In multiple surveys of presidential historians and biographers over the past 40 years, five presidents almost universally appear at the top of the “most effective leader” list: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and the Roosevelts. While there is much less consensus around who else should be similarly recognized, if it were up to me, I would add three more faces to Mount Rushmore: FDR (consistently picked among the top 5) as well as JFK and Barack Obama. Color me blue, but I think the picks are true.
On the other end of the effectiveness scale, in a 2018 poll administered by the American Political Science Association, Donald Trump was ranked last. But, believe it or not, this post is not about the next election. It’s about the dearth of global leaders who have effectively led their respective constituencies AND the abundance of local leaders who are doing their best to address the existential challenges we are facing as a result of lackluster global leadership, for example: nuclear war, pandemics, climate change, racism and extremism.
Two books prompted me to write this post: one on Lincoln (The House of Lincoln) by Nancy Horan, the best-selling author of Loving Frank. And the other on Teddy Roosevelt (The Old Lion) by NYT best-selling author Jeff Shaaron. Both provided incredible insights into the human side of these two great leaders. Highly recommended.
What struck me as I read these books and did some research is that each of my top seven presidents was born before the previous great President died. Specifically:
- George Washington: 1732 to 1799
- Thomas Jefferson: 1743 – 1826 (born 56 years before Washington died)
- Abraham Lincoln: 1809 -1865 (born 17 years before Jefferson died)
- Theodore Roosevelt: 1858 – 1919 (born 7 years before Lincoln died)
- Franklin Roosevelt: 1882 – 1945 (born 37 years before Theodore died)
- John F. Kennedy: 1917 – 1963 (born 28 years before FDR died)
- Barack Obama: 1961 – Present (born 2 years before JFK died)
Also, each of these Presidents was largely defined by the war he fought.
- George Washington: Revolutionary War
- Thomas Jefferson: Constitutional War
- Abraham Lincoln: Civil War
- Theodore Roosevelt: Spanish American War
- Franklin Roosevelt: World War II plus the Great Depression
- John F. Kennedy: Cold War
- Barack Obama: Culture War
Since the first step in any change is to look into the mirror, I will start this post by looking at the characteristics and characters of these seven US Presidents before I comment on global leadership. As you read through the brief summaries, look for the common themes that we should aspire to both globally and locally. Each of the most effective US leaders had his strengths and weaknesses – they are all complex, flawed human beings. (We are still waiting to be able to say his and HER strengths and weaknesses.)
George Washington excelled at military leadership and kept the Continental Army together through difficult times. He was able to inspire his troops, as well as the American people, and never gave up even though the odds were stacked against him. He was a brilliant strategist and tireless advocate for the country. On the other hand, he was not a great tactician and often gave into a fiery temper. He could also be indecisive at times which cost him some key victories.
Thomas Jefferson was a brilliant thinker and writer. He was a strong advocate for individual liberty and democracy and played a key role in drafting the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Jefferson promoted westward expansion and exploration, established the University of Virginia, negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, and made significant contributions to the founding of the United States. On the negative side, he failed to live up to his own ideals of equality and freedom and continued to enslave people during his Presidency. Jefferson believed blacks were inferior to whites and that slavery was a necessary evil. He was also accused of using political power to enrich himself. Given all those negatives, I am very conflicted about including him among my top seven, but I want to honor the expertise of the political science experts who consistently include him, to take context into account, and to acknowledge that even great leaders are usually flawed in some profound way. Even though his legacy is still debated today, there is no doubt that he was one of the most influential men in American history.
Abraham Lincoln was highly intelligent, deeply compassionate and fiercely determined never to give up. He boldly promoted a vision of a more just and equitable society and was willing to fight for it. Like Washington, he could also be indecisive and too trusting of people to make the right decisions. He struggled with bouts of depression and made some questionable compromises. Overall, he was a brilliant humanitarian. Lincoln was a gifted communicator and was able to articulate his ideas in clear and concise ways. Despite his flaws, Lincoln was a great leader who helped to preserve the Union and end slavery.
Theodore Roosevelt was a man of boundless energy always in search of new challenges and adventures. While he may have been overly militaristic, imperialistic, and narcissistic, he was highly initiative, incredibly courageous and deeply compassionate. Roosevelt was also highly intelligent, well-read and well-informed. He was a charismatic leader who was able to inspire others. Roosevelt had a vision for a better America and he was willing to fight for it. He made enormous contributions to conservation, economic equality, social justice and the creation of National Parks. Even though he could be impulsive, arrogant and stubborn at times, he still left a lasting legacy on the country.
Franklin Roosevelt, Theodore’s fifth cousin, was similarly charismatic, visionary, intelligent and determined. Franklin was able to process complex issues and make sound decisions. In a difficult political environment, he was able to build consensus and get things done. While he could be arrogant and indecisive, he was still able to mobilize the country to defeat Nazi Germany. Roosevelt was a gifted communicator who was able to connect with the American people through his “fireside chats.” He was also empathic, willing to experiment with new ideas and stand up for the plight of the poor. I’m quite sure that Theodore Roosevelt’s niece, Eleanor, had a very positive influence on his decisions and legacy.
John F. Kennedy had a strong sense of idealism and purpose. Like the other exemplary leaders, he was charismatic, highly intelligent, and committed to civil rights and social justice. Kennedy was a skillful negotiator and diplomat with an ability to inspire others. While he lacked experience in government, tended toward recklessness, and suffered personal health problems, he dealt brilliantly with difficult foreign policy challenges. Most significantly, he was able to skillfully navigate the Cold War, resolve the Cuban missile crisis without incident, and prevent a nuclear war.
Barack Obama will always be remembered as the first African-American president of the United States and for his efforts to improve healthcare, the economy, and the environment. While he turned out to be a lightning rod for the culture wars we are fighting now, he was (and is) highly intelligent, deeply compassionate, and cool under pressure. The tagline, “No Drama Obama” fits him well. Obama was (and is) a gifted orator who is able to connect with a large majority of the 8 billion people in the world and inspire them to a higher purpose. As President, Obama was willing to compromise to navigate a very complex world stage. While he could sometimes seem detached and slow to make decisions, he was very inclusive and thorough in his analysis. Thus, the decisions he did make were sound. To me, accuracy is a more important aspect of leadership than decisiveness.
Looking at the themes among all these 7 great leaders, several common characteristics emerge. All of them were complex, flawed human beings with great passion, compassion, intelligence, credibility, and empathy. They all put service above self and were willing to fight for justice and the common good. They all navigated wars of one form or another – from foreign to constitutional to cultural. For me, charisma and decisiveness are not required to be a great leader. I would much prefer substance and thoroughness as discussed in my last post. I would hope we would apply these common criteria for great leadership to our current and future, global and local leaders as we evaluate their effectiveness.
So the next time you vote for a local, national or global leader, please consider making your decision on the following criteria:
- Highly Intelligent
- Extremely Ethical
- Rigorously Vigorous
- Deeply Compassionate
- Genuinely Empathic
- Fiercely Determined
- Openly Open to new ideas
- Completely Committed to fight for what’s right
- Unselfishly Service-Oriented
As I watched both the documentary and the film on Oppenheimer last week, the importance of leadership became chillingly clear. Oppenheimer was able to mobilize a team of world-class scientists to defeat Hitler, but then the politicians marginalized him and took control of what he created to drop bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. For me, there were three lessons from the movie and documentary:
- People will do anything to secure and enlarge power
- Never give a weapon to the military with the assumption that they won’t use it
- Listen to the voices of women
As we look at the problems we are facing today as a global community, the challenges seem daunting. As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, climate change, nuclear war, pandemics, racism, and extremism all constitute existential threats individually and collectively. While it would be hard to argue that the challenges we are facing on this planet have never been greater, the leadership – or lack thereof – has never been more suspect and perilous. We are facing authoritarian regimes in China, Russia, India, Israel Turkey, Hungary, Poland, North Korea, Iran, Egypt as well as in Africa, Central America and the Middle East. And, of course, we are at risk of moving in that direction in the US as well.
Yes, that sounds awfully doomy and gloomy, but I still have many reasons to be hopeful. First, I’m hoping that the 8th great US leader is already born and that SHE will become president before Obama dies. Second, I have hope that we will quit using war as a way to define ourselves. Third, while there appears to be a dearth of global leaders who meet the criteria for effective leaders summarized above, I believe there is an abundance of local leaders who do AND are ready, willing and able to take on some, if not all, of these challenges. In several Northern Michigan counties, for example, I see brilliant, compassionate and determined leaders doing great things to help their communities grow sustainably. While there is nothing we can do as individuals to deal with the threats of Putin, Xi, Modi, Kim Jung Un etc., we can create healthy, innovative and productive communities in our local environments in order to better serve the common good.
I wish we would accept the fact that we are all flawed and complex human beings and still get on with the work. In the future – near and far – I’m hoping we vote for and support leaders who are brilliant, compassionate, empathic, credible and community-oriented. May it be so.
Also published on Medium.
