Where the Gap Comes From

Your self-perception is built on intent — what you meant, what you tried. Other people's is built on artifacts: a meeting comment, an email's tone, the deadline you missed once.

Three forces widen the gap:

• Asymmetric data: you see all your effort, they see only output.
• Recency bias: your last visible move outweighs years of quieter work.
• Confirmation lock-in: once they decide you are "the careful one," they filter out anything that says otherwise.