On Narcissism

When I recently noted how some bankers might be self-deceptive narcissists, I didn’t mention any of the potential positives that narcissists can bring to the workplace as leaders. This recent article on Slate about narcissism and narcissistic personality disorder mentions some positives (and negatives) that Michael Maccoby recognized in his book The Productive Narcissist: The Promise and Peril of Visionary Leadership:

[Maccoby] makes a distinction between leaders with narcissistic traits and those who have full-blown NPD. He says narcissists can be charismatic forces for change—because of their drive, vision, risk-taking, and even ruthlessness, many corporations turn to narcissists for salvation. But such people can become dangerous because their success fuels their already ample grandiosity and feeds the sense they got there by disdaining the normal rules.

I agree that drive, vision, risk-taking and ruthlessness can be beneficial traits in a leader. As Nada and I noted about constructive narcissists in Essence of Leadership:

Overall, narcissistic leaders take responsibility for their actions and are ready to help others when events do not proceed as planned. The constructive narcissistic leader, as Bill Gates, has a positive impact, as he/she radiates a contagious self-confidence and purposefulness. They balance being flexible with being focused. Their social adeptness helps them promote strong, workable relationships.

Of course it isn’t all positive — narcissists tend to react badly to critical comment on the basis that they can see little wrong in themselves and find it distressing that others do not view them as one of the ‘good guys’. Still, we shouldn’t forget that some character traits related to narcissism can be beneficial for leaders.