President Lincoln As A Visionary Leader

The first key area in Lincoln’s Leadership was his interaction with people. Historians have often scoffed at the

Donald T. Phillips’ book, Lincoln on Leadership, explores the life and practices of Abraham Lincoln as the leader of the United States of America. Without question, Lincoln’s legacy lies as one of the greatest leaders in the history of the country. Lincoln’s style of leadership, which facilitated his accomplishment of one of the most complicated tasks in a divided country, have only recently become the foundation for developing concepts of leadership in both private and public organizations. Throughout Lincoln on Leadership, Phillips discusses over one hundred of Lincoln’s principles of leadership and practices, practices which still inspire and motivate persons in all aspects of society.

President Lincoln was trying to tie together the key principles of our founding fathers with freedom, equality, and democracy which are embodied

With the eruption of the Civil War came one of the biggest tribulations and trials that this country has ever faced, but as we understand the motives of one of the greatest Presidents in American History we can see that the Civil War was inevitable. From his original intentions of merely preserving the Union and holding the country together, to permanently abolishing slavery we can observe why prevailing in the struggle of the Civil War is one of Lincoln’s defining legacies. Thus, as the civil war draws to a close, an old tumultuous era has ended, and a new more prosperous era has

The freedom of America’s slaves has always been accredited to Abraham Lincoln, but he was not always the complete abolitionist as he is commonly portrayed. The “house divided”, as Lincoln depicts it in his famous ‘House Divided’ speech, of the United States during the Civil War, was not always lead towards the freedom of all mankind, and there is sufficient evidence to support this claim. The sixteenth president is most commonly remembered for inducing the courage and determination to end the Civil War, with the Emancipation Proclamation, although when it more closely studied he did not cross the great divide of enslavement vs. freedom with the submittal of that fabled document. When following the many famous quotes and speeches of Lincoln’s life, it appears that he was against all slavery and bondage. At the same time, when more closely examined, the quotes and speeches actually leaned towards his lack of strong opinion on the outcome of slavery. Lincoln is perceived as the most famous revolutionary of American history, but he does not live up to his legacy of being the eradicator of forced servitude.

Williams shows us that Lincoln never hesitated in making difficult decisions based on results. Lincoln's people skills are clearly established in Williams’s writings. Lincoln seems keen at applying pressure as well as giving his generals a free hand when necessary.

Honesty and integrity were also important aspects of Lincoln’s leadership. He understood that honesty was the best policy. Leaders are supposed to do the right thing and being honest is part of that. A truthful leader will have greater respect from his subordinates and they will also have more trust in a leader they can believe. In order to be known as honest Lincoln knew his words, deeds, and actions would need to be beyond reproach so he even refused to have dealings with dishonest people. He knew he needed to lead by example and if he was known to associate with questionable people that it could damage what he was trying to accomplish. Lincoln knew that honesty and integrity were qualities that will help a leader hold an organization together. He had firsthand experience at this by trying to keep our country united.

Across time, political leaders have often been remembered for their greatness by how they faced challenges than with what particular skills or abilities they had during their time in office. This statement is known to be true as political leaders are often expected to solve certain issues or challenges when in office and if their contributions benefit the state or country. Additionally, history books, records, and scholarly journals will take note of a leader’s response to challenges, how they are handled, and if the issue is solved more than whether they adequately used certain skills and abilities to solve the problem. In short, challenges, when faced, allow the political leaders to be remembered more so than their talents.

Ever since I was a little child, I have been an admirer of President Lincoln, his achievements, and his incredible rags-to-riches story. A long time ago, in the beginning of the 19th century, Abraham Lincoln was a small town Springfield boy who was born to a poor family and had little access to formal education. However, Lincoln was hard-working and determined to succeed, and taught himself law and became a prosperous figure. There are many tales of how he walked miles and did odd jobs just to be given the chance to read a book. It was this dedication to learning and knowledge that would lead him to the highest office in the nation. However, he still had troubles, and when he ran for the House of Representatives in 1846, he was defeated by his Democratic opponent, Henry Clay. Nevertheless, he persevered through his troubles, and his nationwide fame from his debates with Clay landed him the Republican Presidential Nomination in 1860. After a long and strenuous campaign, he won in a landslide, and took the office of President of the United States. When Lincoln took office, the United States was in a period of national turmoil, from the Missouri compromise and a larger disagreement on the issue of slavery. In 1861, the Southern states rallied together in a confederacy to try and secede from the Union, but Lincoln knew he had to keep the country together. Throughout 4 long and harsh years of bitter warfare, his leadership led the country through the bloodiest war it had ever seen, and many say it was his decisions and strength that kept the young country together. One of the most memorable moments of the war came from his remarkable address in the battle at Gettysburg, a few months after he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This masterpiece of a speech rallied the nation around him and the morale-boosting victory at Gettysburg turned the tide of the war and lead the

On February 12th 1809 in a small log cabin in Hardin County Kentucky, arguably the nation’s greatest leader was born. Coming from a very poor family, Lincoln took his education into his own hands; a task that requires a level of self-determination and persistence many people cannot claim to have. Because of his family’s low income, Lincoln borrowed books and regularly practiced reading from his bible. This means that from a young age, Lincoln had a good sense of the moral lessons to be learned from god’s word. As he got older, around the age of 22, Lincoln left home for the village of New Salem in Illinois. There, Lincoln kept working hard to educate himself in a variety of subjects that would later help him succeed in a few different professional endeavors. Some of Lincoln’s early work included employment as a clerk at two general stores, using his self-taught knowledge of surveying to bring in money on the side, and even working as the postmaster for his area. During a brief skirmish between a small group of the Sauk, Meskwaki and Kickapoo Native American tribes lead by Black Hawk, Lincoln even got a taste of military life as he joined the militia that was sent to fight in the Black Hawk War.

Faced with the potential dissolution of the Union and overthrow of the govt., Lincoln acted and reacted by making new limits of authority and leadership beneath the pressure of dire civil strife. The nation, after all, was undergoing a civil war-something that no previous president had been forced to cope with and one thing that the commencement Fathers had not specifically provided for within the Constitution. Circumstances forced Lincoln to be innovative, and he even his growth of authority by invoking a brand new interpretation of the presidential oath relating to the Constitution itself.

Abraham Lincoln was a strong leader because he appointed his rivals into his cabinet. This was a very bold and strong move for the President because all of his rivals were very smart and had all different views. His cabinet consisted of William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, William P. Fessenden, Simon Cameron, Edwin M. Stanton, Edward Bates, James Speed, Montgomery Blair, William Dennison, Gideon Welles, Caleb B. Smith and Caleb B. Smith. This proves that Abraham Lincoln was confident and cared more about the success of American than personal disputes.

The freedom of America’s slaves has always been accredited to Abraham Lincoln, but he was not always the complete abolitionist as he is commonly portrayed. The “house divided”, as Lincoln depicts it in his famous ‘House Divided’ speech, of the United States during the Civil War, was not always lead towards the freedom of all mankind, and there is sufficient evidence to support this claim. The sixteenth president is most commonly remembered for inducing the courage and determination to end the Civil War, with the Emancipation Proclamation, although when it more closely studied he did not cross the great divide of enslavement vs. freedom with the submittal of that fabled document. When following the many famous quotes and speeches of Lincoln’s life, it appears that he was against all slavery and bondage. Although when they are more closely examined, the quotes and speeches actually leaned towards his lack of strong opinion on the outcome of slavery. Lincoln is perceived as the most famous revolutionary of American history, but he does not live up to his legacy of being the eradicator of forced servitude.

Abraham Lincoln was a man of humble beginnings who, though self-taught, rose to greatness through the many leadership qualities that he possessed. Quality traits that Lincoln possessed were honesty, integrity and a great devotion towards the rights of the people. It was probably through his impoverished upbringing that he formed such a bond with common folks. Lincoln was able to show the country that an ordinary person, with strong character and integrity, was capable of inspiring others to greatness. His ability to communicate through dynamic speeches was inspirational to a country so badly in need of someone to return the country to the unity that it had once had. His commitment to the rights of individuals was a cornerstone of his

In chapter two of Lincoln on Leadership, Lincoln is described in detail for his compassionate and caring nature. He was said to contain this particular nature by the fact that he maintained alliances, took time out of his schedule to stay in contact with his people, and he granted many pardons as a result of his kindness. I find the utilization of compassion and a caring nature provide the