“The Power of Leadership”

Continuation of Thoughts from Ari van der Steenhoven, Vapro International, a reader from Shanghai, China. (Source: TIME)

No Charisma? Don’t Worry, You can Still Be A Leader!

Don’t Worry About Your Looks: It’s what you do that counts.

Since JFK, who has a lot to answer for when it comes to the overvaluation of charisma, Americans have liked their leaders to be handsome or heroic, preferably with a thatch of dark hair and a trim waistline. It doesn’t always work (otherwise Mitt Romney would be in the White House) but it does mean that it’s not surprising that two of the foreign leaders who have most made an impression in the U.S. are the young Tony Blair and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. (And Sarkozy – to add to the JFK meme – has the extra advantage of a fashion-plate wife.)

But good looks and 25 cents will get you a phone call. Australia has a higher proportion of naturally rugged men than any other country on Earth, but combined, its two most recent Prime Ministers, John Howard and Kevin Rudd, have the sex appeal of a church mouse. Who cares? Both have made tough calls – Howard to back the U.S. through thick and thin after 9/11, Rudd to apologize for the treatment of Australia’s Aborigines – and they’ve been stewards of one of the world’s longest-lasting economic booms.

Besides, a certain homely style can make your adversaries underestimate you. German Chancellor Angela Merkel may look like a typical hausfrau, but don’t cross her. “She’s ruthless,” says a political insider in Berlin. “She doesn’t just sideline her opponents; she destroys them.”

“He who refuses to embrace a unique opportunity loses the prize as surely as if he tried and failed.” … William James

Have A Good Day!

Russ

Performance Institute – A Global Leader in Human Capital Development
Global CEO Clubs – Academy

Russ M. Miller, LLIF
Sunny Hong Zhang, Managing Partner – China
Shawn M. Miller, Managing Partner – USA