Five hundred years ago, writing in The Prince, Nicolo Machiavelli offered advice to leaders trying to grow their power. “It would serve [the Prince] to appear pious, faithful, humane, true, religious, and even to be so,” he wrote, “but only if he is willing, should it become necessary, to act in the opposite manner.”
Why Cynics Are Less Likely to Succeed
Three ways to stop cynicism from holding you and your organization back.
August 26, 2024
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Summary.
New research in behavioral science has revealed that cynical thinking stands in the way of success in the workplace. Cynics, it turns out, earn less money, report lower job satisfaction, and are less likely to be elevated to leadership positions. That’s because success is not the winner-take-all battle that cynics believe it to be. Cynicism, in fact, can bleed workplaces of creativity, openness, and morale, and the bottom line — whereas the people who succeed at work tend to so by building trusting connections and alliances. As a research psychologist, the author has worked with organizations and leaders to help them fight cynicism and bring the cooperative advantage to their teams, and in this article he lays out some effective approaches for doing so.