Narcisstic bosses: how does one deal with them?

An article in FT that uses Robert Maxwell, the newspaper baron (long deceased), as a model of a narcisstic boss has a short answer to the question pose above: find another job. But that, as it suggests, is easier said than done: we all have financial needs, so we can't chuck up a job at will.

Very true. But there is another problem as well. There is a high probability that the organisation you move to would also have its share of narcissistic bosses. And the higher you go, the greater the narcissism.

In a book I wrote in 2015, Rethinc: what's broke at today's corporations and how to fix it, I cited a study that showed that the proportion of psychopaths among CEOs was far above that in the general population. Psychopathic traits include things such as a lack of empathy, a tendency to manipulate others, etc. These are qualities one would also associate with narcissism. 

Success in the corporate world- and, perhaps, most walks of life (perhaps, with the exception of advanced research)- is won on the strength of such qualities. This may not sound very pleasant but the heights of success are not for the faint-hearted. It is through a certain disregard for scruple, ruthlessness and self-admiration that people rise. Narcissism breeds success which fuels more narcissim. At the very top, the individual begins to think he is infallible, so he has no patience for anything other than adulation and flattery. He certainly has no room for dissent.

When people go into meetings and stay silent, heartily endorse whatever the boss is saying or indulge in outright flattery, they recognise that these are the things that will help them survive and prosper. They understand they are dealing with a narcissist, if not a psychopath, and fall in line because the costs of not doing so are painfully high. There may be a few honourable exceptions but what I have described here is pretty much the norm.

What can we do about it? Get together will colleagues and take the matter to the board ? No way. There will not be any takers for the petition. And it's no use going to the board because the board too has its fair share of narcissists who will not be able to relate to things such as fairplay and justice.

In government, your job is protected and you can choose to forswear ambition and do your job in your little corner. Alas, in the private sector, there is little choice other than to grow a thick skin. Psychopathic bosses are the primary reason why organisations are so toxic and one reason those toiling in them nurse all kinds of ailments. 

If that sounds a trifle gloomy, please do let me know if you have better suggestions.