Asymmetric Attention

The phenomenon of unintentionally minimizing the work and contribution of others. The asymmetry lies in the way we tend to value our own contributions more highly because we spend more time thinking about them. Others’ contributions, however, are diminished because we know less and think about them less often.

It’s like seeing their work through a keyhole, assuming that whatever we can see through that keyhole is all that exists. This is why we ask others, “How hard can it be?”