FIELD_GUIDE_ENTRY
The Discount Script
| Program family | Dark program / Old script |
| Key | discount-script |
| Known instances | 3 |
| Status | ACTIVE |
“My wins were luck, timing, or someone being nice — my failures are the real data.” The imposter ledger only accepts deposits in one column.
- Compliments get deflected in under three seconds, reflexively.
- You describe your role in wins as “helping out” and in losses as “my fault”.
- The promotion feels like an admin error someone will notice.
The impostor cycle, described by Pauline Clance in 1985, is the self-reinforcing loop that keeps imposter feelings alive despite repeated success: an achievement task triggers anxi
Discounting is the habit of dismissing objective proof of competence — praise, grades, promotions, publications — so it never updates the self-image. It is core enough to the impos
The impostor phenomenon runs on a lopsided attribution pattern: successes are explained by external, unstable causes — luck, timing, charm, an easy grader, someone's oversight — wh
- Luck doesn't repeat quarterly. Skill does — and mine has receipts.
- I accept the compliment with two words: thank you.
- If a colleague did what I did, I'd call it excellent. Same standard applies.
STATUS: READY_TO_INSTALL
“Anyone could have done it”
Start this exact wipe in the app →RELATED CONTENT
SCRIPTS
- I Don't Really Deserve This Role: What That Thought Does at Work
- Anyone Could Have Done It: When Your Win Feels Too Easy to Count
- “They’re just being nice”: when praise feels unreliable
- I just got lucky: when success feels accidental
- Missing quota proved I'm a fake: when one bad month rewrites everything
- Their success is just luck: when someone else's win feels undeserved
- When You Credit Others but Blame Yourself | Leadership
- Writing resignation letters when things are finally going well
SCIENCE
- The Science of Imposter Phenomenon in Software Engineering: Why It's Not Just Self-Doubt
- The Science of the Imposter Phenomenon: Named in 1978, Still Misread Today
- The Science of Gambling Distortions: Why Chasing Losses Is a Brain Bug, Not a Character Flaw
- The Science of Sales Quota Shame: Why a Missed Number Feels Like a Verdict
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