The case for being a jerk?

The behaviour:

• Jerks are in every work place.
• Jerks get noticed.
• Brazen charm is often mistaken for intelligence.
• Dominant behaviour is mistaken as competence.
• “We think of these people as deserving even more status…”
• “…if you need to establish your position in the office, then glaring at people, maybe insulting them, maybe fighting are actually going to be quite constructive…”

The benefits:

• Better opportunities for promotions.
• More power and glory.
• Public adoration.

Dr. Maccoby finds that the most revered business leaders in the United States - Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, Jack Welch, Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos among them - are driven, above all, “by power and glory.”

Narcissists can be “emotionally distant and highly distrustful,” Dr. Maccoby says. “Perceived threats can trigger rage. Achievements can feed feelings of grandiosity.”

The costs (to the jerk):

• Inability to build loyalty or inspire love from others.
• Open to being used by others who are there only to make money off them.
• When they make mistakes, they can fall hard - everyone wants to see the bad guys get their just desserts.
• Alienation from the very people whom they need to achieve their goals.
• Propensity to attract yes-men

Read the full article.

2 comments on “The case for being a jerk?”

1. Howard said:
   

   I completely disagree with this post (and I’m not even a “jerk”) You’re basically saying that all the major qualities of a leader are “jerk-like”. A leader must be charming, dominant and focused (which occasionally means confrontational). And they need to be confrontational and occasionally “fight-off” those who will distract them from their goals.

   People are only classified as jerks if you don’t agree with them or if they are not emotionally attentive to your needs. But business is not so much about emotion and more about results – that’s why it seems that jerks always run the show and everyone else just gets pushed around.

   Even though people may disagree with the leader or get angry from time-to-time (maybe calling him/her a jerk), anyone in business would rather be led by someone who is in control, confident and focused – with disagreements – than someone who is soft, emotionally needy and weak. The latter may be a polite and friendly person, but they’ll never make progress the same way a real leader can.

   
   5 November 2007 at 2:14 pm
2. Zern said:
   

   “in control, confident and focused” are all good qualities, especially when combined with high emotional intelligence and a positive and respectful attitude towards people.

   When taken on their own and to the extreme, and to the exclusion of other “softer” aspects of being a decent human being, we do end up with jerks. Focusing on the project, getting the outcomes etc then become excuses to treat people badly. Not on.

   Business is about people. We live in constant engagement with others. One of the most fundamental ways we can make a difference to someone else is in how we treat them. Why choose to be a jerk? There is an opportunity here to grow as individuals!

   “soft, emotionally needy” are not necessarily “weak”. We are all emotional and irrational creatures, much as we like to pretend otherwise. Is it not denial to ignore this facet of our being?

   Sure, just like there are jerks, there are also leaders who lean the other way. Perpetual people-pleasers who quickly lose sight of all goals other than their own need for approval. I think this is what you mean by “weak”. In a funny twist, the bully boss who screams at everyone to get his/her way at work is also “weak”.

   There are different ways to be confrontational - respectfully or otherwise. You can be “in control, confident and focused” without being an asshole or a bully. You can listen to and empathise with someone’s point of view without agreeing with it or even supporting it. Not easy to do. But definitely doable.

   Of course, there will always be those who subscribe to the louder is better, win at all costs attitude. And no, they don’t have to give a poop about anyone else beyond achieving their goals.

   
   14 November 2007 at 12:36 am

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