When obviously incompetent, uninspired, or undeserving employees are promoted, even when they openly fail for all to see. Inexplicably, this often occurs at the exact same time others around them are busting their ass to deliver for the company.
Just relax - the dumber you are, the better you'll do.
Person A: "How did Matt get that promotion? The guy hasn't written a line of meaningful code in over 6 months, all he does is write IRC robots that display cheesy GIFs when people are chatting about the size, shape, or length of something." Person B: "I know, he's failing up - I only wish I had it in me to be so carefree and incompetent."