Leading like a Con Artist

How can the “Ten Commandments for Con Men” inspire your leadership?

Let me start with a few definitions.

• Con is the abbreviation for Confidence.
• There are synonyms for Con Artist, like Con Man (= Confidence Man, and yes, we talk about mostly of men as suspects) or Ripoff Artist
• We actually speak of scam, fraud, exploitation.

None of these points stand for good leadership. Yet, we should learn from the best and Victor Lustig was one of the best Con Artists, who managed to build up confidence, or better trust to an extent that he could sell basically anything, even the Eiffel Tower.

Trust is the foundation for any relationship and the highest aim for every leader.

The story behind Victor Lustig is amazing and you find a few references below. He (supposedly) defined a set of instructions known as the “Ten Commandments for Con Men“.

Here you find the original list and on the right I added my thoughts or a possible translation on how to lead as a Con (Wo)Man.

1. Be a patient listener (it is this, not fast talking, that gets a con man his coups).
2. Never look bored.
3. Wait for the other person to reveal any political opinions, then agree with them.
4. Let the other person reveal religious views, then have the same ones.
5. Hint at sex talk, but don’t follow it up unless the other person shows a strong interest.
6. Never discuss illness, unless some special concern is shown.
7. Never pry into a person’s personal circumstances (they’ll tell you all eventually).
8. Never boast – just let your importance be quietly obvious.
9. Never be untidy.
10. Never get drunk.

1. This is a quick win, I hope you agree that listening gets you further than talking.
2. Show interest and respect.
3. This may seem a bit brown nosy, but maybe you agree to not break off a conflict on very personal views on politics and rather listen to arguments and reasons.
4. Same
5. For me sex talk translates to gossip. On the one hand, a leader should not engage in or encourage gossip. On the other hand, gossip is a social glue and if you manage to create a safe room, where your team members or peers share gossip, this can be an opportunity to build trust and unity.
6. Don’t ask too personal, don’t tell too personal. Let others talk about health issues voluntarily and check if there is a relevance for you (personal concern, need for support, workplace safety etc.). Share your own health issues only if it is really relevant for others.
7. Your aim can be to create an environment in which others share their personal situation. This follows give and take and if you expect others to give insights in their life, you should be the first to share.
8. I guess this needs no translation.
9. This can stand for many things, like for being organized, punctual and reliable. It can be what you wear or what is behind you in the video call.
10. To join the party does not mean that someone should carry you off the dance floor. Keep your senses, protect your reputation.

This is not an encouragement to trick anybody into trusting you. These are attributes and attitudes to foster, not to abuse. If you see this as a toolbox to manipulate others, please trythe self-assessment in On the Dark Side of Leadership

More about this

Wikipedia on Viktor Lustig

Podcast in German: Victor Lustig – Der Mann, der den Eiffelturm verkaufte

Picture credits: banner by myself, header by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay