Narcissists prefer the limelight by default, and typically have several methods they use to obtain it. These are called attention-seeking behaviors, and we are going to go over some of their most used attention-seeking behaviors here.
Signs of narcissistic personality disorder include a lack of empathy, a grandiose sense of self, a sense of entitlement, and a need for constant attention and validation. Once upon a time, narcissists were thought to be a rare breed, however, over the past 10 years, the number of narcissists has been on the rise. Because of their grandiose sense of self though, there are likely many undiagnosed narcissists floating around who have never sought treatment.
If you have a narcissist in your life, then you have likely seen some of the following behaviors.
1. They exaggerate their accomplishments.
Narcissists often view themselves in an exaggerated light, and even those who don’t (the more vulnerable narcissists) are likely to exaggerate their accomplishments because they crave attention and admiration. While at first, you may not notice, as you get to know them, you will see more and more how they build themselves up on a house of cards.
2. They hog the conversation.
Another tendency of a narcissist is to hog the conversation. Narcissists can talk about themselves all day long, every day, without ever catching a breath. And if someone else takes over and talks about themselves, the narcissist will interrupt them and keep on talking about themselves some more.
3. They play the victim.
In almost every situation, the narcissist believes that they are the victim. To them, it simply isn’t feasible or good for their image for them to be perceived as someone who does anything wrong. So, rather than ever admitting fault for anything, they are far more likely to turn the tables and play the victim.
4. They feign a tragedy.
If there is no tragedy available around the narcissist for them to ride the coattails, they will make up one. Oftentimes, narcissistic personality disorder coincides with Munchausen Syndrome. Put simply, narcissists like to go as far as to fake illness for attention, notoriety, and sympathy.
5. They outright lie.
Additionally, narcissists will outright lie about things for attention. If you pay close attention, most narcissists are pathological liars as well. So, it isn’t a big deal to them to make up some insane lie to get the attention of their friends and family.
6. They create drama.
And if there are no lies to tell and things around the narcissist seem pretty calm, be careful. When things are calm around the narcissist, they are very likely to start some drama. They cannot stand for things to be calm and much prefer constant chaos and drama.