Tricksters: The Uncomfortable Truth
We often romanticize tricksters including in management, people like personal leadership gurus, as clever, rebellious figures who challenge the status quo. They’re the underdogs who outsmart the powerful, the witty characters who keep us entertained. But let’s peel back the layers of this popular archetype and delve into the positive and less glamorous sides of trickery.

The Charming Facade
Helpful tricksters are portrayed as benevolent beings, cunningly outwitting adversaries for the greater good. They’re often seen as symbols of hope, resilience, and the triumph of the underdog. They thrive on deception, exploiting vulnerabilities to achieve their goals but for the good.
The Shadow Side
On the flip side, harmful tricksters are the villains of our stories. Their actions are driven by selfish desires, causing chaos and destruction. Yet, even these characters can possess a certain allure. Their audacity, their ability to disrupt the ordinary, can be intoxicating. In mythology examples are Loki used in the ai-powered graphic design picture above this post, and Eshu.
The Uncomfortable Truth
The truth is, there’s a thin line between the helpful and harmful trickster. Both rely on deception and manipulation. Both challenge the status quo, but their intentions differ. The key lies in the consequences of their actions: their why.
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A helpful trickster’s actions ultimately benefit the community. Their tricks are often a means to an end, a necessary evil to achieve a greater good. However, their methods can also be seen as disrespectful, undermining trust and authority in .
A harmful trickster, on the other hand, prioritizes personal gain over collective well-being. Their tricks are often destructive, leaving a trail of pain and suffering in their wake when reality steps in.
The Trickster Within
The trickster archetype exists within all of us individually. We all possess the capacity for cunning, manipulation, and deception to some degree. It’s a part of human nature. The question is, how do we channel these qualities as an individual in our personal lives or in our private life, finding meaning in our work:

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In simple words: do we use trickery to build or to destroy? To defend democracy or to promote dictatorship?
Understanding the complexities of the trickster archetype is essential. It allows us to recognize the manipulative tactics used by others including harmful management tricksters and to examine our own motivations. It’s a reminder that not everything that glitters is gold, and that even the most charming characters or successful people can harbor darker intentions.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to our own personal behaviour including the use of AI. Do you want to want to use ai for the good or for the bad? And do you want to really help people with relevant practical advice to survive The Great AI Layoff and the online shakeout like I do in this new practical e-book:

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Or do you want to make make money writing dinosaur management books with sacred cows in management and sacred cows in business, thus actually act as a harmfull trickster?
Reach out.
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