d.blythe@gmail.com's  Instablog

Question: What does a narcissistic man do on vacation? Answer: He works on his real job.

I found the narcissistic similarities of Aubrey's situation a little too close to home to not point out. I hope you find them as painfully humorous as I did.

Hotchkiss' seven deadly sins of narcissism

Hotchkiss identified what she called the seven deadly sins of narcissism:^[6]

1. Shamelessness: Shame is the feeling that lurks beneath all unhealthy narcissism, and the inability to process shame in healthy ways.
2. Magical thinking: Narcissists see themselves as perfect, using distortion and illusion known as magical thinking. They also use projection to dump shame onto others.
3. Arrogance: A narcissist who is feeling deflated may reinflate by diminishing, debasing, or degrading somebody else.
4. Envy: A narcissist may secure a sense of superiority in the face of another person's ability by using contempt to minimize the other person.
5. Entitlement: Narcissists hold unreasonable expectations of particularly favorable treatment and automatic compliance because they consider themselves special. Failure to comply is considered an attack on their superiority, and the perpetrator is considered an "awkward" or "difficult" person. Defiance of their will is a narcissistic injury that can trigger narcissistic rage.
6. Exploitation: Can take many forms but always involves the exploitation of others without regard for their feelings or interests. Often the other is in a subservient position where resistance would be difficult or even impossible. Sometimes the subservience is not so much real as assumed.
7. Bad boundaries: Narcissists do not recognize that they have boundaries and that others are separate and are not extensions of themselves. Others either exist to meet their needs or may as well not exist at all. Those who provide narcissistic supply to the narcissist are treated as if they are part of the narcissist and are expected to live up to those expectations. In the mind of a narcissist there is no boundary between self and other.

Citation taken from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissism#Hotchkiss.27_seven_deadly_sins_of_narcissism

Unfortunately, I think Aubrey is a victim of his own success(and greed). It's tough for anyone to take a billion dollar personal hit and not want to rebuild the empire even greater. The problem is CHK is a public company and not his personal investment vehicle. This has all been said before. However, what hasn't been said is how visionary the man is and his drive is unparalleled. I believe he should have left CHK after losing almost all of his personal stake(stock) in the business; the board shouldn't have tried to personally rebuild his wealth just because he was foolish enough to lose it by being caught short.

He's a maverick; his actions over the past four years have proven that he has great business savvy but unfortunately he's a slave to two masters ... personal wealth and CHK. He's going to have to pick one and he may be handed that decision here shortly by the stockholders. I say nobody likes a kick in the teeth but this may be just what he needs to set him back on course whether be it in a new venture or as the natural gas visionary he was.

Disclosure: I am long CHK.