--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My theory is that it depends on how a…" description: "\"“My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her success. If someone believes that her success is due to her brilliance and talents alone, sh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg" --- # My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her… ![“My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her success. If someone believes that her success is due to her brilliance and talents alone, she may develop the Phenomenon. If, on the other hand, someone believes that her success is due to not only her attributes but also to the efforts and…” quote by Douglas Soat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg) > ““My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her success. If someone believes that her success is due to her brilliance and talents alone, she may develop the Phenomenon. If, on the other hand, someone believes that her success is due to not only her attributes but also to the efforts and success of others, as well as some possible good fortune (i.e., luck), she probably will not succumb to The Phenomenon. An”” Douglas Soat ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success attribution shapes mindset; believing solely in innate talent can breed arrogance, while crediting effort and luck fosters humility. **In simple terms:** Credit effort and luck. Key Takeaway Avoid talent-only mindset. Themes success attribution humility effort luck mindset Mood analytical encouraging Type Success:1 Success of others:1 Theory Depends:1 Believes Success:0 Success Believes:0 Explains Success:0 Talents Develop:0 When to use this quote - career development - team projects - personal achievement - leadership training Key Concepts self-awareness growth mindset social comparison psychology of achievement Questions to Reflect On - Do you credit effort? - How does luck affect your confidence? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on luck may diminish agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Success of others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success-of-others/) ## Related quotes > [Acting is not a science. Anybody who believes that their success exists in relation to their goals is deluding themselves; unless you think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-kilmer/acting-is-not-a-science-anybody-who-believes-that-their-success/) [Val Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-kilmer/) > [“The value of a physical theory depends upon its usefulness. In this sense the history of physical theories might be said to resemble the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/the-value-of-a-physical-theory-depends-upon-its-usefulness-in-this/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [Dogbert: So, Since Columbus is dead, you have no evidence that the earth is round. Dilbert: Look. You can Ask Senator John Glenn. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-adams/dogbert-so-since-columbus-is-dead-you-have-no-evidence-that-the-earth/) [Scott Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-adams/) > [“Caring for self is caring for others some of the time. Believing in self is believing in others almost all the time. Concern and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asuni-ladyzeal/caring-for-self-is-caring-for-others-some-of-the-time-believing-in/) Asuni LadyZeal > [I've never been the big recording star I'd love to be some day. I've had lots of hits off and on through the years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/i-ve-never-been-the-big-recording-star-i-d-love-to-be-some-day-i-ve/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [Backboneless employees are too ready to attribute the success of others to luck. Luck is usually the fruit of intelligent application. The man who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/backboneless-employees-are-too-ready-to-attribute-the-success-of/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [If you don't value your time, neither will others. Stop giving away your time and talents- start charging for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-garst/if-you-don-t-value-your-time-neither-will-others-stop-giving-away/) [Kim Garst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-garst/) > [The worst class of sum worked in the every-day world is cyphered by the diseased arithmeticians who are always in the rule of Subtraction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/the-worst-class-of-sum-worked-in-the-every-day-world-is-cyphered-by/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [“Those who envy the success of others are normally ignorant to the sacrafices, failures, and dedication that it took for them to get there”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-dejesus/those-who-envy-the-success-of-others-are-normally-ignorant-to-the/) [Noel DeJesus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-dejesus/) > [It is a deep-seated belief on the part of almost all Americans that their successes will be better assured as they help to build…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-hoffman/it-is-a-deep-seated-belief-on-the-part-of-almost-all-americans-that/) [Paul G. Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-hoffman/) > [“Celebrate the success of others and they will be happy to see you succeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/celebrate-the-success-of-others-and-they-will-be-happy-to-see-you/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [“Part of Wordsworth’s complaint was directed towards the smoke, congestion, poverty and ugliness of cities, but clean-air bills and slum clearance would not, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/part-of-wordsworth-s-complaint-was-directed-towards-the-smoke/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-so-strong-that-nothing-can-disturb-your-peace-of-mind-to-talk/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is enough room in eternity for everyone to be enlightened. We gain or lose nothing by the success of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/there-is-enough-room-in-eternity-for-everyone-to-be-enlightened-we/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [What are you doing for others?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/what-are-you-doing-for-others/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## More Success quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-always-say-there-are-two-things-to-be-successful-the-first-is/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [It's sort of the American way to go up and down the ladder, maybe several times in a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-stewart/it-s-sort-of-the-american-way-to-go-up-and-down-the-ladder-maybe/) [Martha Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-stewart/) > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [“am not suggesting that successes in academics, athletics, or vocation somehow stand outside God’s good plan. Learning and play are joys that God himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-paul-jones/am-not-suggesting-that-successes-in-academics-athletics-or-vocation/) [Timothy Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-paul-jones/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [“Success is for a man whose stories of sruggles and chalenges are inspirations to and up coming generation..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelly-sanaba-c/success-is-for-a-man-whose-stories-of-sruggles-and-chalenges-are/) Nelly sanaba .c > [If you hate yourself... The world will hate you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cv-pillay/if-you-hate-yourself-the-world-will-hate-you/) [Cv Pillay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cv-pillay/) > [At the very beginning, I was a page at Letterman, and I freelanced for any place that would let me write any word. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-schwartz/at-the-very-beginning-i-was-a-page-at-letterman-and-i-freelanced-for/) [Ben Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-schwartz/) > [I just enjoy winning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xander-bogaerts/i-just-enjoy-winning/) [Xander Bogaerts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xander-bogaerts/) > [Since I worked with Danny Boyle before on Slumdog Millionaire, we have great success and everything. So, when I first got the script and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/since-i-worked-with-danny-boyle-before-on-slumdog-millionaire-we-have/) [A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/winning-is-a-habit-unfortunately-so-is-losing/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [I don't want easy success. It's boring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sudeep/i-don-t-want-easy-success-it-s-boring/) [Sudeep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sudeep/) > [Focus on becoming more to achieve more while doing less](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-elrod/focus-on-becoming-more-to-achieve-more-while-doing-less/) [Hal Elrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-elrod/) [Browse all 41,540 Success quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her success. If someone believes that her success is due to her brilliance and talents alone, she may develop the Phenomenon. If, on the other hand, someone believes that her success is due to not only her attributes but also to the efforts and success of others, as well as some possible good fortune (i.e., luck), she probably will not succumb to The Phenomenon. An”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Soat" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-soat/my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-person-explains-her-success-if/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Success" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-soat/my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-person-explains-her-success-if/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/douglas-soat-140930_success_my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-pe_411198.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“My theory is that it depends on how a person explains her success. If someone believes that her success is…” — Douglas Soat", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Douglas Soat", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-soat/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“My theory is that it depends...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-soat/my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-person-explains-her-success-if/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-soat/my-theory-is-that-it-depends-on-how-a-person-explains-her-success-if/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```