How to Steal Someone Else's Thunder

It is frustrating to watch someone get a lot of attention when you know deep down that the attention should be yours. You do not have to just sit back and be pushed out of the limelight though. It can be easy to steal someone's thunder, but if not done correctly, you might be the bad guy.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• A massive ego or inferiority complex

1. Figure out how big the thunder is. You cannot go around stealing someone's thunder all the time. Determine if the thunder is big enough to be worth stealing. If the thunder is small, it will go away quickly and the attention will return to you without requiring any conniving behavior.
2. Downplay the accomplishment. Make sure that everyone knows how ordinary whatever the person did to get thunder is. However, in order to steal someone's thunder for something truly amazing you may have to resort to more dramatic measures.
3. Remind everyone that you have achieved the same accomplishment. If you have done what the other person that is receiving the thunder did, you can make sure everyone knows who did it first.
4. Top them. Do something even more impressive than what the person did to receive the thunder. If you are the one who generally receives the bulk of the attention, then everyone probably likes you more than the person who is currently getting the attention. Once you top his accomplishment, everyone will stop what they are doing and give you the thunder.
5. Get attention any way you can. You do not have to do something exceptional to steal someone's thunder. You can do something reprehensible too. Get thrown in jail, cheat on your significant other, have a nervous breakdown, burn something down or even disappear completely for a short time. If everyone is out looking for you, you can rest assured that you have their attention.

Tips & Warnings

• You must be tactful while implementing these steps. If you are too obvious, not only will you not steal someone's thunder, but you will look childish and selfish, which you are.