Niccolo Machiavelli, best known for authoring The Prince, continues to jolt people with opinions on the difference between public and private morality. The writer and political theorist maintained that those in positions of power – particularly political power – should adhere to a realistic view of human nature and “be other than good” to survive. According to Daniel Goleman’s Emotional Mastery, Machiavellian leaders tend to be narcissistic – lacking the capacity for emotional empathy, compassion, and concern. On the other hand, these types of leaders do retain a cognitive empathy, which means that they are acutely aware of the feelings of others despite not being able to connect with their emotions. A Machiavellian presenter will engage in deceptive and manipulative maneuvers to achieve their desired end goal – typically related to obtaining status, wealth, or power. This potentially has an effect on presentation delivery and audience reaction. Be on the lookout for these 3 characteristics of a Machiavellian presenter:
1. Aware
A recent study called the Theory of Mind and Empathic Explanations of Machiavellianism: A Neuroscience Perspective analyzed Machiavellians in the workplace and found that individuals with high Machiavellian levels are less skilled socially – as evidenced by a lack of activity in the respective involved areas of the brain. The presenter is aware of the needs and desires of his or her audience, and displays appropriate nonverbal gestures and emotional responses based off of reactions from the crowd. But a Machiavellian presenter is unable to cognitively view and comprehend the perspective of another person or a group of people and will probably employ manipulative tactics to persuade people to accept a perspective or idea, or purchase a product. According to a study featured in Brain and Cognition, Machiavellian-leaning individuals show more activity in the cingulate cortex and thalamus, as well as the anterior insula and inferior frontal gyrus – explaining their effective use of behavioral heuristics. Machiavelli didn’t hold a promising outlook on the state of the human race – appointing myriad negative characteristics to it.
In terms of the presentation environment, Machiavellian thinking could breed resentment, disdain, and lack of confidence in the overall message for both parties – presenter and audience.
2. Strategic
Presenters with enhanced Machiavellian levels exhibit increased activity in the regions of the brain responsible for affective empathetic response (the pars opercularis and insula). This means that a Machiavellian presenter performs successfully in front of an audience in certain circumstances that he or she finds personally advantageous. In a variety of other social situations, the individual most likely struggles to read other people despite an ability to foresee outcomes of future risky or uncertain situations. What does this look like during a presentation? This quality can manifest in several different ways, ranging from text-laden slides and a desperate deficit of visuals to a monotone presentation delivery and lecture-based format that discourage audience interaction. Although the Machiavellian presenter derives motivation solely from personal goals to garner power, he or she also has a valuable ability to predict problems that may arise in the future. Because of this, a Machiavellian presenter is prepared for the worst, but also for the best – capable of leveraging any condition in their favor.
3. Influential
Machiavelli insisted in The Prince that if the people (or audience) you are leading can’t love you and fear you, then it would be ideal for the presenter to be feared.
The Theory of Mind study also discovered that Machiavellians have a tendency to impact the workplace by encouraging non-Machiavellians to act deceptively – largely due to the results of social contagion and the effects of imitation. Maybe non-Machiavellians feel threatened by the strategies of Machiavellians, fearing the consequences of not operating in a similar fashion. Whether that is the case or not, this sort of situational backdrop in a presentation setting can be detrimental to the presenter attempting to convey a message and the audience trying to retain it.
Conclusion
The case of the Machiavellian presenter is a complex one – bordering on a thin line between advantageous and disadvantageous. Companies should consider the setting and audience of upcoming presentations in conjunction with the Machiavellian level of presenter options. For example, the Theory of Mind study found that a Machiavellian presenter would function within the particular business standards throughout the course of a presentation if he or she is managed more closely and intentionally. For more information about keeping ethics in check during a presentation pitch, view the following articles:
