yeah he also sabotages his rival reporters car, beating up the security guard, threatening rick when he refused to get outside the car before the stand off with the police and had the traits of classic cold-blooded psycho

Don't forget that he set up his employee to get killed by that shooter, when all he had to do was fire him. Lou definitely was not "normal". He was psychotic.

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Ruthless, I would say.

Resent studies identity many CEO a sociopathic or psychopathic.
A very true statement, there's no room for weakness on places like Wall Street, only the fittest survive and if that means being a cold hearted, unsympathetic boss that means making detached business decisions for the good of the company's bottom line then so be it. CEOs aren't the most popular people but they make the US the biggest economy in the World.
Lou was well versed in both taking advantage of desperate employees (like only giving intern-ships) and how to motivate them with fake pay rises based on their performance reviews to employees which never happened to make them improve and continue to learn. He knew psychology quite well even though he was a misanthrope!
If you are not willing to give up everything, you have already lost

Resent studies identity many CEO a sociopathic or psychopathic.
Not all but larger portions.
In Lou's case
Squeeze on price
Threaten Nina's future job
Continue his job even as people die
Short change employees
Flaunt his wealth to employees.
Go around where no police tape is (not crossing but unethical)
At the end of the day he sounds a lot like many entrepreneurs and CEO
it takes at least some lack of empathy remorse or symphony to
Fire someone
Screw down wages
Ensure performance indicators
Extract maximum profits from in many cases less than rich people struggling to make ends meet
Leverage the law legal system as far as legal even if not ethical.
Continue trading even if your product has or does kill people.
Make threats about others success.

I get what your saying. I also felt Louis was no different than many successful people(sans the murder.maybe).
Josh Brolin mentioned that he has ran across many multi millionaires, and they are some of the most morally corrupt, soulless people he has ever met.
I am a lioness. I will not cringe for them.

He also definitely got people killed by setting up that showdown in the restaurant. If he had given the cops all the info he knew, they would have apprehended those criminals in a much safer setting.

Is that you, Donald Trump? (jk)
If you watched the movie, which I assume you did, you'd know it was much deeper than that. He beat up a night guard, he stole things, he blackmailed a woman for a relationship, he took advantage of anyone he needed to in order to get what he wanted. Those are not just
"cold, emotionless rationale"
as you put it.
I have been in business many years, I have achieved my own successes and I have seen many others achieve theirs and no, going about it like Lou is neither common nor desirable. Now if Lou could have combined his ruthless focus with genuine caring for others and a desire to do what is both legally and morally right then yes he would have had the ingredients for success.
.... TxMike ....
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes not.