Contemporary CEO and his path to success

Has being a sociopath become a condition for success in business?

Kseniia Zalyvadna

In this essay the center point of attention is role of CEO and his way to success. This is the
highest role within an organization. This individual is number one when it is about overall
success or failure. He or she is to set the long-term strategy as well as facilitate the right culture
and values, to lead the way to achieve goals, and many more. The list of his or her
responsibilities and obligations seems to be endless. In one of Harvard Business School blog
posts, they say:
“While the CEOs do have ultimate power and responsibility, the success of the company
depends on their team. To lead effectively, CEOs need to have a strong team and must ask them
the right questions to assess realistically the internal and external context, lay out the right
course of actions, and interact with internal and external stakeholders to translate strategy into
results. One CEO said, “The role of CEO is to define reality and give hope” and “to share credit
and take responsibility.” Another said, “I work for the team, not the other way around.”
Some interesting facts:
 The youngest CEO in the world:
 Mark Elliot Zuckerberg (born May 14, 1984) is an American technology entrepreneur
and philanthropist. He is co-founder and leading Facebook as its chairman and chief
executive officer.
 David Karp (born July 6, 1986) is an American web developer and entrepreneur. He
is the founder and former CEO of the short-form blogging platform, Tumblr.
 Oravel Stays (born November 16, 1993). His idea of struck him when he was 18. The
basic idea was a budget hotel chain that provides B&B (bed and breakfast, rooms for
budget travelers). He is the World’s youngest CEO at 17
 Advait Thakur (born Feb 17, 2003) is an Indian computer programmer and Teenage
Internet entrepreneur. He is the founder of Apex Infosys India, and is currently its
chief executive officer.
 Suhas Gopinath is an Indian entrepreneur. He is the founder, CEO, and Chairman of
Globals Inc., an IT multinational company. He took charge as CEO at the age of 17,

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 three years after founding the company. On 2 December 2007, The European
Parliament and International Association for Human Values conferred “Young
Achiever Award” on Gopinath at the European Parliament, Brussels. In November
2008, he was invited to represent the World Bank’s ICT Leadership Roundtable for
adopting ICT in Africa.

 Male vs Female
In 2018 Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance published statistics data
on percentage of men and women on the position of CEO in large organizations. On
average we have 95% male CEO and 5% female CEO. As can be seen from the stats data,
men are in the lead and most probably we have the same picture nowadays.
So basically our person in focus is a young male with a number of skills and traits and strong
aim on taking CEO position. Besides knowledge and experience he gains at school, university
and variety educational programs, he has natural traits, those that he got since he was born
and those brought to him by his natural environment of his living. In our essay we look at this
type of people but with one minor accent: sociopathy.
You may have heard people call someone else a “sociopath.” In the latter days I this notion
more often than before. But what does this word really means? If you like to find this definition
in old mental health’s official handbooks (for instance the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders), you definitely won’t find it. As doctors don’t officially diagnose people as
sociopaths. Such term as antisocial personality disorder is used instead. But recently more and
more people have this type of disorder, that’s why psychologists today pay more attention to
this issue.
In 1994, the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders was
published (the DSM-IV). Regarding sociopaths (the DSM uses the equivalent term Antisocial
Personality Disorder or ASPD), it said that overall prevalence “in community samples is about
3% in males and 1% in females” in US. So 4% in total in US. Lots of resources post general stats
that says that basically we have around 7,5 billion people in the world and only 1% of them are
sociopaths.
Definitions such as "Sociopath", "antisocial" and "dissocial disorder" emphasize the main
feature of these individuals - a pathological violation in the formation of social connections.
Sociopathy and sociopath are informal terms that refer to a pattern of antisocial behaviors and
attitudes, including manipulative and deceitful behavior, often arising from environmental
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factors. The sociopath has no value system, and he or she treats human life with complete
neglect, even with disgust and ardent cynicism. He wants to "step over" his laws through his
needs. In most cases sociopaths have the ability to gain subservient respect, which is usually
based on fear. Feeling of remorse, which all normal people have ever experienced, seems to be
an unknown concept for sociopaths. The sociopath assumes in advance, that anyone who
disagrees with him has a wrong point of view.
After all materials, that I have studied, I can sum up, that in general there are two main types of
sociopaths. First type is called latent or passive. People, who can be related to this type, can for
a long time fully maintain normal behavior, guided by the influence of social norms. Second
type is considered to be more dangerous for society. Accordingly to this, they are called active
sociopaths. Such people can easily commit criminal acts or acts inappropriate from the point of
view of an ordinary person.
So as you see, not all sociopaths become criminals. But, where then are they self-fulfilling?
Scientists ( from the University of Florida) ,who conducted this study, already called
intermediate data. According to their study, here are the top 5 professions in which sociopaths
self-fulfill themselves:
1. C-suites
2. Lawyers
3. Media (mainly television)
4. Managers
5. Doctors

With all that in mind my point of view is as follows: being a sociopath, in the full definition of
this disorder, is not the required condition for successful contemporary CEO. However, being a
successful CEO does not exclude having some traits of sociopath.
I deem to have it necessary for analysis to make a sort of correlation: personality traits and soft
skills a leader like CEO has and thoroughly applies and have a look at how same traits can be
found in person whom we call sociopath:
Forbes asked 10 members of Forbes Coaches Council to share one key trait or skill they believe
makes a person "CEO material," and this is how the list looks like:

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CEO
1. Passion
CEOs are passionate about their work and
what they do, but mostly they are passionate
about future and what is in there and how to
best deal with it.
2. Grit And Courage
CEO is the one to take ownership of the
strategic direction he or she chooses for the
company and be committed. CEO is the one to
take action and not speaking in words only.
For this he or she possesses grit, the ability to
be nimble, and courage.
3. Decisiveness
CEOs are decisive. They don't make decisions
in a vacuum or believe that their way is always
the best way. Rather, they engage in open
dialogues, gather information, and listen to
many points of view.
4. Self-Confidence Tempered By Vulnerability
CEOs must have the intelligence and the self-
confidence to assemble the best people by
their side – people who are leaders in their
own right
5. Backbone And Heart
Sociopath
Sociopaths can be passionate about things if
an emotional attachment is involved, but
other than that, not going to happen. In most
cases they do not have a sustained interest in
things for a long period of time. However,
“long period of time” says nothing in specific.
According to many researches C-suites hold
their position in one company for 3-5 years
and then they leave.
There is a difference between being fearless
and being courageous. “Fearlessness is For
Sociopaths. Courage is For the Rest of Us.”
(Elizabeth Gilbert). By not having the fear,
sociopath can move forward and show good
example to others.
They are rarely, if ever, overly nervous.
Sociopaths are not afraid of risk. They feel
comfortable in making decisions based on
their logic. And again same as above, they are
fearless and yet they see facts rather then
follow gut feeling. There is a newly appeared
definition “intelligent sociopath”. This means
decisions are based on smart thinking and
knowledge gained.
Sociopaths are superficially charming and
intelligent. So we are back again to “intelligent
sociopath”. And yes, they are very self-
confident with a huge ego. Sociopaths can
easily spot a vulnerable person. Here we go
again: manipulation is put on the first line
once they identify such a trait in the person.
Definitely YES, sociopaths are good in standing
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Potential CEOs need to work on their ability to
stand their ground and speak their minds.
Let's call that backbone the willingness to say
what may be considered unpopular. But you
need to also add heart: the ability to stay
connected even when the relationship is
mired in conflict. They need to master both.
6. A Connection With The Culture/People
Vision, tenacity, passion and grit are all critical
components that make great a CEO. However,
one aspect commonly overlooked is the
importance of connecting with the culture,
i.e., the people in the organization. Most CEOs
are distant and removed from the people who
make the business happen. The most
impactful CEOs make a point of personally
connecting with the culture to cultivate trust.
7. No Ego
Great CEOs have an "everyone wins"
mentality, and their leadership style is about
developing everyone to do their best. They
cannot be all ego. They must have a vision and
strategic direction ability, but the ones I have
seen that do the best, engender the best in
everyone around them.
8. Relationship-Building Skills
The ability to form deep, trusting relationships
their ground. They never feel remorse or
shame. Their believing is strong one. They feel
freedom in saying what they think is right.
As for the “heart” part, this can be a problem
since it is about feelings towards others, and
sociopaths simply ignore them most of the
time, but this does not meat they are not
committed to what they say longer after the
mood they’d said it in has left. On the
contrary, they will stay true to what they
promised. Commitment is one of the
important traits in every deal, both private
and business.
Sociopaths appear responsive socially, often
faking it to avoid being “found out.”
Sociopaths don't take pleasure in hurting
people, and I don't typically have relationship
problems. They do have a complete lack of
empathy. But people consider that an
advantage, most of the time in business. Do
sociopaths know the difference between right
and wrong, and do they want to be good and
do great things? Sure.
“Houston, we’ve got a problem here”
Sociopaths are pathologically egocentric. They
have a grandiose sense of self-worth. It is
mainly all about them, their perceptions, their
victory, rarely their failure.
They have poor judgment and do not learn
from experience, as they believe they are
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is the most “make it or break it” attribute of a
successful CEO. Develop connections by
investing heavily in your own emotional and
social intelligence. Solicit feedback about how
others experience you, learn from your
shortcomings, and engage by being present in
the time you give to people.
9. Curiosity
The best current and aspiring CEOs I've come
across are those who demonstrate curiosity
and will ask masterful questions to evaluate
the macro and micro situation and possibilities demonstrate just enough curiosity to make
for success. They don't pretend to have all the
answers because they know there are so many and to make them part of the solution (again
options – which is why curious questioning is
critical for success.
smarter than everyone else. They are conning
and manipulative. Nevertheless “intelligent”
sociopaths can hide this part of them and
“play” well when it comes to building up
relations. It is definitely not their strongest
skill. They do use control and manipulations in
relations. One interesting observation:
sociopaths are very often one step ahead.
They always seem to know exactly what
everyone else is thinking and exactly how to
use that information to their advantage.
Sociopaths are mainly curious when it comes
to the sides/traits/thoughts/ideas they are
lacking themselves. In business they are
expected to show the right behavior here and
people feel they are interested in their opinion
this can be seen as hidden manipulation)

10. Finely Tuned Intuition No. In most cases sociopaths are coldly
Great CEOs follow their intuition and commit rational. They do not trust simple inner feeling
to what they believe in. They're largely but they trust facts and logic, bearing in mind
responsible for steering the company, so being that their OWN logic. As eventually they think
able to listen to their inner voice and trust that they know better and they are not afraid to
they know what's best for the future of the present the solution they think is the only
organization – and ask for help when they're good one.
at an impasse – is essential.

Based on the collected materials, definitions and different viewpoints highlighted in many
resources available nowadays, I tend to believe that not all successful contemporary CEOs tend
to be sociopaths, simply a disproportionate number of them. And, in fact, he or she may look
like sociopath, but he or she is actually high functioning psychopath or just a person who can
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have some sociopath traits of character. The explanation is simple: it is the sociopathic qualities
that help such people become successful. Need to step over a competitor? Not a problem.
Need to achieve the goal at all costs? Please step on any moral principles. The main thing is to
achieve the goal. And since they became successful, they proved they managed to do that. In
short, the absence or inhibition of empathy gives a person a little bit more opportunities to
become a successful CEO. Moreover, sociopaths know what others want to hear from them.
They are superbly deceiving, very convincing and can be incredibly charming. They skillfully
manipulate people, they are inventive, not afraid to take risks, and they can cope well with
stressful and extreme situations.
Not all psychopaths are disconnected, angry, serial killers. Most are all extremely adaptive, at
least those whose intelligence is above average, and most of them have it at this level. Without
empathy, (the reason perhaps you think they are sociopaths), they are more ruthless, cunning,
able to devise strategies that are without concern for human welfare, and to execute goals
seemingly robotically.

References
1. Harvard Business School website blog. Post “The life and role of a CEO” link
2. Research profiles of CEOs of worldwide corporation on LinkedIn link

3. Medium.com blog post “5 Self-Made Young CEOs Whose Success Will Inspire You” link
4. Statistics data “CEO Tenure Rates” posted by Dan Marcec on Harvard Law School Forum

on Corporate Governance website link

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5. “The sociopath next door” book by Martha Stout
6. Stinson, F. S., D. A. Dawson, R. B. Goldstein, S. P. Chou, B. Huang, S. M. Smith, W. J.
Ruan, A. J. Pulay, T. D. Saha, R. P. Pickering, and B. F. Grant. 2008. Prevalence,
correlates, disability, and comorbidity of DSM-IV narcissistic personality disorder:
Results from the Wave 2 National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related
Conditions. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 69 (7):1033–45, 1036.
7. American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, Fifth Edition. Arlington, VA, American Psychiatric Association, 2013, 671.
(DSM-5)
8. “If You Want To Be 'CEO Material,' Develop These 15 Traits” post by Forbes Coaches

Council link
9. “Confessions of a Sociopath: A Life Spent Hiding in Plain Sight” by M.E. Thomas link