Get your confidence on and move up

Overconfidence can move you up the social ladder much higher than your level of competence. Believing in yourself, believing you are better than others even when you are not, has a strong effect on other people. People will naturally give such shows of confidence more credence than justified. In effect, there is a huge social benefit to people who are confident, even over-confident, since they achieve positions of authority and respect they may not deserve.

Alphas have influence

Research into overconfidence reveals that people are frequently overconfident, believing themselves to be more skilled at their job or more socially adept or even more talented than they really are. In a work environment, the leaders, or alphas, enjoy more influence in team decisions and group discussions. Whether earned or not, they often receive promotions and positions of responsibility.

Even when unjustified

“Displays of confidence are given an inordinate amount of weight,” said Associate Professor Cameron Anderson who co-authored the report. “People are very easily swayed by others’ confidence even when that confidence is unjustified.”

Overconfidence is key

They researched the phenomenon by asking a group of MBAs to identify names of historical figures on a list of real and made up names. By checking off fictional names, it revealed their confidence that they knew things they did not. Overconfidence. At the end of the year, the researchers found out who had achieved high social status. There was a correlation between overconfidence and high social status.

“The most overconfident people were the most beloved,” Anderson explained.

Source: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, MedicalNewsToday