The Best of You 231: How to Know Who You Can Trust in a Narcissistic Age: Charisma, Character & the Signs of Real Change with Dr. Chuck DeGroat
Oct 22, 2026
Dr. Chuck DeGroat, a therapist, professor, minister, and author specializing in narcissism and spiritual abuse, explores how to recognize trustworthy character beneath charisma and polished vulnerability. They unpack faux intimacy online, manipulation disguised as wisdom, the role of humility and repair, and why meaningful change requires safety, accountability, and years of consistent action.
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Charisma Can Hide Character Deficits
- Charisma, credentials, and polished communication can obscure serious character deficits.<br>- Performative leaders now borrow spiritual practices, therapy language, and wellness vocabulary to appear healthy without becoming trustworthy.
Character Is The Hidden Architecture
- Character means becoming increasingly loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, faithful, and gentle.<br>- Unlike personality, character emerges through repeated patterns observed across years, not through a memorable first impression.
Trust Requires More Than An Online Persona
- Social media creates false intimacy by compressing trust into quick, fragile connections.<br>- Even in person, platforms and public performances reveal little unless people encounter someone’s ordinary patterns over time.
