We like to give the impression that, rather than working hard and earning our accolades, we have a Fairy Godmother of Luck who sweeps in at the 11th hour and deserves the credit. And work isn’t the only place where this happens.

Been determinedly hitting the gym, yet always telling people how much cake you eat? It’s miraculous you’ve dropped a dress size in time for summer.

Flatmate just said nice things about your expensive new outfit? “This old thing?” you say. “I got it on sale ages ago – total bargain.” Meanwhile, you’re sneakily kicking the shopping bag under your bed.

In the 2004 film Mean Girls, Lindsay Lohan’s character feigns incompetence in math class in an effort to make a guy like her. This is the crux of why women dodge the truth when it comes to any achievements.

According to a study from the University of Massachusetts in the US, women tend to fib to spare someone else’s feelings or to avoid conflict. We don’t want to seem smarter or better than the next person, because we don’t want to threaten their social standing. Basically, we lie to be liked.

The logic goes like this: When you admit to faults, even if they’re non-existent, you show your vulnerable side. Similar to the way a puppy will lie on its back submissively and look cute when a bigger dog approaches, by talking yourself down, the subtext is, “I’m a little bit hopeless and totally not a threat to you”.

However, by claiming to be lazy, disorganised, unintelligent, or any other negative trait while you’re out there hitting stratospheric goals – like scoring an awesome job through “dumb luck” or getting an amazing body through “no training at all” – you give the impression that things come easily to you.

Megan, 27, is totally incapable of answering questions about her study habits with honesty. The project manager is currently doing a part-time master’s degree and is scoring above-average marks, but that’s not without sacrifice. Because of the amount of time she spends studying; Megan hardly ever socialises or exercises.

When her partyhard friends lament their less-than optimal exam results, she reassures them that her own good scores come down to luck or “having already done a similar subject in my undergrad”. Her reason for this? “I don’t want them to feel bad that I’m doing well and they’re not. Also, I don’t want them to think I’m some loser who spends her Saturday nights at home with textbooks – even though that’s true.”

New statistics show that about 90 per cent of women see their same-sex peers as their toughest critics. In fact, eight out of 10 females admit that they judge other women when they first meet them.

Clinical psychologist Catherine Boland (catherineboland.com) says that we believe lying “downwards” will help us deflect these judgements, but it actually exacerbates them. “When you draw attention to your success in a negative way, basically saying ‘this great thing I did was nothing’, you put yourself on a gifted pedestal. You isolate yourself, because what people really want to hear is, ‘I worked hard too, it didn’t come easily. I’m just like you’.”

Paradoxically, by playing down your achievements, you’re actually playing them up telling it like it is. Of course, it’s bad manners to boast or be insensitive to someone else’s situation. Talking about your highly paid job to a friend who’s just been made redundant is not cool. But Boland says, “Boasting is not the same as acknowledging effort – genuine honesty increases positive friendship and intimacy between women.”

Female celebrities are the queens of underrating their efforts, particularly when it comes to diet and exercise. The exception to this rule is Madonna. When asked about her food and fitness regimen, there was no BS about doing light yoga and snacking on fairy floss. The Material Girl said, “There are no shortcuts to being Madonna. It’s all about hard work.” And that’s the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Amen.