Could a Small Success Create a Larger Future Problem?
Rewards teach systems what to repeat.
Sometimes. Early success can reinforce behaviors that later become limitations.
A company discovers a marketing tactic that generates quick sales and gradually shifts most resources toward it.
The hidden mechanism is reward reinforcement. Success encourages repetition, even when conditions change.
The tactic works so well that alternative capabilities slowly disappear.
A success becomes risky when it teaches people that future conditions will always resemble present ones.
