Is success a result of skill or luck?

Like it or not, we like to believe that our successes are due to our exceptional skills or hard work. At least we know that as long as we improve our skill, the chances of success will be higher. However, Michael Mauboussin said that it depends on the field or activity we are pursuing. A chess player relies on skill but a baseball player would need more luck.

If you believe that all successes are due to skill, the author would say that you are likely acting under self-serving attribution bias:

“It is common for us to attribute success to our own terrific skill, even in endeavors that are determined mostly by luck… On the other hand, we readily attribute failure to external causes, including bad luck.”

3 Rules to place an activity on luck-skill continuum

How to determine an activity ...