Credit Theft
Credit theft removes your name from your contribution.
Clear definition
What it means
Your work is reframed as their work, their leadership, or their final direction.
Common situation
A common situation
A teammate presents your draft in a meeting and says, 'I put together this strategy after our chat.'
Your contribution is being made invisible before the work travels further.
Underneath
What is actually happening
Credit theft often hides behind collaboration language.
The response should attach attribution to the work, the draft, the contribution, and the follow-up without making the first move a personal attack.
How to recognize it
How to recognize it
- Look for someone presenting your draft, idea, or strategy without attribution.
What it sounds like
Common lines
I developed this from our discussion.
Your draft helped, but the final direction is mine.
I will mention you supported the work later.
Use it in the moment
What to do next
- State your contribution calmly.
- Attach your name to the work before it travels further.
Keep the line clean
Mistakes to avoid
- Do not stay silent only to avoid awkwardness.
- Do not make it personal when a factual correction will do.
Response language
Response scripts
I want to add attribution here: the draft and initial structure came from my work yesterday.
For follow-up, please include me as an owner on the strategy doc.
To keep the record clear, my contribution was the original draft, the data pull, and the recommendation.
Practice layer
When to use the simulator
Use the simulator when you tend to let attribution slide until resentment builds. Practice factual correction, ownership language, and follow-up.