If they only show up when you’re winning, that’s not loyalty. That’s a sponsor waiting to drop you.

Association with success is a transaction dressed as friendship. The person is not exactly pretending; they enjoy your company and they also enjoy the proximity, and the two are hard to separate until one of them goes away. The test is a quiet year, and there is no way to run it early.

Pay attention to who stays in touch during the part of your life that makes no good stories. Do not punish anyone in advance for what they might do. Just be clear with yourself about which category someone is in, and spend your effort accordingly.