Sycophancy is a transactional dynamic that requires a willing consumer. While flatterers may initiate the behavior out of self-interest or submissiveness, their actions only persist when the recipient actively enables them, whether through active encouragement or passive indulgence. The moment an authority figure demands strict professionalism and rejects unearned praise, sycophancy loses its utility and immediately vanishes. Ultimately, no one can be successfully flattered or manipulated unless their own ego craves it. Sycophancy not only brings down the authority’s standing, but it degrades the whole system as well. When other people within the system see flattery being rewarded over genuine merit, appeasement-oriented behavior quickly becomes the default strategy for survival and success within an organization. This creates a ripple effect across the entire system: capable individuals lose their zeal to do the right thing, abandoning integrity and hard work once they realize that ego-stroking yields better outcomes than competence.