Leadership : The Public Policy Process

When considering the options for leadership today, it is easy to wish that more intelligent and educated people would attempt to run instead. However, getting into politics is and should be a choice. When one looks at photos of an American president before his term began and compares it to photos of the president after his term ended, there are almost always far more gray hairs and wrinkles on his face at the end of the term. Leading a country cannot be an easy job, and if one is to run, one should be aware of the repercussions. A scholar could

Charisma is just a trait and means to have a vibrant persona. The difference between a charismatic leader and a normal leader is that a charismatic leader is more charming and is usually more persuasive than a regular leader.

He further suggests customized courses for ministers such as agenda setting, decision-making and policy analysis be made available. He argues selected faculty must have credibility, presentation skills, and the ability to deal with controversy in order to promote an effective learning environment. Thomas states the school of government will allow individuals to be successful in elected public office by developing their intelligence, judgement and leadership skills. He believes today’s society needs to invest in the development of political leaders so not only the disillusionment that exists today is eliminated, but the integrity and civility of public life remains intact. Thomas suggests to the readers of the Canadian Parliamentary Review that educational opportunities need to be created for political leaders in order to develop their skills and reach their full potential. Through the development of government leaders citizens will feel more confident in their abilities and a relationship of trust will be

"Leaders are people who are able to express themselves fully…they know who they are, what their strengths and weaknesses are, and how to fully deploy their strengths and compensate for their weaknesses. They also know what they want, why they want it, and how to communicate what they want to others in order to gain their cooperation and support. Finally they know how to achieve their goals" (Ingram, 2004).

Charismatic is defined as exercising a compelling charm that inspires devotion in others. It is a very powerful characteristic to have. What really matters is how a charismatic person uses that power. Charismatic people walk the fine line of charm and manipulation. Jim Jones, leader of the People’s Temple, will forever be remembered as someone who turned his charm into manipulation and orchestrated one of America’s largest mass suicides. David M. Matthews of CNN says, “The key to understanding the tragedy that was Jonestown lies in the oratory skills of the People’s Temple founder, Jim Jones.” The tragedy of the People’s Temple displays how easily people let others into their minds not knowing what they will do once inside.

Leaders have been around since the beginning of history in which their decisions and actions molded today’s society. From George Washington’s command to victory during the revolutionary war to the triumph of Martin Luther King Jr.’s nonviolent equal rights movement, there have been leadership qualities that have been evident throughout history. Society depends on the abilities of leaders in order to progress in the right direction and finish a specific task. There are many forms of leaders in which different skills are required. Each person has a different view of what a leader and leadership is, however, everyone is influenced by the leader they choose. An efficient leader is someone others turn to for guidance, direction, and inspiration in order to complete a goal. One who possesses leadership qualities is able to influence and persuade individuals in order to attain a desired end. Everyone has the power to be a leader and make a difference in their community. The leaders on Long Island are an important aspect of society because they influence the futures of teens and help them to discover their abilities.

Ehrhart, M. G., & Klein, K. J. (2001) “Predicting Followers’ Preferences for Charismatic Leadership: The Influence of Follower Values and Personality.” The Leadership Quarterly, Volume 12, 155–79.

All leaders share a common trait. The ability to influence other people to do what you want is essential

Charismatic leadership is a passionate, self-confident leader whose character and actions affect people to behave in certain ways. High self-monitors might be more effective leaders because they can easily adjust their behavior to a different situation versus a charismatic or self-confident leader that behave in an assured way.

Currently, society is struggling to find a presidential candidate they favor because many lack certain aspects of leadership. There are several basic factors an electoral candidate must meet to become head of state. The objective criteria consists of being at least 35 years of age and an American citizen, but there are still many qualities an effective executive should have. Although not necessary, the more contemporary presidents have law degrees from Harvard or Yale. Besides institutional qualifications, an exceptional president is expected to be influential, to have impeccable communication skills, to excel at decision-making, and to support bipartisan ideas.

Charismatic leaders are able to inspire emotion and passion in their followers by being optimistic and enthusiastic. Without passionate and emotional employees, an organization will be crippled and unable to face

Antonakis, J., Fenley, M., & Liechti, S. (2011). Can Charisma Be Taught? Tests of Two Interventions. Academy Of Management Learning & Education, 10(3), 374-396. Antonakis et al starts off research by posing a question. “Can leadership, and in particular charisma, be taught? The authors set out to prove in fact that training can training managers a specific set of charismatic leadership tactics not only improves their charisma, but their effectiveness as leaders. Charismatic leadership is defined as by Antonakis et al as being a sub element of transformational leadership. In the first study researchers assigned 34 middle managers from a Swiss company into two groups randomly. One group received training in charisma and the others received no training. The group receiving training were trained in principles on charismatic leadership. In the second study focused on 41 MBA students enrolled in a leadership course at a Swiss public university monitor charismatic leadership. The students were videotaped giving a 4 minute speech addressing problems within the company while also giving a plan of action to staff. After, speech was done, each participant received training in charismatic leadership and was asked to deliver the same speech 6 weeks later by videotape. Results reveal that improvement and effectiveness as a leader were made in both research groups. This study concluded that feedback is important to the growth and development of leaders and must be provided to

Bryman, A., 1993, ‘Charismatic leadership in business organisations: some neglected issues’, Leadership Quarterly, vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 289-304.

Particular traits and characteristics are what allow leaders to lead and inspire. For starters, charisma correlates with maturity. It is a measure of one’s maturity and character. It also coincides with humility. Charismatic leaders know exactly how to listen to employees concerns which in return encourages employee loyalty. With that brings the quality characteristic of inspiration. These leaders have the ability to inspire just about anyone. They also possess positivity, optimism, and passion for a cause and attract like-minded people to them easily. (Roberts, C., Demand Media) In addition, one of the most important skills charismatic leaders dominate in is communication. Charismatic leaders are known to have exceptional communication skills. They are both verbally persuasive yet are still able to connect to their followers on a deeper, more emotional level. They are able to persuade an appealing vision in return stimulates strong emotions. Because of their outstanding communication abilities the whole organization opts to follow these leaders passionately and leaves no room for opposition for the leader.

Researchers have proposed several characteristics of leaders described as ‘charismatic’. The widely accepted characteristics of charismatic leaders are (Bryman et al., 2011, p. 90-91):