In the last year, there's a good chance you've googled or written an AI prompt for advice how to deal with that person at work. The one whose relentless self-interest seems to sabotage everyone around them. The one whose lack of self-awareness and pathological allergy to responsibility makes your teeth clench. The one who seems immune to social cues - or even explicit redirection.

There are a lot of names for these people in circulation: the "hastler", the "troublemaker", the "difficult personality", and more recently, the "narcissist". In fact, the last decade has seen "narcissist" escape the confines of the DSM-5 to birth a cottage industry of dubiously sourced books, courses, and social media posts that advise on how to "deal" with one. First line advice follows a typical pattern: get better boundaries. If that doesn't work (which is probably your fault) then you just have to cut them out. Best case scenario: construct a life where any engagement with "a narcissist" is temporary.

Here's the thing. Statistically, not everyone can have narcissistic personality disorder. Also, here in the real world, cutting out people you work, volunteer or even coparent with is not really an option. So, what now?

Join expert facilitator, senior health care leader and unrepentant conflict resolution geek Jennie Aitken to dive into the "why" behind the pervasive self-absorption of our time, the risks we run by in pathologizing it, and a path towards braver and more authentic communities and relationships at work.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this activity, participants will be able to:

1. Summarize the relationship between the "achievement society" and patterns of self-interested behaviour at work

2. Describe evidence-based tools and techniques that disrupt these patterns and shift groups from focusing on individual health to group health

3. Develop a plan to amplify your own formal and informal leadership practices using these tools and techniques