Surviving the office monster

Warning: Organisational psychopaths are a serious health hazard.

Victims of an “OP” can suffer insomnia, acute anxiety, social withdrawal, a suppressed immune system, weight gain/loss, family conflict and loss of self esteem.

Psychotherapist Dr John Clarke has also known victims to suicide. The author of Working with Monsters and the newly released The Pocket Psycho, Dr Clarke said approximately 10 per cent of the working population display many characteristics of the “organisational psychopath”. Approximately one percent of the population are “diagnosable” psychopaths.

Who are they?

The definition of an OP is someone who will do anything to get ahead. They will happily destroy you if need be. The OP is also a master of disguise who often appears to senior managers as a high performer who can do no wrong.

An OP is quite capable of dazzling you at first to gain your trust and uncover your vulnerabilities to use against you later on. He or she is just as likely to single out an experienced co-worker as a university graduate armed only with their degree and raw ambition.

“They seduce people – it’s is hard to see through them when you believe they can help you achieve want you want,” Dr Clarke said.

According to Dr Clarke, when the time is right the OP will start to put you down, humiliate you in front of others, steal credit for your work and spread false rumours about you. They could be quite subtle at first leaving you confused as to what is going on.

“You tell your inner thoughts to be quiet because you want to believe the dream the organisational psychopath has sold you,” Dr Clarke said.

The OP will also find a way to isolate you from colleagues so that when you eventually complain no one will believe you. Dr Clarke said OPs “are rewarded for their behaviour in two ways  … they get promoted and receive more money and with promotion comes more power over people.”

Taking action

Dr Clarke advises against going head-to-head with the OP because they will do things you are not prepared to such as lie, cheat, steal and bully.

When it dawns on you the person you trusted is a toxic monster, Dr Clarke said you can expect to move through five common stages.

Stage 1: Shock (‘why is this person dong this to me?’).

Stage 2: Anger.

Stage 3: Shame, embarrassment.

Stage 4:  Feeling like you are going crazy. Massive loss of confidence.

Stage 5:  Social withdrawal, relationship problems at work and home. Thinking about the situation obsessively.

“Taking action when you are still in stage one or two is critical to avoid the worse impact of the office psychopath,” Dr Clark said.

“When you are in the shock and anger stages it is still about them but when you move into stage three – shame and embarrassment – it starts to become about you,” he said.

1. “Read everything you can about psychopaths. It’s important to educate yourself about who you’re dealing with and what they are capable of,” Dr Clark said. “Even after educating yourself life will still be very stressful so it’s important to take more steps. We all know the profound impact prolonged stress can have on your health.”

2. Don’t isolate yourself. Find out – subtly – if other people are having similar problems.

3. Don’t let the shame keep you from seeking support. “If you are feeling weakened you can see a psychologist but the most valuable people you can talk to are family and friends. They know you and are on your side,” Dr Clarke said.

4. Work on your profile in the company. Make sure other people know of the work you are doing early on before the OP can steal credit for your efforts. Where appropriate, copy other people in on emails.

5. Work out if you have the support of your organisation. Document all incidents and talk to someone in HR about the situation.

6. If the company is not supportive then start thinking about an exit strategy. “Many people will say ‘it’s not fair that I should leave’,” Dr Clarke said. “However, if your organisation will not support you then the only thing within your power to change is your job.” You can enlist the help of friends or a career counsellor to come up with the best solution.

Both Dr Clarke’s books are published by Random House Australia.

If you’ve had a brush with an office psycho let us know via Kate’s Blog.

By Kate Southam, Editor of careerone.com.au