--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People exaggerate their own skills. they…" description: "\"People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic about their prospects and overconfident about their guesses, including which managers to pick.\"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png" --- # People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic… ![“People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic about their prospects and overconfident about their guesses, including which managers to pick.” quote by Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png) > “People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic about their prospects and overconfident about their guesses, including which managers to pick.” [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People overestimate their abilities, leading to overconfidence and poor decisions, especially in hiring. **In simple terms:** Overconfidence skews self‑assessment and choices. Key Takeaway Seek external feedback to calibrate confidence. Themes cognition bias decision‑making confidence Mood analytical pragmatic Type economic psychological When to use this quote - job interviews - team building - personal development Key Concepts overconfidence bias self‑assessment selection errors Questions to Reflect On - What steps can you take to test your assumptions? - How can organizations reduce overconfidence in hiring? A Different Perspective Bias can be hard to recognize without data. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management/) [Optimistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimistic/) [Overconfident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overconfident/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Skills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skills/) ## Related quotes > [I think the people who've been the most overconfident in our business in the last decade have been the people that called themselves risk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/i-think-the-people-who-ve-been-the-most-overconfident-in-our-business/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [People exaggerate their confidence in their plans - something we call the planning fallacy... The existence of the plan tends to induce overconfidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/people-exaggerate-their-confidence-in-their-plans-something-we-call/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) > [“People lie. People exaggerate. They view the world through tainted glass, yet see themselves in a gilded mirror.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-dalglish/people-lie-people-exaggerate-they-view-the-world-through-tainted/) [David Dalglish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-dalglish/) > [“The idea of happiness is great but most people exaggerate the sense and accomplishments of happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankit-samrat/the-idea-of-happiness-is-great-but-most-people-exaggerate-the-sense/) [Ankit Samrat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankit-samrat/) > [“Old people always exaggerate the danger and lawlessness of their youth, thought Cam, because their adult lives have become so boring.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-wunder/old-people-always-exaggerate-the-danger-and-lawlessness-of-their/) [Wendy Wunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-wunder/) > [“People sometimes exaggerate this business of humility. It’s a question simply of knowing who you are, where you are, and that the world will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-nadal/people-sometimes-exaggerate-this-business-of-humility-it-s-a-question/) [Rafael Nadal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-nadal/) > [People exaggerate Corruption in Nigeria. It is not even our first or second problem, maybe the third](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atiku-abubakar/people-exaggerate-corruption-in-nigeria-it-is-not-even-our-first-or/) Atiku Abubakar > [People exaggerate both happiness and unhappiness; we are never so fortunate nor so unfortunate as people say we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/people-exaggerate-both-happiness-and-unhappiness-we-are-never-so/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [It's nonsense to say money doesn't buy happiness, but people exaggerate the extent to which more money can buy more happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/it-s-nonsense-to-say-money-doesn-t-buy-happiness-but-people/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) > [People exaggerate the value of things they haven't got everybody worships truth and unselfishness because they have no experience with them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/people-exaggerate-the-value-of-things-they-haven-t-got-everybody/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“Just as the Hare was overconfident in its speed, so the developers are overconfident in their ability to remain productive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-martin/just-as-the-hare-was-overconfident-in-its-speed-so-the-developers-are/) [Robert C. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-martin/) > [I come from an overly confident place. But I'm overconfident because of feelings of inferiority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-midler/i-come-from-an-overly-confident-place-but-i-m-overconfident-because/) [Bette Midler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-midler/) > [The key is not being overconfident. You should not think that because I'm a top-ranked player, I will win this game. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-v-sindhu/the-key-is-not-being-overconfident-you-should-not-think-that-because/) [P. V. Sindhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-v-sindhu/) > [We live in a country where there is a lot of animosity. If your politics is radical it antagonises. People might think I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/owen-jones/we-live-in-a-country-where-there-is-a-lot-of-animosity-if-your/) [Owen Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/owen-jones/) > [I have a great record against anybody right now, so it doesn't really matter who I play in the final. I'll be in there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/i-have-a-great-record-against-anybody-right-now-so-it-doesn-t-really/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) ## More by Richard Thaler > [The Nobel Prize is going to be 'fun money' - for an occasion, when my wife and I want a $50 bottle of wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/the-nobel-prize-is-going-to-be-fun-money-for-an-occasion-when-my-wife/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [In some ways, the finding that financial education doesn't provide long-term payoffs is hardly surprising. After all, how much do you remember from your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/in-some-ways-the-finding-that-financial-education-doesn-t-provide/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [Fortunately, economists open to new ways of thinking are finding novel ways to use supposedly irrelevant factors to make the world a better place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/fortunately-economists-open-to-new-ways-of-thinking-are-finding-novel/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [If people just put away what's left at the end of the month, that's a recipe for failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/if-people-just-put-away-what-s-left-at-the-end-of-the-month-that-s-a/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [The wealth in many large estates has never been taxed because it is largely in the form of unrealized - therefore untaxed - capital…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/the-wealth-in-many-large-estates-has-never-been-taxed-because-it-is/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [The lesson of my field, behavioral economics, is that we need to understand the ways in which we differ from the rational human assumed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/the-lesson-of-my-field-behavioral-economics-is-that-we-need-to/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [I think behavioral economists don't have any more of an explanation about the rise of Trump than anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/i-think-behavioral-economists-don-t-have-any-more-of-an-explanation/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [There are cases when I can make myself better off by restricting my future choices and commit myself to a specific course of action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/there-are-cases-when-i-can-make-myself-better-off-by-restricting-my/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [For amateur golfers, I think one of the biggest mistakes is to model their play on professionals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/for-amateur-golfers-i-think-one-of-the-biggest-mistakes-is-to-model/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [he card companies will often, as a courtesy, honor that credit card, but hit you with a penalty. And you keep swiping your card…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/he-card-companies-will-often-as-a-courtesy-honor-that-credit-card-but/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [We all need a lot of humility, and especially about the economy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/we-all-need-a-lot-of-humility-and-especially-about-the-economy/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [Social Security may be the most beloved of all the government's programs, partly because it requires so little thinking. You pay taxes while you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/social-security-may-be-the-most-beloved-of-all-the-government-s/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [If you're trading individual securities, you're almost certainly making a mistake. Because most professional managers can't outperform their benchmarks, and there's little reason to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/if-you-re-trading-individual-securities-you-re-almost-certainly/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [A nudge is some feature of the environment that changes the behaviour of humans but would not change the behaviour of rational economic agents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/a-nudge-is-some-feature-of-the-environment-that-changes-the-behaviour/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) > [One reason for high health care costs is that patients fail to follow their treatment regimen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/one-reason-for-high-health-care-costs-is-that-patients-fail-to-follow/) [Richard Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) [Explore all 141 Richard Thaler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/) ## More Including quotes > [With young kids (I have four including the newborn) times passes weirdly for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-s-kemp/with-young-kids-i-have-four-including-the-newborn-times-passes/) [Paul S. Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-s-kemp/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [We plan to eliminate the state of Israel and establish a purely Palestinian state. We will make life unbearable for Jews by psychological warfare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasser-arafat/we-plan-to-eliminate-the-state-of-israel-and-establish-a-purely/) [Yasser Arafat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasser-arafat/) > [I believe that simple, consistent shifts in our thinking and actions can lead to the miraculous in all aspects of our daily lives, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-bernstein/i-believe-that-simple-consistent-shifts-in-our-thinking-and-actions/) [Gabrielle Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-bernstein/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [Fossil fuels, including oil, are running out and supplies are getting harder to find. If we do nothing, prices will continue to rise and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-powell/fossil-fuels-including-oil-are-running-out-and-supplies-are-getting/) [Lucy Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-powell/) > [One of the Internet's highest-profile companies, Priceline once dreamed of transforming the way consumer goods are bought and sold by offering customers the chance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-berenson/one-of-the-internet-s-highest-profile-companies-priceline-once/) [Alex Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-berenson/) > [Any home where there is love constitutes a family and all families should have the same legal rights, including the right to marry and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/any-home-where-there-is-love-constitutes-a-family-and-all-families/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [Changing is not just changing the things outside of us. First of all we need the right view that transcends all notions including of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/changing-is-not-just-changing-the-things-outside-of-us-first-of-all/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I like everything with a heaping dose of feminitity, including my cell phone. I created this phone for the classic woman, who like me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimora-lee-simmons/i-like-everything-with-a-heaping-dose-of-feminitity-including-my-cell/) [Kimora Lee Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimora-lee-simmons/) > [Its up to any government to decide how to react to the denial of basic human rights anywhere in the world, including Egypt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/its-up-to-any-government-to-decide-how-to-react-to-the-denial-of/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [Many people, including myself, thought of Jobs as an inventor, an Edison-like figure, but he wasn't. I did a documentary on James Brown recently;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/many-people-including-myself-thought-of-jobs-as-an-inventor-an-edison/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [Azerbaijan unleashed the war, and was defeated in that war; Azerbaijan asked for truce (including from the Commander of Karabakh's forces) and later started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serzh-sargsyan/azerbaijan-unleashed-the-war-and-was-defeated-in-that-war-azerbaijan/) [Serzh Sargsyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serzh-sargsyan/) > [Who on earth is going to use 'utilize' in a text message, a whopping seven characters including the always-hard-to-type 'z,' when you can say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/who-on-earth-is-going-to-use-utilize-in-a-text-message-a-whopping/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [Humans suffer from self-centred notions as to the nature of life. Humans assume that alien life forms should conform to standards that match our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-perry/humans-suffer-from-self-centred-notions-as-to-the-nature-of-life/) [Steve Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-perry/) Browse all 2,408 Including quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic about their prospects and overconfident about their guesses, including which managers to pick.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Thaler" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they-are-optimistic-about-their/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Including" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they-are-optimistic-about-their/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcc/richard-thaler-3060_including_people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they_3084925.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People exaggerate their own skills. they are optimistic about their prospects and overconfident about their…” — Richard Thaler", "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": "Richard Thaler", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thaler/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "People exaggerate their own skills. they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they-are-optimistic-about-their/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thaler/people-exaggerate-their-own-skills-they-are-optimistic-about-their/#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 } } ] } ```