimately it concluded that the ability to tell a believable lie had the best correlation. Extrapolate that fun fact as you wish.

phkahler 7y ago
Your comment forced me to think. People are all imperfect. People in competitive environments are unforgiving. That means covering your shortcoming or mistakes is important, and that's inherently deceptive.
- ivm 7y ago
  But from here one can conclude that wealthy and powerful people are inherently immoral because otherwise they wouldn't be able to attain and maintain these positions.
  - jmpman 7y ago
    I’d suggest reading The Prince.
domnomnom 7y ago
I wonder if it just has more to do with confidence. I don't think there are any good indicators of someone lying.
- toasterlovin 7y ago
  > I don't think there are any good indicators of someone lying. Some people are much better at lying than others. I know because I am absolutely terrible at lying and anybody who knows me reasonably well can tell when I'm lying. And I've come across plenty of people who are great at it.
Theodores 7y ago
Extrapolated: War is the art of deception and the first casualty of war is the truth.
nkurz 7y ago
I'd be interested if you can remember any more details that would help me find this study. I tried searching based on the terms you used here, but didn't find anything that seemed to match.
bubble_talk 7y ago
Unfortunately, when it comes to leadership, the key word in that sentence is "believable" and not "lie". The vast majority of people are just waiting for someone to come and convince them that the reason they don't get what they want in life is because of "that outsider over there", and not their own shortcomings. The cheats just figure this out and supply an item which is already in tremendous demand - absolution of responsibility. Of course, over time the cheats will think they can get away with anything and go on to use this skill in all aspects of their life. And some get caught, but not enough for the cycle to stop repeating. :-)