"How Do I Win This Moment?" When The Middle School Mindset Leader Becomes The President of the United States ('Little God Emperor of the Universe')

"I made winning my whole life. And when you make winning your whole life, you have to keep on winning." - John Candy

Imagine if your immature middle school child were handed the keys to America and made president?

What if his mission was revenge?

That'd be quite a disaster, right? He or she would use all the resources of the federal government to fulfill his or her desires.

Well, you don't have to wonder about this scenario because that's what we're witnessing unfold with the second Trump presidency.

working on a new unified theory of american reality i'm calling "everyone is twelve now" — Patrick Cosmos (@veryimportant.lawyer) September 7, 2025 at 8:37 PM

“I’m strong and I want to have like fifty kids and a farm” of course you do. You’re twelve. “I don’t want to eat vegetables I think steak and French fries is the only meal” hell yeah homie you’re twelve. “Maybe if there’s crime we should just send the army” bless your heart my twelve year old buddy

— Patrick Cosmos (@veryimportant.lawyer) September 7, 2025 at 8:51 PM

In my previous article, I dove into the middle school mindset (stage 2 of constructive developmental theory, self-sovereign) and how someone at this stage of maturity operates, sees the world, and is motivated. It's rough raising a middle schooler at times, but it gets worse when that person becomes an adult without maturing into the next stage of adult growth (the socialized mind).

America is in a difficult situation because we’ve put a middle schooler bent on revenge in charge of the most powerful country in the world. What's also different about Trump’s second term is that many people who were in level 4 of the adult development stage (self-authored individuals with principles) have all been ejected and sidelined from Trump's second administration. Those principled people around Trump are now replaced with those willing and motivated to give him what he needs and wants. Loyalty matters more than competence and principles.

In this article, I’ll demonstrate how we can know Trump is operating at a Level 2 (pre-ideological) stage of adult development (the Middle School Mindset) and how that drives his motivations and actions. This will help us also better predict how Trump will respond and act as president for the remainder of his term, and why it’s going to involve large amounts of chaos, deception, and wrongdoing (AKA corruption). He won't see it as that, but rather as winning conquests that he deserves for asserting enough power to get what he wants. 

Most people who critique Trump recognize his non-ideological approach. He's pre-ideological, which means he wants to win with whatever ideology helps him do that. Morality and truth are not important distinctions or facets to integrate. Let's dive in.

Trump Only Wants to Win The Moment

Anne Applebaum is an author and expert on autocracy and dictators. In a recent interview, Anne beautifully described how Trump thinks and acts. When I heard it, I noticed how effectively she captures who he is, but also how an adult in level 2 operates.

She may not know about Constructive Developmental Theory, but she captured the self-sovereign mind perfectly. Here's how she described him, in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

"[Trump] is not thinking 10 years from now what will happen. He's not thinking how we have peace forever. He's thinking, how do I win this moment? How do I stop the war so that I can say I stopped the war?

And almost everything he does, once you understand that, what he's doing is about winning each situation, like the day he announced his tariffs and the stock markets crashed, this was a big win. He made a huge impact, okay? And then a few days later, it turned out this is a disaster, and he changed his policy.

And then he said, now I'm going to win by doing tariff deals with every country in the world. And now he does a scene where he has a tariff piece of paper that he signs with the British. And when you look closer, the piece of paper means nothing, and nothing has really changed. But he has a ceremony and he signs the deal. And this is a win.

And this is how he thinks. This is a performance. And what matters is winning the moment, not what happened before and not what will happen after.

He's always living in the moment and he wants to win whatever moment it is, whichever interview, whichever TV appearance, that's it. That's a real, very social media mind, right? So you post something, you get one million likes and you forget about it later." - Anne Applebaum, Trump, Ukraine, and Russia, Explaining Ukraine

I suspect you’re nodding your head in agreement. Whether you like or dislike Trump, that explanation is an accurate description of who he is and how he operates. And that showman mindset extends into crafting a fantasy world. He says what he wants to be real, like the bluesky post above; a 12-year-old trying to speak into existence that which they want to be reality.

"He’s still at the developmental stage where if he says it then it’s so, which is the original meaning of ‘abracadabra’, from the Aramaic, ‘I create as I speak.’" Andy White, Pinocchio. On wanting to be a real boy

Trump's focus on the moment and winning that moment intersects with his performance background on reality TV, where that moment being filmed is what matters because it is what is captured and distributed. What happens before or after the camera rolls is irrelevant to what's captured. And production allows people to create an entire fantasy world that seems real. I've worked on several reality TV shows, and there was a difference when the cameras were rolling and when they were not.

Winning and not losing is also a key dynamic here. A level 2 mind thinks that if the other person is winning, they are losing and being taken advantage of. As a result, they not only need to win, but they usually want the other to lose. This is the most satisfying type of win for them.

This is why the American First idea is such a vital piece of Trump’s vision. But it is more helpful to think of Trump's use of America First as Trump First. Trump doesn’t care about America. What he cares about is himself and getting what he needs and wants. Covering that under America First simply lets him get what he wants without it being obvious what he’s doing (even though it is obvious for anyone paying attention and looking at the details). And it’s also why there will be contradictions to America First when what Trump contradicts America’s interest, like his bailing out the leader of Argentina (which benefits Trump and harms America).

And if you want to see where things are going, look at the America First Institute, not Project 2025 by the Heritage Foundation (says Tina Nguyen, former MAGA member). The difference is that the Heritage Foundation wants to get what it wants through constitutional means. The America First Institute wants to give Trump everything he wants, even if it means undermining the Constitution. America First is an institution that is building an ideology around getting Trump what he wants. 

Only the Transaction Matters

Let’s explore another commentary on how Trump operates from this middle school mindset. In this interview on the Ezra Klein podcast, 48 minutes in, Emma Ashford discusses how Trump doesn't understand why people are not so transactional, and why they approach it from other forms of motivation.

Here's the key quote.

"Trump doesn't understand other countries and his frameworks for their behavior fail because he often expects everybody to be as transactional as he is and when they're more ideological, when they're more philosophical, when they're committed to more ancient enmities than the the way he talks about them, he's not trying to understand where they're coming from. It's just like, can we all get rich together here or can't we? 

Trump operates in this entirely transactional way because he’s never developed beyond that mindset, and he's controlled by his needs and wants. He can’t even begin to comprehend what would motivate someone else; that is not about selfish interest and exploitation.

And I suspect that when there is not a clear transaction conveyed by the other party, he suspects there is a selfish motivation there, but that they’re just hiding it (which may sometimes be correct).

Unfortunately, like in middle school, this transactional dynamic can be reinforced into a habitual way of life, especially in a social media world of immediate gratification. When that person is in power, it’s increasingly dangerous and consequential to everyone involved. 

Political commentator Andrew Sullivan explains in the following quote from his podcast.

"…what happens to lots of megalomaniacs once they get in power, especially if they've been validated, it’s their ability to tolerate any compromise becomes incredibly difficult." - Andrew Sullivan, Trump's mental decline

Habituating selfishness fosters entitlement. And when that person is in power, it’s unlikely they’re going to willingly give that power up.

My friend produced a movie called Going Viral, about a middle schooler who co-opts an evil entity to become famous at his school. As we’ve seen in many movies, these kids become jerks and more cruel. That's what is happening with Trump back in power. He becomes more emboldened and vindictive (and unfortunately, many Christians continue to support and celebrate his cruelty in contradiction to their many stated principles). 

"Level 5 leaders are very effective because they have learned the lessons of the previous levels, and they've successfully made the necessary transitions.I once watched an executive address his staff. Within fifteen minutes he had addressed the challenges and opportunities of each level of leaders in the room. He didn't speak only to the Level 4 leaders. He detailed "what's in it for you" for all the Level 2 leaders, and he explained "here's how you see things from others' perspective" for Level 3 leaders. It was brilliant. He understood that everyone needed to follow him if he was going to lead a successful organizational change. He led his employees by meeting them where they were." - Karl Kuhnert, The Map

That's how a profoundly wise and positive leader communicates. That's what we need to become as individuals and cultivate as a society. But another option is to recognize that the level 2 dynamic is inside of us all, and instead of speaking to each level, a demagogue can speak to that part of every person. This is more acute when that part of us or our society is neglected.

Trump has been able to speak to the raw desires and needs of parts of the American population because he’s entirely focused on those desires, and those who came before him neglected them for too long. What we’ll ultimately need is many level 5 leaders (and institutions) who can speak to that level 2 group, while also speaking to all the other groups, and then integrating it all into a cohesive set of interconnected systems that benefit everyone (or at least the largest number of people possible).

Two More Examples of Trump's Level 2 Mindset

Unfortunately, we’re a ways off from level 5 leadership in our country happening. In the meantime, we have Trump’s selfishness in full display, usually at the expense of others.

I want to share another example of Trump's inability to think of anything other than his own needs and his lack of ability to empathize. It is also another contradiction for illustrating that Trump is not about America First, but actually Trump First.

After the assassination of Charlie Kirk, a supposed good friend of Trump, the press asked Trump how Trump was doing. The press empathized with Trump, something Trump is unable to do himself. Instead of taking this moment to bring America together or empathize with the victims of the assassination, Trump immediately shifted the conversation to his White House demolition and construction project.

Here's how it went down.

Q: My condolences on the loss of your friend Charlie Kirk. How are you holding up?

TRUMP: I think very good. And by the way, right there you see all the trucks. They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House, which is something they've been trying to get for about 150 years. And it's gonna be a beauty. It'll be an absolutely magnificent structure.

That was Trump’s response to a tragic assassination. He wanted to focus on how grand his ballroom was.

Trump First.

The Charlie Kirk moment already passed, and now the next moment was here.

It's important to recognize the seriousness of the president operating in the middle school mindset, as opposed to if it were some random person with no power. We're not analyzing fringe radical members of the Republican Party and overlaying that with Trump. We're directly assessing Trump himself, who is the leader of the party and the president of America. 

America is big enough, and there are enough people in any big group to paint the group a certain way. The key to understanding the group is to look at those who have the most power in the group and see who they are and what they are doing.

Is War Just About Acquiring Property?

Let's pick one more example of Trump's middle school mindset out of the countless options (we could do this all day, assessing his tweets and speeches).

This example will help connect what Anne Applebaum said above in a concrete way, as it relates to Russia and Ukraine, while highlighting the dire consequences of Trump's selfishness. Trump is seeing the situation through his self-absorbed perspective. Here's what he said recently about the territory Russia took from Ukraine.

"Well, he’s gonna take something. I mean, they fought and he has a lot of property. I mean, you know… he’s won certain property... We're the only nation that goes in and wins a war and then leaves. You know like we did under President Bush in the Middle East. We go in, we blast the hell out of everybody, destroy the place, and then we leave... You know, it doesn't make sense. Never made sense."

Trump can't understand why someone would engage in conflict if there was not an acquisition to be made. He can't comprehend helping someone else with no direct compensation or a higher set of principles. This is why he flounders brokering a deal in this conflict; it's fundamentally ideological (which Trump has no way of understanding or addressing).

Here's the summary of Trump's statement through this level 2 mindset, explained by Google Gemini.

"From a Constructive Developmental Theory (CDT) perspective, the explanation is that the Level 2 mind reduces the geopolitical conflict to a simple, transactional real estate deal where power grants entitlement.

This worldview operates entirely outside the moral, legal, and institutional frameworks that define higher developmental stages."

Win or lose. That type of black and white thinking is disconnected from the relational and principled elements of the situation.

Gemini continues.

"The Level 2 Interpretation of War

The Level 2 mind processes information through three core lenses: possession, zero-sum competition, and disregard for external rules.

1. The Reduction of Sovereignty to "Property"

The defining feature of the comment is the use of the word "property."

Level 2 Currency: The Level 2 individual values and understands the world primarily through what they can physically possess and control. By framing seized national territory as "property," the complexity of national sovereignty (a Level 4 concept) and the humanity of the conflict (a Level 3/4 concern) are instantly eliminated. 

The World as Assets: In this view, Ukraine is not a state with borders and self-determination; it is simply a collection of assets that can be acquired. This allows the Level 2 mind to treat the invasion as morally neutral—just one party acquiring another party's holdings.

2. The Zero-Sum Justification of Conquest

The phrase "they fought and he has a lot of property" confirms the zero-sum logic of the Level 2 mind. 

Might Makes Right: For the Level 2 perspective, the only rule that matters is the result of the contest. Since Putin "fought" and "won," he is entitled to the spoils. The victory itself validates the action. There is no consideration of how the fight was conducted or why the rules of international law were broken.

Ignoring Rules: International laws against invasion, treaties, and the concept of national self-determination are all external rules that might restrict the self-sovereign agent's will. The Level 2 mind automatically dismisses or ignores these constraints because they interfere with the clear outcome of the power struggle.

3. Affinity for the Dictatorial Model

The Level 2 leader admires the transactional clarity of dictatorships. 

Simplicity of Power: The comment affirms this simple Level 2 contract: Power equals Acquisition. It avoids the messy Level 3 question of "Is this morally right?" and the Level 4 question of "Does this uphold the international system?" Instead, it validates the easiest, most self-interested pathway to success: take what you want if you can overpower your opponent."

For the level 2 mind that cannot make sense of the complexity, they must oversimplify things into simple transactional buckets (because that's how they see and operate in the world). Conflicts are zero-sum, and war is simply about acquiring more property. If you win the battle, what you gain is yours to keep. This middle school mindset completely sidelines international law and moral concerns. The more you win, the more you are successful. To them, it's as simple as that. 

"You don’t want your child to be Little God Emperor of the Universe." - Jordan B. Peterson

Trump is that immature child who takes control of the family and makes everything revolve around him. A leader operating from Level 2 will often surround themselves with staff from Level 3 because the Level 2 leader demands absolute loyalty (a Level 3 priority) rather than independent judgment (a Level 4 priority).

This replacement of competence with unquestioning allegiance is what creates a fragile and often chaotic administration.

"And I think it's a function partly also of being breathing his own fumes, having no one ever saying anything that's contrary to him." - Andrew Sullivan, Trump's mental decline

Our president has put our country in a crisis, but it's those who enabled him (particularly those at higher levels of adult development and authority) who bear a bulk of the responsibility. 

They (and we) are not unlike the many people who played a part in the final hours of Jesus' life, asserting power, telling lies, and inflicting suffering on others through direct involvement or abdication of responsibility. Those who have enabled Trump, particularly those at level 4, bear the most responsibility (through ideological collusion). I'll dive more into the follower dynamics in the next post, but a few more words on the matter before I close out. 

Level 2 as Opposition to Jesus

"Donald Trump is certainly not the first person to reject Jesus’ teaching about forgiveness, but it is especially troubling that he has been able to reject Jesus while at the same time convincing so many people that he is a champion of Christianity." - Bishop William Barber & Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, The Danger of Retribution in God's Name

I'm a Christian, and there is a striking contrast between the selfishness of a level 2 individual who does not grow beyond it and the selflessness of Jesus (choosing to lose), allowing himself to be arrested, accused, sentenced, and criticized. To the level 2 individual, this act by Jesus would have been seen as a strategic and personal failure with no immediate benefits (think of Trump calling captured and wounded soldiers suckers and losers). The level 2 individual would see it as appalling because Jesus received no personal gain, did not gain any power, and received the maximal amount of pain. To a level 2 individual, Jesus was a sucker and a loser.

For all of Peter Thiels' talk about the antichrist, there is little attention focused on the most powerful man in the world (Trump), who is the opposite of Christ in almost every way. And the tragedy is the millions of Christians following behind him lockstep (which is enabling his behavior and preventing his possibility for redemption). How have so many who claim to follow Jesus become champions against Christ? 

As kids, we used to ponder in church how people could be deceived by this "anti-Christ" figure. We no longer have to wonder. We've got a front row seat to see how it would unfold as Christians sacrifice their values and the True God for a more orange messiah. This is not a condemnation of them, but rather a reality check for us all. For these individuals who have not reconciled this disconnect, they may be prioritizing something over their faith. For those in level 2, it may be about winning or getting what they want. Those in level 3 may be prioritizing belonging amongst their community as more important. Those in level 4 may be prioritizing their creed over what is more completely true and good.

For our idols, we will all sacrifice whatever it takes. The problem is so bad, Jesus came to rescue us, and instead of accepting his help, we killed him. And now, as well as throughout history, the Christian church has often partnered with evil to help evil accomplish its goals.

Personally, my biggest fear in life was the fear of corruption. It was a fear of not just becoming someone apathetic to God but of becoming an active enemy of God. Being an enemy of God is the essence of the idea of anti-Christ (against Christ).

But I realized that I was that 'little god emperor of the universe,' and God still pursued and saved me anyway, even as an enemy of God. It was in that grace that allowed me to confront the anti-Christ in me, and it empowers you to do the same.

Additional Resources

• Watch: Autocrat Psychology (Ruth Ben-Ghait)
• Watch: We’re Being Governed by 12-Year-Olds