Narcissists have an inflated sense of self-importance.
People with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) believe that they are superior and that they are entitled to special treatment. Moreover, they have a severe lack of empathy and this prevents them from feeling regret or guilt when they hurt the ones around them. In addition to this, their lack of empathy also hinders them from being happy for their partners, friends, and family members. This means that instead of being proud of them and their accomplishments, they often become envious. What is worse, this envy can even drive them to purposely sabotage, tear down, and hurt the people around them.
There are 4 signs that there is an envious narcissist in your life.
1. They refer to you as ‘my talented or successful …’
When they hear about your successes, they seem to be proud of you as they begin to refer to you as their talented or successful partner/friend/child. In doing so, however, they are not trying to compliment or praise you but to increase their own superiority. That is, they believe that being close to an accomplished person makes them more important and special.
2. They compete with you
Due to their inflated sense of self-importance, narcissists believe that they are the greatest, smartest, most attractive and most talented. Unsurprisingly, this means that they do not like to hear that other people might be more special than them. As a result, they become competitive and try to prove their skills, talents, and abilities.
3. They devalue your achievements
When they feel threatened by your success, they will begin to diminish your achievements by saying you got lucky. Alternatively, they may say that it was not a big deal or that it was easy. By devaluing your accomplishments, they make themselves feel better and regain their sense of superiority.
4. They sabotage you
In more extreme cases, an overly envious narcissist might even purposely sabotage you. They may do so by constantly reminding you of your weaknesses, flaws, and shortcomings or actively getting involved in your work. For example, a narcissist might try to make you doubt yourself before an interview or purposely lie about a deadline.
If these four behaviors seem familiar and relatable, there is an envious narcissist in your life.
Keep your accomplishments private to ensure that they do not steal your happiness.
