The Success to the Successful Pattern

Why some people keep getting ahead while others fall behind - and what to do about it

Marcus and Kevin started their careers at the same company on the same day. They had similar backgrounds, comparable skills, and equal enthusiasm for their work. Both were smart, hardworking, and well-liked by their colleagues.

Five years later, Marcus was a senior manager leading important projects, while Kevin was still doing essentially the same job he'd started with, watching opportunities go to other people.

"I just don't understand it," Kevin confided to a friend. "Marcus isn't any smarter than me. He doesn't work longer hours. But somehow he keeps getting the promotions, the interesting assignments, the recognition. It's like success just follows him around."

Kevin was witnessing one of the most powerful and frustrating patterns in human systems: Success to the Successful. Once someone gets a small initial advantage, the system tends to give them more advantages, which leads to even more advantages, creating a reinforcing cycle that makes success seem inevitable for some people and impossible for others.

The cruel irony? The initial advantage that sets this whole cycle in motion is often completely random.

 

The Rich Get Richer, The Poor Get Poorer

You've probably heard this phrase, but it's not just about money. The Success to the Successful pattern shows up everywhere:

In careers: People who get early opportunities get more opportunities, while those who don't fall further behind.

In relationships: People who have good relationships find it easier to build more good relationships, while socially isolated people become more isolated.

In health: People with good health habits find it easier to maintain good health, while people with health problems struggle more with every aspect of wellness.

In education: Students who start ahead stay ahead and pull further away, while students who start behind fall further behind.

In communities: Neighborhoods with advantages attract more advantages, while struggling communities face compounding disadvantages.

This isn't about individual merit or effort. It's about how systems work - and once you understand the pattern, you can learn to work with it instead of being mystified by it.

 

The Anatomy of the Success Spiral

Here's how the Success to the Successful pattern works:

 

Phase 1: The Initial Advantage

Someone gets a small head start through luck, timing, connections, or circumstances beyond their control.

Marcus's Initial Advantage: During his first month, Marcus happened to sit near the senior analyst who was working on a high-visibility project. During casual lunch conversations, Marcus learned about the project's challenges and made a few insightful comments. The analyst mentioned Marcus to the project manager as "someone who gets it."

This wasn't because Marcus was smarter or more deserving. He just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

 

Phase 2: The Resource Allocation

Because someone has shown initial success (or potential), the system allocates more resources to them - attention, opportunities, support, or investment.

Marcus's Resource Allocation: The project manager invited Marcus to join the high-visibility project team. This gave Marcus:

• Exposure to senior leadership
• Experience with strategic initiatives
• Access to high-performing colleagues
• Visibility for his contributions
• Learning opportunities about the business

Meanwhile, Kevin continued working on routine tasks with minimal visibility.

 

Phase 3: The Performance Enhancement

With better resources, the advantaged person naturally performs better, which the system interprets as evidence of their superior capability.

Marcus's Enhanced Performance: Working on the strategic project, Marcus developed new skills, built valuable relationships, and contributed to a successful outcome. His performance genuinely improved because he had access to better development opportunities.

 

Phase 4: The Attribution Error

The system attributes the enhanced performance to the person's inherent qualities rather than to the advantages they received.

The Attribution: Leadership saw Marcus's strong performance and concluded he was "high potential" and "leadership material." They attributed his success to his personal qualities rather than to the opportunities he'd been given.

 

Phase 5: The Cycle Acceleration

Based on the perceived superior performance, the system allocates even more resources to the successful person, accelerating their advantage.

Marcus's Acceleration: Because leadership saw Marcus as high potential, they:

• Gave him increasingly challenging assignments
• Included him in strategic planning discussions
• Sent him to executive development programs
• Introduced him to senior executives
• Fast-tracked him for promotion

 

Phase 6: The Gap Widening

As advantages compound, the gap between the initially successful and the others widens dramatically, making it appear that the successful person is fundamentally different.

The Widening Gap: After five years, Marcus had developed skills, relationships, and experiences that Kevin simply didn't have access to. The gap between them looked like evidence of fundamental differences in ability, when it actually reflected cumulative differences in opportunity.

 

The Invisible Hand of Advantage

What makes this pattern so powerful and so hard to see is that it operates through countless small, seemingly reasonable decisions:

Managers naturally give important projects to people who have succeeded on previous projects.

Networks expand more easily for people who already have strong networks.

Opportunities flow toward people who are already visible and connected.

Resources get allocated to people who have shown they can use them effectively.

Recognition goes to people who are already in positions to make recognizable contributions.

Each individual decision makes perfect sense. But collectively, they create a system that concentrates advantages on a smaller and smaller group of people while making it increasingly difficult for others to break in.

 

The Success Monopoly Game

Imagine playing Monopoly, but instead of everyone starting with the same amount of money, some players start with twice as much. The players with the early advantage can:

• Buy better properties sooner
• Build houses and hotels faster
• Collect more rent from other players
• Recover more quickly from setbacks
• Take bigger risks because they have more cushion

As the game progresses, the gap between the advantaged and disadvantaged players doesn't just remain - it accelerates. The rich players get richer faster, while the poor players get poorer faster.

Eventually, it looks like the successful players are just better at Monopoly, when really they're just benefiting from a structural advantage that compounds over time.

Your life operates on similar principles.

 

The Personal Success Spirals

Let's look at how this pattern shows up in everyday life:

 

The Confidence Spiral

Initial Advantage: Sarah happens to give a presentation on a day when she's well-rested and the audience is engaged.

Resource Allocation: Because the presentation went well, her manager asks her to present at a client meeting.

Performance Enhancement: The client presentation goes well because Sarah now has practice and confidence.

Attribution: Leadership sees Sarah as a strong communicator.

Cycle Acceleration: Sarah gets invited to present at conferences, joins the speakers' bureau, and becomes known as the "presentation expert."

Gap Widening: After two years, Sarah is dramatically more skilled at public speaking than her colleagues, not because she started with more talent, but because she got more opportunities to practice.

Meanwhile, colleagues who had bad experiences with early presentations avoid speaking opportunities, get less practice, and fall further behind.

 

The Social Capital Spiral

Initial Advantage: Tom's college roommate gets a job at a prestigious company and mentions Tom when a position opens up.

Resource Allocation: Tom gets an interview and lands the job.

Performance Enhancement: Working at a well-regarded company gives Tom credibility and access to high-quality projects.

Attribution: People assume Tom is exceptionally talented because he works at a prestigious firm.

Cycle Acceleration: Tom's network expands to include other high-achievers, he gets invited to industry events, and recruiters start calling him.

Gap Widening: After five years, Tom has a network and reputation that would be nearly impossible for someone without his initial advantage to replicate.

 

The Health and Energy Spiral

Initial Advantage: Lisa has good genetics and grew up in a family that cooked healthy meals.

Resource Allocation: Because Lisa has energy and feels good, she enjoys physical activities and joins sports teams.

Performance Enhancement: Regular exercise improves Lisa's mood, sleep, and overall wellbeing.

Attribution: People see Lisa as someone who's "naturally" healthy and disciplined.

Cycle Acceleration: Lisa's energy and positive mood make her more social, which leads to active friend groups and outdoor hobbies.

Gap Widening: By her thirties, Lisa has decades of healthy habits, a support network that encourages wellness, and the physical foundation to maintain an active lifestyle.

Meanwhile, people who started with health challenges find it increasingly difficult to build healthy routines because they're working against accumulated disadvantages.

 

The Systemic Unfairness

Here's what's deeply unfair about the Success to the Successful pattern: it makes success look like a personal quality when it's often a systemic advantage.

What it looks like: "Marcus is just more talented than Kevin." What's actually happening: "Marcus got early opportunities that developed his talents."

What it looks like: "Sarah is a natural presenter." What's actually happening: "Sarah got more chances to practice presenting."

What it looks like: "Tom has great business instincts." What's actually happening: "Tom has access to information and networks that inform his decisions."

What it looks like: "Lisa is disciplined about health." What's actually happening: "Lisa's environment and energy make healthy choices easier."

This misattribution has serious consequences because it:

• Makes successful people overconfident about their abilities
• Makes less successful people underestimate their potential
• Prevents systems from providing equal opportunities
• Justifies inequality as meritocracy

 

The Breaking Point Reality

The Success to the Successful pattern doesn't continue forever. Eventually, it hits limits:

Resource Constraints: There are only so many top positions, opportunities, or resources to go around.

Competence Ceilings: People who succeeded through advantage rather than systematic skill development eventually reach situations where advantages aren't enough.

System Disruption: External changes can reset the advantage game and create new opportunities for previously disadvantaged people.

Ethical Pushback: Organizations and communities sometimes recognize the pattern and deliberately intervene to create more equal opportunities.

But these breaking points can take years or decades to arrive, and many people never get to see them.

 

How to Work with the Pattern When You're Behind

If you're on the disadvantaged side of this pattern, here's how to work strategically:

 

Strategy 1: Create Your Own Initial Advantages

Since the pattern starts with small advantages, look for ways to create them for yourself:

Skill Development: Develop capabilities in areas where others aren't competing yet.

Network Building: Connect with people who are one or two steps ahead of you rather than trying to access the very top.

Value Creation: Find ways to contribute value before asking for opportunities.

Positioning: Put yourself in environments where advantages are more likely to occur.

Timing: Pay attention to moments when systems are changing and new advantage opportunities are emerging.

 

Strategy 2: Make Your Contributions Visible

One reason the pattern persists is that advantaged people's contributions are more visible than disadvantaged people's contributions.

Documentation: Keep track of your achievements and impact.

Communication: Share your successes and learnings with relevant people.

Advocacy: Find champions who can highlight your contributions to decision-makers.

Platform Building: Create ways for your work to be seen by people who allocate opportunities.

 

Strategy 3: Build Anti-Fragile Systems

Create personal systems that get stronger over time regardless of external advantages:

Learning Systems: Develop capabilities that compound regardless of your position.

Relationship Systems: Build diverse networks that provide mutual support.

Resource Systems: Create multiple sources of opportunity, income, or support.

Reputation Systems: Establish credibility that travels with you across different contexts.

 

Strategy 4: Change the Game

Sometimes the best strategy is to find or create systems with different rules:

New Industries: Enter emerging fields where advantages haven't yet concentrated.

Different Metrics: Compete on dimensions where you have natural strengths.

Alternative Paths: Find routes to success that don't depend on traditional advantage systems.

System Creation: Start your own organization, initiative, or community with more equitable rules.

 

How to Work with the Pattern When You're Ahead

If you're on the advantaged side of this pattern, here's how to be strategic and ethical:

 

Strategy 1: Recognize Your Advantages

Acknowledge the role that advantages (not just merit) have played in your success:

Opportunity Audit: Identify the key breaks, connections, or timing that accelerated your progress.

Resource Recognition: Notice the support, information, or resources you've had access to.

Attribution Accuracy: Give appropriate credit to the advantages you've received rather than attributing everything to personal qualities.

 

Strategy 2: Use Advantages Responsibly

Since you have access to resources and opportunities, use them thoughtfully:

Skill Development: Develop genuine competencies that justify your positions.

Value Creation: Ensure that your success creates value for others, not just yourself.

Mentorship: Help others develop the capabilities they need to succeed.

System Improvement: Use your influence to make systems more equitable.

 

Strategy 3: Extend Advantages to Others

Break the pattern by sharing opportunities:

Opportunity Sharing: When you get opportunities you can't take, recommend others who could benefit.

Network Opening: Introduce people to your contacts when it could help their development.

Platform Providing: Give others chances to showcase their capabilities.

Advocacy: Speak up for people whose contributions might otherwise go unnoticed.

 

Strategy 4: Build Anti-Fragile Success

Create success that doesn't depend entirely on continued systemic advantages:

Competence Development: Build skills that would serve you even without your current advantages.

Value Addition: Focus on contributions that genuinely help others succeed.

System Independence: Develop capabilities that would transfer to different systems or contexts.

Legacy Building: Create things of lasting value rather than just accumulating personal advantages.

 

The Organizational Intervention

Organizations that understand this pattern can intervene to create more equitable systems:

 

Opportunity Distribution Systems

Rotation Programs: Ensure that high-visibility opportunities are distributed among different people over time.

Skills-Based Assignment: Allocate opportunities based on skill development needs rather than past performance alone.

Mentorship Programs: Pair high-potential people with experienced mentors regardless of their initial advantages.

Cross-Functional Exposure: Give everyone access to different parts of the organization.

 

Recognition Systems

Contribution Tracking: Systematically document and recognize different types of contributions.

360-Degree Feedback: Gather input from multiple perspectives to identify hidden talent.

Achievement Celebration: Publicly acknowledge successes from people at all levels.

Story Sharing: Tell stories about different paths to success within the organization.

 

Development Systems

Universal Development: Provide growth opportunities to everyone, not just "high potentials."

Skill Building: Offer training and development that builds capabilities systematically.

Feedback Culture: Create environments where everyone gets honest, helpful feedback.

Experiment Encouragement: Allow people to try new things and learn from both successes and failures.

 

The Community-Level Pattern

The Success to the Successful pattern operates at community levels too:

Resource Concentration: Successful communities attract more investment, better services, and higher-quality institutions.

Brain Drain: Talented people from struggling communities often leave for more successful communities.

Infrastructure Advantage: Better infrastructure makes everything easier, from business development to quality of life.

Network Effects: Successful communities have better connections to opportunities, information, and resources.

Policy Benefits: Successful communities often have more political influence and get better policy treatment.

Breaking this pattern at the community level requires deliberate intervention:

Investment Redistribution: Directing resources toward communities that need them most.

Talent Retention: Creating reasons for capable people to stay in or return to struggling communities.

Infrastructure Development: Building the physical and social infrastructure that enables success.

Network Building: Connecting struggling communities to broader opportunity networks.

Policy Reform: Changing policies that systematically advantage already-successful communities.

 

Your Pattern Awareness Project

Here's how to develop awareness of Success to the Successful patterns in your own life:

Week 1: Map your advantages. What early breaks, connections, or circumstances gave you opportunities others might not have had?

Week 2: Identify where you might be disadvantaged. What patterns do you see where others seem to get opportunities that don't come to you?

Week 3: Look for the pattern in your organization or community. Where do you see advantages concentrating? What barriers prevent others from accessing opportunities?

Week 4: Design one small intervention. What could you do to either create advantages for yourself or extend advantages to others?

 

The Pattern Breaker's Perspective

People who understand the Success to the Successful pattern think differently about success and fairness:

They recognize that success is often systemic rather than purely individual.

They work strategically to create or access advantages rather than just working harder.

They intervene ethically when they have advantages, sharing opportunities and resources.

They design systems that create more equitable opportunity distribution.

They understand that breaking these patterns benefits everyone, not just the disadvantaged.

 

The Long-Term Vision

The goal isn't to eliminate success or make everything equal. The goal is to create systems where:

• Initial advantages don't become permanent advantages
• Everyone gets opportunities to develop their potential
• Success is based more on contribution and less on accumulated privilege
• Systems actively work to prevent excessive advantage concentration
• People recognize the role of both effort and opportunity in success

 

The Success Pattern Paradox

Here's the paradox: the Success to the Successful pattern is both deeply unfair and completely natural. It emerges automatically in any system where resources are limited and past performance influences future opportunities.

Understanding this paradox helps you:

• Work with the pattern when you can't change it
• Intervene in the pattern when you have influence
• Neither blame yourself for disadvantages nor take full credit for advantages
• Focus on creating value rather than just accumulating advantages

 

The Systems Thinking Insight

The Success to the Successful pattern perfectly illustrates why systems thinking matters:

Individual thinking focuses on personal qualities and individual efforts.

Systems thinking reveals how structures and patterns create the conditions where individual efforts succeed or fail.

Individual solutions try to change people's behavior or motivation.

Systems solutions change the structures that determine whose behavior gets rewarded.

Individual blame focuses on why some people succeed and others don't.

Systems understanding focuses on how to create conditions where more people can succeed.

Once you see this pattern, you can't unsee it. And once you understand how it works, you can start working with it rather than being mystified by it.

Welcome to seeing one of the most powerful invisible forces shaping success and failure in human systems.

In our next article, we'll explore another common pattern - "The Limits to Growth" - which explains why systems that seem to be working perfectly often suddenly hit walls and stop improving.