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  • © 2019

Down the Rabbit Hole of Leadership

Leadership Pathology in Everyday Life

Palgrave Macmillan
  • Analyses how people in positions of leadership project their personal neuroses
  • Examines dysfunction in everyday life in organizations, from personal behavior to executive pay
  • Includes a brief anecdote to clearly illustrate the ideas in each chapter

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Table of contents (26 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xv
  2. Part I

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
    2. Introduction

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 3-15
    3. Do You Want to Be Led by a Dictator?

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 17-24
    4. Trumpmania

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 25-34
    5. The Ugly American

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 35-41
    6. Not All Narcissists Are Created Equal

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 43-47
    7. Do You Identify with the Aggressor?

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 49-53
    8. The Making of a Bully

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 55-60
    9. Are You Addicted to Power?

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 61-66
    10. Mission (Im)possible: Dealing with Narcissistic Executives

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 67-71
    11. Developing Leaders Through Adversity

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 73-78
  3. Part II

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 79-79
    2. A Tale of Two Organizations: Creating Best Places to Work

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 81-86
    3. The CEO Mega-Pay Bonanza

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 87-94
    4. The Money Delusion

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 95-99
    5. Saving a Family Business from Emotional Dysfunction

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 101-105
    6. The Wise Fool

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 107-110
    7. Down and Out in Beggarland

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 111-116
    8. Don’t Let Shame Become a Self-Destructive Spiral

      • Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries
      Pages 117-122

About this book

In the previous book in this series, Manfred Kets de Vries observed the experiences of leaders on a rollercoaster ride through their professional and personal lives. Now, he follows them down the rabbit hole into the unknown, where, like Lewis Carroll’s Alice, they find a dystopian Wonderland in which everyone seems to have gone mad and life functions according to its own crazy logic, throwing up all kinds of obstacles in the search for truth.

Understanding what is happening around us has become more difficult than ever in the Age of Trump. Don’t imperatives like “build that wall” sound very much like “Off with his head”? Unfortunately, and unlike Alice, we are not going to wake up from a bad dream and discover that everything is “nothing but a pack of cards”.

The first part of this book looks at the psychodynamics of leadership in both a business and a political context. The second focuses on the psychopathology of everyday life in organizations and the seemingly endless ways people can make a mess of things – including mega pay packages, acting out, digital addiction and other dysfunctional behaviour patterns. Each chapter ends with a brief anecdote to illustrate the dilemma it presents.

In short, sharp nuggets, Kets de Vries helps make sense of how the madness of the present has affected leadership in organizations and the workplace.

Authors and Affiliations

  • INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France

    Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries

About the author

Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries is the Distinguished Professor of Leadership Development and Organizational Change at INSEAD, the Founder of INSEAD’s Global Leadership Centre, Program Director of INSEAD’s top management program, “The Challenge of Leadership: Developing Your Emotional Intelligence”, and Scientific Director of the Executive Master’s program “Consulting and Coaching for Change”.

The Financial TimesLe CapitalWirtschaftswoche, and the Economist have rated him among the world’s leading management thinkers. As a global consultant in executive leadership development, his clients have included many of the most important global organizations. He is the author of almost 50 books and hundreds of articles, the recipient of numerous awards, including two honorary doctorates, and chairman of the Kets de Vries Institute (KDVI), a boutique leadership development consulting firm.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Down the Rabbit Hole of Leadership

  • Book Subtitle: Leadership Pathology in Everyday Life

  • Authors: Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92462-5

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: Business and Management, Business and Management (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG, part of Springer Nature 2019

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-92461-8Published: 20 October 2018

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-06435-8Published: 12 January 2019

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-92462-5Published: 10 October 2018

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XV, 186

  • Topics: Business Strategy/Leadership, Coaching, Consulting, Supervision and Coaching

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 24.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 32.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 32.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access