Bill Gates and Paul Allen are examples that support your theory.
A high school friend of mine aced the SAT and went on to a Fulbright Scholarship to Yale. He wanted friends because he was supposed to have them in order to be regarded as successful, as well as for the benefit of future social advantage. So, he went through the proper motions to acquire friends and keep them. He wanted to play sports and did, but was a benchwarmer because he was not particularly well-coordinated. Relating to things that mattered to girls was a real puzzle for him but he studied that most of all, and did not succeed particularly well until college. He wasn’t an altogether bad looking guy I don’t suppose, but worrying about his appearance did not occur to him until he realized that girls were not interested, and he never could quite get the look or the approach down pat. It was like an alien dance or something for him.