1. A leader influences others - Clearly Mr. Obama did a good job of influencing others as he won by a landslide in electoral votes. This is especially evident in the fact that he won states that are usually perennially red such as Virginia.
2. A leader is able to convince others that an action is in their best interests - By emphasizing a connection between the politics of John McCain and President Bush (whether that be realistic or not), Obama was not only able to convince voters that John McCain would bring "more of the same," but that what America needed was change, the keyword of his campaign. He convinced America that change would be in the best interest of our country.
3. Charisma - With his intelligence and eloquent speaking ability, Obama has plenty of charisma.
4. Credibility through success / experience - Disregarding whether one agrees or disagrees with Obama's ideas, one can not deny that this is one of his weaknesses. Judy Keen of USA Today writes:
"Two years in the U.S. Senate. Seven years in the Illinois Senate. One loss in a primary election for the U.S. House of Representatives. One stirring keynote address at a Democratic National Convention. Two best-selling books.That's Barack Obama's political résumé. Is it enough to qualify him to be president?"
Apparently it was, although I would argue that it was despite this weakness and thanks to his other attributes that he will be our next president.
Although he seems to be a failry good leader at this juncture, Obama will encounter his true test when becomes president and is forced to lead a country rather then a campaign. It will be interesting to see how his characteristics help or impede him during this process.
9 comments:
Connor, this is a great blog post. I think you hit the qualities a leader should have perfectly, and I think it's interesting to compare them to President-elect Obama.
Adding to the qualities you stated, I think you also have to understand that a leader can take their own weaknesses and turn them into positives. For example, you say that Barack Obama's inexperience was a weakness, but the Obama campaign used this to show that he is a "fresh face" for Washington.
Also, a lot of being elected President, or any leadership position, is how you match up next to your opponent, because ultimately, it is a competition. I think it's important to point out areas where John McCain was weak, like in charisma. I guess a lot of it is luck.
Great read.
I agree with Michael's first sentence. Sweet idea. Your next one should be about McCain, and whether he exemplifies these qualities or not....
Good quote from Judy Keen, too, and i think Michael again is right when he says Obama used this to advantage as opposed to his disadvantage--another representation of his charisma.
While I agree that all of these are necessary qualities of a leader, I believe that they can apply to many people. Basically what you said was that a leader must be able to influence others through convincing methods, must be eloquent in doing so, and be recognizable to the public. After reading that it only reminded me about Arnold Schwarzenegger running for governor in California and winning. While he may not be the most eloquent person, he was able to accomplish all of your points. To me these character traits are what must be had in order to BECOME a leader. Whether they maintain these traits while being a leader is a completely different question.
I agree with Mikey. You succeeded in listing the imperative qualities a leader must possess, and I was very interested in the way you brought in our future president. What was most exciting to me, was that you weren't bias and presented all sides to the argument. You showed his true leadership qualities that truly are impressive, and then you brought about his experience flaws. great blog.
I think great leadership is defined by results. All the adjectives and compliments used to describe "great" leaders are just terms for describing success. If Achilles showed courage from the beginning and joined in battle, only to be killed shortly thereafter we would not view him as a great leader. Similarly, if Obama lost after all the hype we would not view him as a great leader and instead would admire McCain.
Think about all the Presidents you can name by memory. Try to think of 5 runner up candidates for President of the United States. Not so easy to do? People need results, that is what defines leadership.
Shanil brought up a good point that leadership is defined by results. In connecting this to the Iliad, Agamemnon is a great leader on "paper", but what he lacks is his leadership towards his soldiers. He has won many battles and conquered many enemies, but he has not won the respect of his men. The exact opposite with Achilles. Although he does not have to command and army, he commands the Myrmidons and has their dying respect. A leader becomes one when he has the trust and respect from the people around him and in the case of the Iliad, Achilles is the true leader of the Achaeans.
Ed culham is gonna hate this post haha.
Anyways I think you described the basics of what a leader should be like. However, I feel that your standards could not apply to everyone. I feel that most non-political leaders do not need charisma. That's just a small example at what I'm getting at, but great post!
Absolutely agree with you about these qualities and how Obama used them to his advantage. Obama is very charismatic and he used that to it's full extent. Although inexperienced he made sure to surround himself with people who knew what they were doing to make sure people knew that if he didn't know what was going on that somebody else in a position of power would know what to do. Being able to utilize those around you to cover your weaknesses certainly makes a better leader.
I really liked your post Connor. That was dead on in describing a leader. I think though, if you connected it to the Iliad explicitly, it would have had a really nice touch. Your post describes the consummate leader, yet there is no one in the Iliad that fits that description. Well done.
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