You're So Vain.

"I bet you think this song is about you" warbled Carly Simon in her get back song, to Warren Beatty after their short lived dalliance. Her take on their relationship centred on the one sided affair Beatty was having with himself, while escorting Simon, who ended up a mere handbag to his vanity. The vanity and narcissistic attitudes of Beatty, as one of Hollywood's pretty boys, was not an option for most people other than singing into a hair brush in front of the home mirror. Times have changed and the social media revolution has given the narcissist in us all, carte blanche to become self absorbed in our own legend.

We all know them, those people a little more inclined to look in the shop window as they walk by, flex a little too much at the gym and remain self absorbed even in catastrophic situations while still maintaining a perfect coiffure. How much fun are they having on Facebook,Twitter and the plethora of forums and activities designed to bring out, attractive, attention seeking, over confident, ego driven, high maintenance individuals, showing the world, it's all about them. Are we headed for a future where the self absorbed become the bench mark for individuality and success?

Facebook and the entertainment world aside, business has long endured those requiring our utmost attention and many of today's leaders fall into what is referred to as "business narcissism". Recent studies found people born between 1977 and 2000 more narcissistic than previous generations and that male business students the most narcissistic of all. In a study of over 500 US undergraduates, statistics revealed students motivated by money were more likely to be narcissistic than those motivated by wanting to contribute and help others. So it seems we can look forward to more leaders of industry self absorbed, needing attention and not interested in higher visions for making the planet a better place to live. Seems business schools have become a hotbed of reinforcement for narcissistic attitudes creating leaders with entitlement, exploitive and empathy issues.

Business narcissism can build up out of a leader’s thinking they are the exception to every rule and every challenge they encounter is exceptional and requires only their specific skills. Think about CEOs, defending their pay packets and share options, that have no place in the common man's thinking, with no other response than "I'm worth every cent". This is narcissism at the highest level and used to be difficult to focus on, as inappropriate behaviour, but where the web is seen as an enabler, it also has the power to spot light inappropriate narcissistic behaviour.

People taking themselves too seriously, especially in business circles, becoming too self absorbed and self centred and requiring the highest maintenance, whether via money or sycophantic attention are now at the mercy of the anonymous and the direct via the same avenues they seek attention through. The ability to take pot shots at the high and mighty and poke fun at those putting themselves on a pedestal provides balance in the tug of war between the preeners and the doers.

So while we may give a wry smile to people living large via Facebook we have the opportunity to bring attention to those in power and highlight the need for a balanced approach to business views, other than their own. By the way, does my bum look big in this suit?