The Wisdom of Psychopaths

other random experiences can cause subtle changes in internal wiring and chemistry which then later account for tectonic shifts in behavior.

But human beings are pathologically risk averse. A lot of the mechanisms that drive our emotions aren’t really that well adapted to modern life.”

Psychopathy really is like a high performance sports car. It’s a double-edged sword that inevitably cuts both ways.

They simply couldn’t care less how society, as a whole, might contemplate their actions.

the borderline between functional and dysfunctional psychopathy depends not on the presence of psychopathic attributes per se, but rather on their levels and the way they’re combined

number of psychopathic attributes were actually more common in business leaders than in so-called disturbed criminals

“I think every society needs particular individuals to do its dirty work for it,”

Zeroing in on weakness may well be part of a serial killer’s toolkit.

Even depression has its advantages. Recent research suggests that despondency helps us think better—and contributes to increased attentiveness and enhanced problem-solving ability.

To a psychopath, you see, there are no such things as clouds. There are only silver linings.