Narcissistic people: these are the 9 traits that define them.

These people live life as if it were a popularity contest in which they must win.

Narcissism is one of the most researched personality traits in the field of psychology. If it occurs in an extremely high intensity, it can lead to mental disorders, such as Narcissistic Personality Disorder, but even at low levels it presents striking and sometimes conflict-causing characteristics.

In this article we will see what are the traits that define narcissistic people and how to identify them. and in what way it is possible to identify them.

1. Feeling of grandiosity

Narcissistic people talk and act as if they were part of the most important elite on planet Earth. This is noticeable, for example, in the way of addressing other people: it is not necessarily hostile (it usually is not), but it is based on the assumption that one has the power oneself and the other must adapt to one.

But not all narcissists express their sense of grandiosity in a transparent way. Some adopt a rather low and discreet profile.. In these cases, the feeling of grandiosity is based on fantasizing about a future in which they will hold a power that will subdue the rest, and on cultivating resentment against those who are perceived as better valued by their social environments.

2. They get frustrated quickly

When something does not go well, narcissistic people react with anger and in a quick, almost automatic way. This is because the grandiose self-image they try to maintain through their actions and their interaction with their environment and with others can be profoundly damaged by any setback..

3. They aspire to leadership roles

Another characteristic of narcissistic people is that, in order to make reality fit as much as possible with their self-image, they try to gain power and reach leadership roles. It is not that they are better leaders per se, but that they try to avoid cognitive dissonance. they are trying to avoid the cognitive dissonance of holding a low hierarchical role and, at the same time, believing that they are more than the rest.

4. They have low self-esteem

It may seem counterintuitive, but narcissistic people have, behind the armor that is their public image, more insecurities than the rest. That is why deeply frustrated if others do not show them due respect (which, in order to satisfy (which, in order to meet their expectations, is very high).

Thus, the self-concept of these people is a question of all or nothing: by default, an idealized self-image is taken for granted, but the slightest brush with reality generates a lot of discomfort and puts in check all the beliefs about oneself.

5. They make up stories to avoid assuming their mistakes

Narcissistic people have serious problems when it comes to accepting that they have made a mistake, and they avoid showing weakness by asking for forgiveness. avoid showing weakness by asking for forgiveness.

That is why they project the blame on others, going to extremes in which the failure of an action they have performed is seen as the fault of another person who is not present, for example, for having bought an object or material of poor quality with which they cannot work well.

Sometimes the frustration of not being able to make up a minimally credible story on the spot about why someone else is to blame for what you have done can lead to increased frustration and anger.

6. Highly value aesthetics and appearances

Narcissistic people are constantly judging others, and therefore need an easy way to make judgments.They need an easy and simple way to do so. In practice, this means that they pay a lot of attention to people's appearances: the clothes they wear, their style, etc. They do not necessarily value better those who fit better with the canons of fashion, but they attribute more or less "character" and "personality" to those who meet certain requirements.

7. They control their image in social networks

They are very scrupulous when it comes to filtering the image they give on social networks like Facebook. on social networks such as Facebook. In addition to tending to have many "friends" added (since having many gives an image of popularity, whether they are known or not), they show only those personal photographs that have gone through a selection process. Sometimes, they use image editing programs to retouch these photos so that they are not noticeable.

8. They take everything personally

Narcissistic people believe that everything that happens is part of a popularity contest. Unfortunately, this means that they are often outdone by someone, even if that someone does not even intend to please the others. In these cases, the narcissist feels attacked and may adopt attack strategies against the narcissist. and may adopt attack strategies against the other, not always by confronting them directly.

9. They do not conceive the concept of "constructive criticism".

For narcissistic people it is unacceptable for someone to put the spotlight on their mistakes and weaknesses. Therefore, the idea that these criticisms can be used to improve in the future makes no sense.