Danielle Haig, an international business psychologist and executive coach, joins the Find Your Influence podcast to reveal how the dark triad—psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism—shows up in real-life high performers, from CEOs to public figures. She explains that most dark-triad personalities aren’t criminals but highly functional, charming, fearless operators with no empathy, capable of driving explosive results and just as easily blowing up teams and businesses when challenged. Danielle shows how psychopaths’ lack of fear and rejection makes them relentless risk-takers, why narcissists are fragile “Christmas baubles” obsessed with image and admiration, and how Machiavellians quietly play a long power game, keeping score and planning their moves years ahead. Drawing on tens of thousands of hours in research, psychotherapy, and executive coaching, she exposes why we’re so bad at spotting lies, how these people exploit our instinct to trust, and what boards actually want when they hire her to “keep the genius but stop the destruction.” Most importantly, she gives leaders a clear, practical lens to recognize manipulation early, set firm boundaries, and deliberately choose what to learn and what to reject—using practiced confidence, real psychological safety, and a definition of influence rooted in living, modeling, and relentlessly communicating a clear vision without ever dropping their integrity.