Don’t Let Power Corrupt You

A paradox of power is that people gain it through virtuous behaviors such as collaboration, openness, fairness, and sharing, but once they enjoy a position of privilege, those finer qualities start to fade. Research shows that the powerful are more likely to engage in rude, selfish, and unethical behavior. This tarnishes their reputations, undermining their influence, and creates stress and anxiety among their colleagues, dragging down their teams’ engagement and performance.

Dacher Keltner, a psychology professor who has studied this phenomenon in a variety of professional settings, describes how executives can avoid succumbing to this syndrome. The first step is developing awareness: being attentive to the feelings that accompany a rise to leadership, practicing mindfulness, and looking for warning signals in your behavior. The second is to remember and try to practice the three ethics of good power—empathy, gratitude, and generosity—in your interactions, meetings, and communications every day.