I came across this optical illusion featuring two orange circles. They’re identical in size, but appear dramatically different. One seems large, the other small. The difference is in what surrounds them.
These two orange balls are the same size
The first orange circle sits among large grey circles. By comparison, it looks tiny. The second sits among small grey circles, making it appear enormous. Same circle, different context, completely different perception.
This is how easily context can shape reality.
There’s a famous photograph from the 1927 Solvay Conference that perfectly illustrates this:
The photograph shows 29 physicists and chemists, many of whom would later become household names. Einstein. Curie. Heisenberg. Schrödinger. Planck. Of the 29 people in that room, 17 would go on to win Nobel Prizes. But, crucially, they didn’t have them at the time this picture was taken.
This lays bare the concept of ‘scenius’ coined by Brian Eno. Scenius is emergent, collective intelligence that arises from a group of creative individuals. Not genius from a single mind, but a shared brilliance that emerges from proximity, collaboration, and healthy competition.
Haruki Murakami wrote that “if you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” The same applies to relationships. If you only associate with people who think like you, you’ll only ever confirm your existing beliefs.
History’s greatest creative movements weren’t led by lone geniuses, but by clusters of talent that pushed each other further. The Impressionists. The Bloomsbury Group. The PayPal Mafia. Silicon Valley. Renaissance Florence wasn’t just Michelangelo; it was a city teeming with artists, engineers, and thinkers all trying to outdo each other.
There’s something counterintuitive about surrounding yourself with people who are better than you. Your ego takes a hit. You’re no longer the smartest person in the room. But being a small circle among large ones is precisely how you grow.
When you’re around people who operate at a higher level, their standards become your baseline. What was once exceptional becomes merely adequate. Your ceiling becomes your new floor.
This is why talent clusters form and persist. It’s not just about access or resources; it’s about the ambient standard that seeps into everything you do.
The real question isn’t whether you’re talented enough to be in the room. It’s whether the room is challenging enough to make you better.
So choose your circles deliberately. Be willing to be the smallest circle. Because it’s only when you’re surrounded by larger circles that you have room to grow.
The Ebbinghaus illusion works both ways: you can surround yourself with smaller circles and feel like a giant, or choose the harder path and sit among circles that dwarf you.
One path leads to comfortable stagnation. The other to uncomfortable growth.
Choose uncomfortable growth. Every time.
Aim to be in rooms where the conversation assumes a level of capability you’re still reaching for.
