7 keys to discover cold and calculating people

Cold and calculating people inhabit any social setting with a very clear purpose.. The objective of these figures is to obtain benefits, goals, achievements and positions of power, taking people as simple variables in the equation. To achieve this, they do not hesitate to use strategies of deception and manipulation, leaving numerous victims in their wake.

This profile usually abounds in many work environments. However, there are also many who have fallen into an emotional relationship of these characteristics. They are cold people, with zero emotional attachments and replicas, in many cases, of a Machiavellian behavior pattern.. Therefore, it is decisive to identify these men and women who navigate our surroundings, as skilled sharks waiting for some oversight to achieve what they want.

Profile of cold and calculating people

Are cold and calculating people born or made? This is the first question we can ask ourselves when we meet someone who manifests this nature. Research work, such as those carried out at the University of Illinois, tells us something relevant. Already in childhood there are children who show cognitive egocentrism (they only care about the “I” perspective). If this factor is not attended to or re-educated, it will lead to emotional coldness.

Environmental and educational factors have a great impact. Having grown up in a scenario lacking attachment and with the absence of an education based on empathy, respect and adequate emotional management, results in this coldness. Later, in adolescence, Machiavellian behavior appears. That is to say, that calculating, conniving and often even cynical mind emerges.

Let’s learn more characteristics of this profile.

1. Intelligence oriented towards selfishness, self-benefit

Cold and calculating people usually have a high IQ. However, that brilliant mind does not go hand in hand with kindness or seeking the well-being of others. Their behavior is purely instrumental: in their actions, directly or indirectly, they always seek personal benefit.

They are very skilled personalities when it comes to planning long-term goals.. Thus, research work, such as those carried out at the University of Western Ontario, tells us that calculating people, such as Machiavellians, score high in fluid intelligence.

What does this translate into? Basically in the following:

They are not skilled at reasoning about abstract ideas. They have good logical reasoning. They know how to draw inferences and deductions, they are observant and very analytical.

2. The dark triad and cold and calculating people,

Emotional coldness, added to Machiavellianism, leads us to integrate this personality into what we know as the dark triad.. It was in 2002, when psychologists Delroy Paulhus and Kevin Williams, from the University of British Columbia, defined this term.

The objective was to understand these personalities with psychopathic traits a little better. Thus, in the case of cold and calculating people, although they may show hints of the first two dimensions, they stand out above all in the instrumentalization of others.

The bases that justify it are the following:

They are very opportunistic and calculating figures, they know how to take advantage of practically any situation to gain an advantage. While psychopaths tend to be more impulsive and take risks when they want to achieve something, the Machiavellian is colder, more cautious. He can wait months or years to achieve what he wants. They are prudent and stand out for their self-control and their ability to plan and adapt to changes.

3. They are distant, but when they want something they can pretend

In general, his way of relating is always cold. They keep their distance, they are not particularly affectionate or social. However, When they have a plan in mind, their Machiavellian profile allows them to display wonderful people skills.. For them, always or almost always, the end justifies the means.

4. Distrust and suspicion

Cold and calculating people do not trust. It’s more, They are suspicious of everything around them and are always alert. They take it for granted that others are like them: at the slightest chance someone can betray them for a greater goal.

5. Emotional detachment and instrumental empathy

It is common that this personality profile did not have good emotional support in their childhood.. This has made them grow up without needing anything from anyone, they do not know or want to strengthen ties with others and if they do it is out of a specific interest. Emotional detachment is a constant in their lives, they rarely maintain partners and friendships.

Likewise, another factor defines them: instrumental empathy. That is to say, They connect emotionally with others to manipulate them, to make them believe that they feel the same way so that they can blackmail them and have control over them..

6. Cold and calculating people are methodical and need fixed routines

We are dealing with men and women who need a fixed routine, they are methodical people and tend to do the same things every day. They take care of their schedules, their lifestyle habits, they do not like unforeseen events and they will rarely break their balance for someone..

7. They are haughty, they perceive themselves as better than the rest

We previously pointed out that cold and calculating people fit the profile of the dark triad. Although it is true that they score more significantly in the Machiavellianism factor, they also present some traits of psychopathy and narcissism.

Regarding the narcissistic component, it should be noted that it manifests itself in them in a very specific way: they are very haughty. They perceive themselves as having better skills than the majority, however, it is not something they express openly. They are more discreet. You can sense them in their way of speaking, in their behavior, in the subtle contempt they may show for some co-workers or even their own partners.

In essence, We are facing a harmful and dangerous pattern of personality and behavior.. Insensitivity, his patience and his ability to manipulate people are undoubtedly those traps that we can fall into at some point.

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