Balancing narcissistic behaviour for team cohesion

The art of leadership is fast becoming the science of leadership. The United States has the Department of Behavioural Sciences and Leadership at the US Military Academy at West Point.

Likewise, the Australian Defence Force Academy is a partnership between the Department of Defence and the University of New South Wales educating military leaders in a range of skills from critical thinking, critical reasoning, reflection and decision making - all under the stress and pressure of simulated battle conditions.

In military circles, leadership has been an integral process of maintaining both morale and discipline. The principles of military leadership processes promote selfless service for the team; this is the essence of the servant leadership principle.

Military leaders are conditioned to focus on team members, placing personal safety and well-being behind that of the people they are leading. Military leaders share a common lifestyle with followers developing high levels of trust, loyalty and respect.

This tends to be the opposite to business leaders who tend to distance themselves from team members through tall hierarchical structures, taking credit for team successes - the domain of the narcissistic manager.

Military leaders are classically trained; they are equipped with the knowledge and tools required to effectively and selflessly lead under pressure. Regulating narcissistic behaviour in commercial enterprises promotes team cohesion for mutual goal achievement.