Effectuation approach, defined as both process and principles guiding decision-making logic at the firm level, has attracted entrepreneurship scholars’ attention for two decades. The majority of research focuses on effectuation approach as a whole, and few studies have explored related subconstructs, such as affordable loss. However, there is a scanty of empirical exanimations on single principle, which benefits an in-depth understanding of effectuation approach. Hence, based on the rivalry-versus-admiration perspective, this study investigates the relationship between CEO narcissism and affordable loss. On the one hand, the influence of individual personality differences on effectuation principles has been addressed and verified by empirical support. A firm’s affordable loss behaviors indicate the cognitive mechanism underlying effectuation principles. On the other hand, this study discusses the boundary of effectuation approach by including two powerful moderators, namely, perceived uncertainty and slack resources. Using data collected from 126 Chinese enterprises, our results indicate that under low perceived uncertainty and high organizational slack, CEOs high in narcissistic admiration are more likely to take on affordable loss investments, while narcissistic rivalry CEOs prefer to reduce affordable loss activities to secure their status—assertions that fully support our hypotheses. Management implications and future directions are interpreted in the discussion.