Who’s your Shyamalan?

Reposted from Marginal Revolution, a simple graphic on the life and times of M Night Shyamalan

One great movie, a couple of interesting ones… and ten years of mediocrity (or undelivered promise).  I stopped watching after The Village… but clearly the studio bosses believe there is a lot more promise than the public sees.

We see this all the time in cricket –  players persisted with beyond their sell-by date – because they did something spectacular a long time back.  And if they happened to do it on debut, the rope is longer.  Occasionally they deliver – and the thrill is higher –  our patience gets justified in our minds.

We see the equivalent in the workplace too.  People hired with great track records.  The star who cracked tough accounts once upon a time.  The hero who got the plant back on line.  The young grad who destroyed the competition.  Now happily ensconced in the bureaucracy and feeding off the system.

How long do we let people live off their past glory?