If You’ve Defeated a Demonic Narcissist They’ll Do This

Competition Overdrive: Watch out for an intense need to compete. A core trait of narcissism is a really deep-seated competitive streak. It can be incredibly hard for the narcissist to watch you grow, learn, or inspire others, especially if they feel you’re doing it without them or better than them. Instead of being motivated by self-improvement, their competitive drive often comes from a place of perceived unfairness. They might genuinely believe your successes are somehow undeserved and that those achievements are rightfully theirs, regardless of effort or merit. This can lead to a pattern of imitation and one-upmanship. They might start mimicking your actions, your choices, and then try to claim those things as their own original ideas. If you point out the similarities, expect arrogance in return. They might say they’re correcting your approach or showing you the right way to do things. Even if they’re caught red-handed copying you, they’ll likely rationalize it by saying they were just demonstrating how it should be done, reinforcing their inflated sense of self-importance. This competitive urge can bleed into all areas of life. They might suddenly want the same job you have, move to your neighborhood, or even start dressing like you. Imagine you move into a nice apartment building; a narcissist might follow suit, even stretching their finances just to prove they’re on your level. If you wear a certain style of clothing, they might adopt it too and then act like they’re the ones who truly know how to wear it. This behavior, fueled by a fragile ego, can be pretty transparent to anyone watching. If you’ve set healthy boundaries, you might observe these actions with a certain detachment, recognizing they’re rooted in the narcissist’s own insecurities. Their choices become very telling, revealing a dependence on your reactions. Their decisions often seem to orbit around mirroring or competing with your choices. They might try to mask their imitation as superiority, but ultimately, their actions betray a lack of authentic self. They’re caught in a cycle of either mirroring or battling others, unable to simply be themselves.

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