If You Think That Your Boss Is a Selfish Manipulator, Probably, You Are Right
Malcolm Gladwell writes that if you want to know if a person is telling the truth — you should never listen to HOW he tells it to you. DO NOT look him in the eyes. Let him write. You read and decide.
Why?
In the United States, a series of experiments were conducted — a group of ordinary people was asked to guess who was telling the truth and who was lying. The percentage of guessing is 50%.
Then they assembled a group of police investigators, former CIA officers, judges, and behavioral psychologists.
And they were able to guess… 51% of liars.
The accuracy is about the same as just tossing a coin. But unfortunately, the truth is that humans tend by nature to believe more than not to believe, and there are indeed many good liars among us.
Another group of psychologists analyzed the behavior of business leaders, from corporate executives and board members to Jobs and Musk. This group analyzed the behavior and actions of leaders, not their statements (feel the difference), and concluded that leaders in their activities are ALWAYS inherent in the “dark triad” — narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy.
During the 2008 crisis, board members of failing banks decided to pay themselves annual bonuses the day before they filed for bankruptcy. WeWork’s board of directors gave themselves bonuses ahead of massive layoffs. Employees were afraid to be with Jobs in the same elevator, and Musk’s employees were trying to guess his mood by reading his night tweets.
When Adam Newman (WeWork) stated in an interview that he was a vegetarian, WeWork employees seriously discussed whether it was now possible to order a turkey sandwich to the office for lunch.
Once Jobs came to “save” Apple after his dismissal, the board of directors asked him what salary he wanted to assign himself. Jobs answered “1$”, which caused the applause of those around him and became a legendary answer. After that, Jobs’ lawyer called the chairman of the board of directors off the record and said that Steven wanted a salary of $1… and a significant stake in Apple for 50% of its value. Jobs knew precisely how to build a reputation for Christ.
Psychologists have concluded that the dark triad does not appear as you move up. Instead, she is the engine of that moving. People who do great things in business, politics, or sports are the greatest egoists and narcissists who do not care about others. And they will do anything to satisfy their ego.
It’s good when that mega ego is expressed by creating the iPhone or the Fifth Symphony and not through a nuclear bomb.
If you think that your boss is a selfish manipulator, probably, you are right.
