Looking at the Full Picture

To counter survivorship bias, deliberately seek out the missing data:

• For every success story, ask: "How many tried the same thing and failed?"
• Look for base rates — what percentage of people who attempt X actually succeed?
• Be skeptical of "this is what successful people do" articles that ignore what unsuccessful people also do
• Study failures as carefully as successes — they often share the same strategies
• Remember that visibility is not evidence — you see winners because losers disappear.