Entry analysis 丨What is a narcissistic leader?

Recently, a master's degree thesis entitled "CEO Narcissism and Its Economic Consequences - Taking Gree Electric Appliances as an Example" has aroused heated discussion because of the study of "Dong Mingzhu Narcissism".

The paper pointed out that Dong Mingzhu's narcissistic personality led to the production of insider control by Gree Electric Appliances, which was mainly manifested as:

1) Imbalance of power of the board of directors;

2) Convey benefits to related parties.

For companies in the introduction or growth stage, CEO narcissism may have more benefits than harms; for enterprises in maturity or recession, CEO narcissism may do more harm than good.

Seeing this, many melon-eating readers will definitely be curious, what is a "narcissistic leader"?

Psychologists believe that the driving force behind narcissist behavior is the desire for honor. The researchers found that these narcissists averse to convention but were excited when faced with difficult challenges. These people are great for stressful jobs like lawyers and leadership.

Xiaobian collected information and examined it, which is roughly divided into the following points:

The ability to generate compassion

Normal narcissism can be traced back to infancy. A spoiled baby tends to think he is the core of the world, and everyone has to stop what they have at hand to meet his needs. As you grow up, this attitude gradually evolves into a positive sense of self-love, which gives people a moderate amount of self-confidence, which is an indispensable element of success. Without this self-confidence, people will not be able to make the most of their talents and strengths.

We can also use another criterion to measure whether a person's narcissistic state is normal, and that is their ability to generate compassion. A person's narcissistic state is often unhealthy if he or she can't see himself and others properly.

Psychologists have suggested that many narcissists go to high-stress, high-paying jobs. Although such work can be risky, it allows them to be fully utilized and has the potential to bring them supreme honors.

Such narcissists can become legendary leaders in the business world. Psychologist Michael McCobby has studied and treated many narcissistic leaders and found that in the business world, as positions rise and competitive pressures increase (and of course, the return on income and fame increases), so do these narcissistic leaders. In a cold, modern business society, such ambitious and confident leaders are handy. The most prominent of them will become creative and talented strategists who can take control of the big picture and deal with the challenges of crisis. Not only are they confident, but they are receptive to criticism, at least they listen to close friends.

Healthy narcissistic leaders are introspective and willing to be tested by reality. They have the foresight to lift weights even in the arduous process of achieving their goals. They are open to new information, so they are able to make sound decisions and their thinking is not rigid.

Unhealthy narcissists want to be admired by others, not liked. They are characterized by authoritarianism and are good at cultivating their cronies. In the business world, they are often reformists, and their motivation is not the pursuit of perfection, but the aura of longing for success. And because they don't care what kind of impact their actions will have on others, they are always aggressive in their pursuit of goals, at any cost. McCobe believes that in turbulent times, such people may be charismatic because they have the audacity to push for radical reforms.

But this narcissist's compassion is selective, and they can be completely indifferent to the feelings of others when needed. For example, they will close or sell their companies, or lay off employees on a large scale without any sympathy for the employees who suffer as a result. Because without compassion, they don't feel sorry and are indifferent to the feelings and needs of their employees.

Lack of self-worth

A sense of self-worth is another important criterion for judging whether a narcissistic state is healthy or not. Unhealthy narcissists are usually unsteady at heart and lack a sense of self-worth. If he is the leader, then even if the plan he proposes is not very good, he cannot tolerate any criticism. Even if it is constructive opinion, they will think of it as an attack on themselves. Oversensitivity to criticism also means that narcissistic leaders do not solicit opinions extensively, but simply choose data that supports their views, ignoring facts that refute their views. They don't like to listen and are only willing to preach their own views and teach others.

While some narcissistic leaders have achieved extraordinary results, there are also some that can bring disaster to those around them. If they have unrealistic illusions, ignore advice, and lack restraint, they are likely to lead the company astray. McCobe warns that if there are many narcissistic leaders at the top of the company, the company must find ways to get them to speak widely. Otherwise, such leaders will only be surrounded by incompetent flattery.

There was once a narcissistic CEO who came to McCobe for psychotherapy and couldn't understand why he was so easy to get angry with his employees. He scoffs at even helpful suggestions and despises the person who makes them. After undergoing psychoanalysis, the CEO took his

The anger was attributed to the snubs of his father at an early age. At that time, no matter what he achieved, his father was indifferent. He realized that he was now seeking compensation from the praise of his employees, and that it had to be a gushing compliment. No wonder he was furious when he heard dissent.

After being clear about his problems, the CEO began to adjust himself and even began to laugh at his own desire for praise. Once, he announced to the company's top management that he was receiving psychotherapy and asked everyone what they thought about it. After a long silence, one of the supervisors finally plucked up the courage to say that he didn't seem to lose his temper as much as he had been, so whatever he did, he should continue.

Good joy has become the company ethos

A business school professor lamented: "My students see society as a 'vanity fair' and they think they can be promoted by pandering to the vanity of their superiors. ”

His students believe that flattery is the best way to cater to their superiors. They believe in promotion as long as the flattery is in place. Sometimes, they may have to flatter their superiors with a conscience, but what does it matter? As long as you are cunning enough, coupled with a little luck, your good intentions will definitely be seen by your superiors.

This cynical attitude is likely to lead to an unhealthy narcissistic state of the entire company. If most employees have narcissistic tendencies, then the culture of the entire enterprise will also have this tendency.

The dangers of corporate narcissism are obvious. For example, good and good work will become the atmosphere of the company, and the healthy atmosphere of discussion will disappear. In the long run, no company full of lies can maintain its vigorous vitality in the harsh reality.

Of course, every company wants its employees to be proud of the company and hope that they can appreciate their sense of mission. In this case, if they just have a little healthy collective narcissism, it won't bring any problems; but if pride makes them desperate to pursue honor rather than actual achievement, that's trouble.

If narcissistic leaders only like to hear good news, the company as a whole has a tendency to develop these dangers. And if leaders resent employees who report bad news, subordinates will naturally weed out that bad news. Of course, not all employees filter real information against their will. Employees who are inherently narcissistic will be more than happy to distort the facts to satisfy their collective sense of honor.

This vicious collective narcissism poses not only a mortal threat to the survival of the company, but also a bad impact on the company's employees. Every employee had to silently maintain their shared fantasies, the atmosphere of the company was oppressive and paranoid, and work degenerated into a game of gestural puzzles.

Narcissistic collective encouragement is inconsistent

The movie "The Silkwood Incident" describes such a story. Karen in the story. Skewood, a female nuclear power plant worker, has been gathering evidence that the factory threatens public safety. Once, she found that a supervisor had altered the welding pictures of fuel rods used on nuclear reactors in order to cover up a mistake in his work.

The supervisor didn't seem to think about the possible fatal consequences of doing so. He was just worried that if the factory didn't deliver the fuel rods on time, it would affect the business of the factory and the lives of the employees. He believes he did so in the interests of the factory.

After the film's release, many similar tragedies really played out in real life.

And it's not just the problem of nuclear reactors, the whole of Chernobyl has been tragic. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant leak became the worst accident in nuclear power history so far. Behind outright lies and elaborate disguises, these companies all have a common problem, and that is collective narcissism.

Narcissistic collectives actually encourage this apparent inconsistency, although ostensibly they may require employees to be honest. The degree of this shared fantasy determines the extent to which the company's employees cover up the facts. Once narcissism spreads in the company, those who challenge this self-inflated mentality will be rejected. At this time, everyone's instinctive reaction is to be furious. As a result, in a narcissistic company, employees deemed to damage the company's image are generally demoted, reprimanded, or even fired.

In this way, the narcissistic group becomes an independent small society, with its own moral standards and never questioning its goals and means. They seem to be able to do whatever they want, pursue whatever they want. This kind of bragging rights makes people unaware that they are becoming more and more out of touch with reality. Social rules apply only to others, but they are not binding on themselves.

Source: Beware of Narcissistic Leaders