@philosophyminis: Parkinson's Law says that ‘work will expand to fill the time available for its completion.’ So an essay, or a project, could take a week, or a month, depending on its deadline. The job will fill the space you give it. And it turns out the same is true for people. Because if we expect somebody to be brilliant, they will rise to it. If we expect them to be a disappointment, they will sink to meet it. This is known as the Pygmalion Effect and its opposite, the Golem Effect. In ancient Greek mythology, Pygmalion was a sculptor who created a statue so perfect that he fell in love with it. Being a devoted acolyte of Aphrodite, the goddess turned his statue into a real woman, whom he then married in a story with a dubious moral message. But in the 1960s, the psychologist Rosenthal and Jacobson turned this into a book called 'Pygmalion in the Classroom.' What their research showed was that a teacher's expectations of a student can hugely influence their results. A teacher's expectations can elevate or diminish a student. Of course, this goes way beyond the classroom because people are more likely to behave honestly, kindly, and generously if they are seen as honest, kind, and generous people. Most people will try impossibly hard to meet the expectations and trust other people put in them. But the Pygmalion effect is also about the narratives that live in our heads. If you see yourself as intelligent, patient, or any virtue whatsoever, you are more likely to be so. Fortune doesn't favour the brave, but fortune favours those who see themselves as brave. In other words, we can all be as brilliant as we want to be, if only we see ourselves as brilliant.

Jonny Thomson

Open In TikTok:

Region: GB

Monday 06 July 2026 13:42:29 GMT