Most people I worked with in the profession were good down
to earth kind of people but unfortunately , there were many who were in
leadership positions but had no clue what leadership was for the only thing
that mattered to them was themselves. It was always about the “me” syndrome
rather than the “we” that was needed so badly.
I didn’t have a BA degree or Masters in psychology to
determine what I believed were people with severe personality disorders around
me. I found their behaviors were text book examples of personality traits
listed in the DSM V code manual that everybody says exists to identify such
kooks, nuts, and idiot as well as that special group called “morons.” However, I
will refrain from calling them such names.
In this profession there was no need to be elaborate about
the findings around you. Some nuts were just that, nuts and there was no way to
get deep into the root of the matter and be overly clinical about it. The
workplace was filled with every weirdo listed in the DSM V and nothing could
change that.
However, there was one class of people that created an
abundance of challenges because of their special trait to be a professional in
a very complex volatile and potentially dangerous occupation, the narcissist
and how to re-arrange, modify or adapt your communication skills in order to
get them to cooperate with you.
It would be unprofessional for me to throw away the manual
and use “common sense” approaches and title, label or call these individuals a
non-scientific name such as “prick, asshole” or any other profane word that
described them best. We had to be professional so we will call them by the
right name, the corrections narcissist.
In layman terms I found these people to have “low
self-esteem” problems. I think they had a problem with the association with
officers, clerical workers and others beneath them in when measuring their
intelligence and other “geek” like classifications.
Taking a closer look at their profile I believe they truly
believed they were better than the rest and felt they had to prove it with
their idiotic way. Reminding you I am not nor was I every qualified to be a
psychologist, I did notice that in order for me to have a helpful understanding
of their motivators, I had to adjust my approach with those who possessed a
narcissistic personality disorder.
I readily identified those types by the frequent and
persuasive need to hurl insults or other demeaning statements and comments to
the others. Again, from a layman’s view I saw these people as persons possessed
with deep-seated neurosis.
I knew a narcissistic administrator who would refuse to
answer any e-mail that used non-accepted word abbreviations. The best way to describe him was to say he was
always right. He would project the “My way is the only right way and any other
way is wrong.” He or she cannot be wrong.
The narcissist is never, ever wrong, and they like to
present "proofs" that they are correct. The narcissist cannot
accept responsibility for making a mistake and they are expert at diverting the
blame to others. Frequent rehearsals of saying “it's not my fault” and
pointing the finger claiming he or she lost that promotion because “my team let
me down.” Last but not least they demonstrated or exhibited a very arrogant,
boastful and pretentious attitudes
Often enough I saw arrogant, selfish elites we call snobs in
society and who are easily threatened in the workplace therefore reacting in a
weird and bizarre manner to ward off any attacks on them. They did this by
hurling insults and other offensive comments to elevate their own presence or
in some cases, their authority or positional superiority.
I think they did this because they were dealing with some
sort of guilt within their own minds as to stooping so low to work in this
profession but feeling above it. They seemed to have strong feelings of being
ashamed to work inside a correctional setting thereby projecting a better and
grandiose appearance or front for others to see. He or she was indeed “The old
saying "a legend in their own mind.” thus what we were dealing with was
the office type narcissist.
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