????你大概還記得《皇帝的新裝》這篇寓言吧，它說的是一個喜歡穿錦衣華服的皇帝，有一天被來訪的幾個裁縫愚弄了。裁縫們說他們有一種有魔力的衣料，只有聰明的人才能看得見它。皇帝只要穿著這種衣料做成的衣服，就能分辨出誰是聰明人、誰是傻瓜。于是皇帝也假裝他能看見這種并不存在的布料。

????皇帝的臣民之中，沒有一個人告訴他真相。有一天皇帝大擺儀仗，穿著“新衣”在城中巡游，人們紛紛告訴皇帝他看起來有多威風。這時一個小孩喊道：“但是他什么也沒穿！”但皇帝還是深信裁縫的謊話，一絲不掛得意洋洋地繼續前進。

????你是否也遇到過自認無所不能的領導？隨著人的職業成就上去了，自我意識也就跟著膨脹起來。我們每年大約會與100個管理團隊會面，我們經常發現，如何控制人的自負心理真是一門大學問。

????去年我們見到了一家全球最大的軟件公司之一的CEO。比起討論公司的未來，他似乎更有興趣聊他自傳的銷售情況。比爾?蓋茨曾說過一句名言：“成功是一個糟糕的老師，他誘使成功的人們覺得自己不會失敗。”沒人能保證自己沒有被沖昏頭腦的時候，要想腳踏實地需要很大的決心。尤其是有些時候，你可能感覺整個世界都在告訴你，你有多厲害。坦率地說，我們三個人也都有被自負沖昏頭腦的時候。我們要感謝那些生活中不讓我們狂妄自大的人。隨著時間的推移，我們才慢慢學會“滿招損、謙受益”的道理。

????自負心態會對企業業務造成重大影響。2013年一項對標準普爾指數的500家大企業CEO的調查顯示，過于自負的CEO們的表現往往遜色于其他的CEO，而且更容易背上騙子的名聲。

????我們生活在一個鼓勵極端自戀的環境里。媒體的熱炒更刺激了人們把關注投向帕麗斯?希爾頓這樣的“話題女王”。隨著科技的發展，我們每次拿起手機查看上一條微博有多少人回復時，心里都有一種膨脹的快感。

????賓西法尼亞州立大學（Pennsylvania State University）的阿里吉特?查特吉和唐納德?漢姆布里克指出：“企業領導層人員的自戀心態可能導致重大后果，比如可能導致制訂不切實際的戰略規劃，以及使高管團隊變得唯唯諾諾……CEO們的自戀甚至可能對他們的企業、利益相關方甚至整個社會體系都造成重大影響。”

????專家們強調，自信與過分自戀之間是有區別的。比如《自戀傳染病》（The Narcissism Epidemic）一書的作者、心理學家珍?特溫格就在“自我效能感”（也就是相信“我的行動會帶來一定的影響”）和“自戀”（即對自我的認知超過了實際情況的“自我膨脹感”）之間劃了一條界線。

????她解釋道，自戀者由于缺乏對別人的關懷，容易導致疏遠別人，最終將自己吸收大部分風險。如果你想了解自己的自戀程度，可以做一做這個“自戀測試”。

????根據我們的經驗，有些高管之所以能腳踏實地，是因為他們在用人上傾向于使用那些不會容忍他們狂妄自大的人。吐溫格提醒我們說：“人際關系是讓我們保持自省的關鍵。”

????最近，一位我們認識的高調的企業高管落馬后，阿爾對戴夫和克里斯托弗說：“你們知道他的問題是什么嗎？他沒有哥們兒。”真正的伙伴在CEO做狂妄自大的決策時不會坐視不理，而這位高管就沒有這樣的伙伴。對自戀心態研究得越深，你就會越明白：作為企業的管理者，你要管理的最重要的東西，就是你的自我意識。（財富中文網）

????本文作者克里斯托弗?洛克海德、戴夫?彼得森、阿爾?拉瑪丹是Play Bigger Advisor咨詢公司的創始合伙人。該公司總部位于舊金山，主要輔導科技企業高管打造市場型企業。

????譯者：樸成奎

????You may remember The Emperor's New Clothes, a fable about a ruler who is fond of snazzy outfits. One day the emperor gets bamboozled by visiting tailors. They sell him the idea that they have magical fabrics that are only visible to the smart. Thus by wearing clothing made from these textiles, he will learn who is wise and who is a fool. The emperor pretends that he can see the non-existent fabric.

????Not one of the emperor's people tells him the truth. One day the mighty leader is walking through town in a large procession. People telling him how great he looks. A child cries out, "But he hasn't got anything on!" The emperor continues forward. Naked and delusional.

????How often do you encounter an executive who thinks they are omnipotent? Egos and careers can ascend in tandem. We meet approximately 100 management teams a year. Often we find ourselves in a discussion about how to stick-handle around someone's ego.

????Last year we met the CEO of one of the largest software companies in the world. He was more interested in talking about the marketing of his autobiography than the future of his company. Bill Gates famously said, "Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose." No one is immune to getting a fat head. It actually takes a commitment to stay grounded. Especially when it feels like the whole world is telling you how awesome you are. To be candid, the three of us have had our egos get the better of us too. We are grateful to the people in our lives that do not allow for hubris. Over time we've learned that a lot of humility goes a little way.

????Narcissism has a material impact on business. A 2013 study of CEOs across the 500 companies listed on Standard and Poor's Index, found that narcissistic CEOs often underperform their peers and are more likely to be convicted of fraud.

????We live in a culture that celebrates supreme narcissism. Our media heaps attention on "look at me" celebrities like Paris Hilton. Technology strokes our inner Kardashian every time we check our smartphones to see how many people "liked" our last post.

????Arijit Chatterjee and Donald Hambrick of Pennsylvania State University caution, "Narcissism in the corporate executive suite can be expected to lead to substantial consequences .including strategic grandiosity and submissive top management ... CEO narcissism may matter greatly to individual organizations, their stakeholders, and to entire social systems."

????Experts underscore the differences between confidence and reckless hubris. In an interview, Jean Twenge, psychologist and co-author of The Narcissism Epidemic, draws the distinction between "self efficacy," which is the belief that "my actions will have an impact" vs. narcissism, which is an "inflated sense of self" that leads to thinking that you are better than you actually are.

????She explains that narcissists are self-absorbed risk takers who can alienate people due to a lack of caring for others. If you want to see how you rate, take the narcissism test here.

????In our experience, executives stay grounded by surrounding themselves with people who won't tolerate self-importance. Twenge reminds us, "relationships are the key to keeping our egos in check."

????Recently when a high-profile executive we know crashed and burned, Al turned to Dave and Christopher and said, "You know what his problem is? He doesn't have brothers." Meaning, that true partners wouldn't sit idle and let CEOs make delusional decisions. The more that is learned about narcissism the clearer it gets -- the most critical thing for executives to manage is their own egos.

????Christopher Lochhead, Dave Peterson, and Al Ramadan are co-founding partners at Play Bigger Advisors, a San Francisco-based firm that coaches technology executives to build market-leading companies.