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High-flyer refers to a person who achieves success quickly, or stocks that perform well but are volatile. The term originated in the 16th century, with negative connotations of reaching too high too fast. Today, it can be used positively or negatively. High-placed refers to exaggerated language.
A high-flyer is a person who has achieved considerable success or distinction in a very short period of time. The term is also used to describe stocks that have performed unusually well, often with the implication that these stocks are extremely volatile and can go down just as easily as they can go up. High-flyers can be found in many companies and places, from academia to the business world, and many of them are very focused and driven people who prefer to think they’ve achieved their success on merit whether or not they have. .
The origins of this term lie in the writings of Richard Harvey, a British author who wrote in the 1590s that people had a universal desire to be seen as “fliers and deep swimmers.” He meant the term unflatteringly, suggesting that a high flyer was someone who was reaching too high, too fast, and was likely to fall from the sky. Other writers of the same period have referred to the Greek myth of Icarus, a famous aviator who reached the Sun and fell to Earth when he was burned.
Harvey’s take on the acrobat was not at all unusual for the time. Many people in this period felt that, with the exception of a few notable figures, it was better to work calmly and hard on projects than to be seen as too focused on progress. Even many illustrious personalities of the time attributed this idea to it, seeing humility as a trait to be valued above pride and calling themselves “amateurs” in the fields in which they excelled.
Today, usage of the term is mixed. Some people use it as a compliment, meant to commemorate quick success and promote the idea that people can be successful through hard work. Other people use it on a suspicious note, suggesting that the only way to become a high flyer is through connections, and that a meteoric rise should be viewed with skepticism, rather than awe or respect. It can also be used in its original sense, to describe someone who got up too quickly, putting themselves at risk of a bad fall.
A related term, high-placed, is used to describe puffy, hyperbolic prose or statements. High-sounding speech is language that uses many big words to say nothing in particular, or speech in which promises are made that cannot be kept. This related term clearly references the 16th-century origins of the high flyer.
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