es" a reflection of desired outcomes and behaves in ways designed to concretize that reflection in the real world. At the organizational leadership level, it is undertaken by executives who have the power to make followers see about them what the executives want them to see. Especially in a crisis, a charismatic leader can be the mirror of an organization, reflecting the desired outcome--often an illusion--of what the followers want to see. Kets de Vries cites this attribute in Ronald Reagan, who articulated a philosophy of a balanced U.S. budget while specifically and programmatically more than doubling it during his tenure as president. But inspiration alone, i.e., a distorted mirror of desires, may not prevent organizational destruction without the clear perspective of outside intervention.
The title of the essay "The Incomplete Self: Narcissism and the Exercise of Power" very much implies its thesis. Beginning with a discussion of power as the definition of the exercise of leadership, Kets de Vries makes the point that where the leader's sense of self is somehow incomplete or unresolved (29), the consequences to organization performance and personnel morale can be devastating. Overcompensating for low self-esteem, for example, can result in autocratic behavior on the job and behavior in connec
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