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254 SNAKES IN SUITS
inability to tell the truth
Most of us were taught, as children, not to lie, and we grew up to be
reasonably honest people. Young psychopaths learn how to lie very
well. Interviews of criminal psychopaths reveal the most grossly distorted
stories and blatant lies, presented in an entertaining, somewhat
self-serving, but altogether matter-of-fact style. Even in the
face of contrary evidence, the psychopath can lie so well that listeners
doubt themselves first, rather than question the psychopath.
Honesty is one of the most important traits in an organization.
We have almost never seen an executive’s file in which he or she was
rated less than perfect on honest and ethical behavior. The problem
is twofold. First, it is unpleasant and not socially acceptable to claim
that someone is dishonest or unethical. And second, just how do you
measure honesty? Is offering a customer a less-than-quality product
dishonest business or good materials management? Is avoiding questions
about layoffs and downsizing until final decisions are made
dishonest or good employee relations? These are difficult calls to
make—they are challenges to organizational responsibility and
effectiveness—but the psychopath can easily slip through the fog, by
appearing honest and ethical on the surface, yet doing things that
many would agree are dishonest and unethical.
Pathological lying is a hallmark of psychopaths. They cross back
and forth easily between lying and honesty during conversations because
they do not have the guilty feelings the rest of us have when we
try to tell a lie. Their lies are always woven with a thread of truth,
which, if questioned, they indignantly point out in their own defense.
Questioning a well-positioned corporate psychopath’s honesty
can bring its own punishment in the form of retribution against the
challenger: “Can you believe what Harry said to me? He called me a
liar when I shared with him the information about...” one of our
psychopaths told an executive about a coworker he wanted to derail.
Organizations can forgive mistakes if the intention was honest
and motivated by the best interest of the company. Psychopaths