In everyday life, narcissism is often portrayed as a negative trait that doesn’t really win you any social points with others. However, surprisingly in Chapter 2 of the textbook, it stated that both leaders and managers tend to be narcissistic because narcissistic people tend to be more charismatic. Perhaps it is because I have not had much real world experience to judge, but simply using my understanding of what a narcissistic person is, I have a hard time understanding why narcissism would an advantage in management.

Furthermore, reading about how toxic bosses may ruin your mental health only reinforces my perception. The article states that people who work for bosses who display “psychopathic and narcissistic traits not only feel more depressed due to the bullying behaviour of their seniors, but are also more likely to engage themselves in undesirable behaviours at work.” Therefore, if narcissistic bosses are causing their employees to feel miserable at work, does that not equate to lowered motivation and job satisfaction? And if so, how is that even supposed to be a good trait?

I personally believe that it is never a good trait for a boss or manager to be narcissistic, at least not at the workplace. While I agree with the textbook on how narcissistic people tend to be better promoters of themselves and are more confident due to their confidence, I think this would be a trait better suited in business negotiations. Bosses who display such kind of attitude to their own workers will only establish a negative and hostile environment. At a workplace, it is imperative to create an amicable atmosphere in order to maximize employees’ job satisfaction and in turn, their productivity. A boss who is narcissism would most likely not be able to accomplish that which is why I do not agree with the textbook that narcissistic bosses are better leaders.

Citations:
1. Langton, Robbins, Judge, Organizational Behaviour, 7th edition, p. 54.
2. IANS, “Toxic boss may ruin your health: study”, The Gulf News, Jan. 17, 2017
http://gulfnews.com/culture/people/toxic-boss-may-ruin-your-health-study-1.1959720