Self-check
Is my boss a narcissist?
Fifteen things you may have seen your boss do, about three minutes. The result shows which explanations your answers lean toward: two shapes of narcissism, strengths that turn under pressure, a change that came with power, or the job itself.
Our own short self-check, in our own words, and untested. It shows which explanations your answers lean toward, as a prompt to look more closely at one real moment.
- Grandiose narcissism: A self-image that is inflated and on display: dominance, special treatment, admiration expected.
- Vulnerable narcissism: A fragile self underneath: easily wounded, resentful of others' success without saying so.
- Strengths that turn under pressure: A reasonable boss in calm weeks who becomes reckless, arrogant or harsh when the stakes rise.
- Hubris that grew with power: A change that came with years in charge: contempt for advice and losing touch with how things run.
- The situation more than the person: Pressure from above, a new role or a crisis that would make most people act this way for a while.