Column "Nine To Five": Blind Hens, Great Minds

The analysis examines why German professionals often downplay their successes. The blame is placed on the language, which dismisses achievements as mere coincidence. Anyone planning a career or an MBA abroad must shed this understatement to meet global standards. Looking beyond one's own borders helps counteract excessive modesty.

Column Nine To Five: Blind Hens, Great Minds

In a current analysis from October 25, 2026, the column Nine To Five deals with the phenomenon of professional self-promotion and the question of why, particularly in Germany, many high achievers tend to systematically undervalue their own successes. The article examines the thesis that this preemptive modesty and the downplaying of one's own competencies could be deeply rooted in the German language and culture. For specialists and executives aiming for an international career or an MBA, this cultural imprint represents a hurdle, as global business standards often demand a significantly more proactive communication of one's own strengths.

The Linguistic Anchoring of Understatement

The German language holds numerous idioms that attribute success to chance or external circumstances rather than one's own effort. Phrases such as that of the "blind hen that also finds a grain" suggest that professional breakthroughs are often less the result of strategy and diligence and more of lucky coincidences. According to the analysis, these linguistic patterns shape the self-image of many employees. While in other cultures the proactive marketing of one's own expertise is considered a sign of professionalism, in the German-speaking world it is often misunderstood as boasting. This leads to even highly qualified individuals hesitating to clearly state their achievements.

Challenge for International Management Careers

For MBA applicants and graduates of management programs, this observation is of particular relevance. A significant part of the education at international business schools consists of developing one's own leadership persona and communicating it convincingly. Those who have learned in this country to disguise successes as team efforts or to devalue them through clichés of modesty often fall behind in competition with graduates from the Anglo-American or Asian regions. In these regions, the ability to formulate one's own value contribution precisely and confidently is assumed to be a core competence of a leader. Looking beyond national horizons is therefore not just a geographical necessity, but above all a mental one.