Will the Real Leader Please Stand Up?!

Reflections on Presidential Leadership

I have never been so conflicted about my choice of candidates in all the years I have been voting in presidential elections…and that's been a long time! It seems most people I talk to are also taking a little more time to choose. If you consider how many people in Iowa and New Hampshire waited until the last minute to make up their minds, it seems clear that the choice is simply a difficult one.

I've been reflecting about why that is and figured I'd share with you some of my thoughts on the matter.

Most Democrats would agree that we have in 2008 one of the best-qualified groups of Democratic candidates ever placed before the electorate at one time. So, I have begun to wonder about what we are all waiting for. Do we think that the best leader will be revealed with time or that the best leader will emerge from the competition or be the only one left standing?

While I am taking this choice very seriously, I allowed myself to be momentarily amused by a fleeting memory of a game I once watched on a small black and white TV called Truth or Consequences. I imagined that the game show host would simply ask, "Would the real leader please stand up!" Dallying with this fantasy led me to a more relevant question: What would determine the real leader from those who are not?

Now I have to confess that I can no longer see leadership through innocent eyes. You see, my professional role for the past… well, many …years has been to help leaders bring about the change they want in themselves, in their organizations, and in their communities. So I must assess their readiness to lead and their capacity to create the conditions necessary to bring about change in order to help them improve their effectiveness. I have learned a lot about leadership and change from the leaders I've coached and worked with over the years, a lot more than from those books and research papers (but I digress). So naturally I perked up and paid even closer attention when the candidates began adopting the mantra of change.

As I watch Barack Obama, I notice that he speaks eloquently of change as a new direction. Like a talented artist, he paints a picture of a future in terms that contrast with the pain people are feeling today. We can see in our mind's eyes this brighter future and it reminds us of who and what we are. It brings us hope and restores our pride, something we have forgotten how to feel in the past…oh, say 8 years. Naturally, it stirs our longing for a new day, a new way to that brighter future.

He invites us into that future and reminds us that we can build it together, you and I. As a Black man he is also a living example that we can overcome the challenges along the way. He gives us confidence that "Yes We Can" be all that we can be! It is no wonder his oratory has attracted flocks of people from near and far. Barack Obama sends our spirits soaring by re-connecting us with our own American soul.

As I watch John Edwards, I notice that he speaks of change as righting the wrongs that prey upon our collective conscience. Like a talented writer, he draws us into a personal story of hardship in such a way that we feel it is our own story, or at least we identify with the pain and suffering it represents. It triggers our empathy and compassion for others and weighs heavy on our hearts. Naturally, this stirs our sense of anger toward injustice.

As he transitions to his own story as a poor boy growing up in an America that once offered opportunity for all, he reminds us of the American Dream that we all long to believe in again. Rather than writing a new story of America, Edwards brings us back to this shared understanding of our own common heritage, a story the majority of us know and can relate to.

By drawing a distinct contrast between an unjust America and the America we remember nostalgically, he moves us to act. By continuing his story about his lifetime fight for justice, he shows us that his story is our story, and that by joining with him against the special interests we can channel our collective anger for the common good and restore our sense of humanity.

It is no wonder that everyone I know loves John Edwards. He reconnects us with our caring heart and releases us from the burden of our collective shame by reminding us that in our America "We are better than that."

As I watch Hillary Clinton, I notice that she speaks of change as making a real difference in the everyday lives of our families across America. As she listens to the voices of the people, she- like a talented musician - arranges them into a single harmonious composition depicting the personal struggles and challenges that comprise the current American experience.

As we listen to the first movement of this composition, we hear a familiar, albeit melancholy, tune that reflects many variations and voices in the mix, from the uninsured and unemployed, to the small business owners and the wounded veterans. Because Hillary's tone is so clearly attuned to our collective mood, it resonates and reassures us that we have all been heard- that "no American is invisible." Naturally, we feel weighed down by the many concerns for our country and long for relief.

So Clinton quickly carries us into the second movement, where she appears before us as a competent conductor, ably highlighting and then drawing in each individual instrument of change (healthcare, tax relief, green collar jobs, tuition assistance etc) in such a way that the whole orchestra comes together to produce an uplifting melody, a melody that inspires us with what is possible. This melody delivers us on its wings to a better and brighter place where middle class families once again receive the rewards of their own labor and America is transformed by the ingenuity and determination that Americans have always been known for. With our heads held high once again in pride, we are able to see that she has just shown us the way to that brighter future, building our confidence that we can actually get there together...that our dream of creating a better life for our children is within reach. We are encouraged that our hopes will not be elusive pipe dreams.

But there is yet a third movement to this composition. Clinton invites us into a conversation with her. By doing so, she exemplifies courage as she "finds her own voice" and remains true to her own style of communication, a style that is collaborative and interactive. And I confess that as a woman I find this a refreshing change. More like a jazz band than a rehearsed orchestra, this move is improvisational in that she takes cues from the audience, actively listening and responding with precise instruments of change. By becoming engaged in this interactive "conversation" we not only envision the real possibilities before us, but we experience ourselves as participants in creating our own destiny as we together chart a concrete path to a brighter future.

It is no wonder that Hillary is able to build strong commitment among her supporters. By reaching out and connecting with our hearts and our minds, Hillary Clinton empowers us through her own courage and conviction to "Reclaim America!"

Each of these candidates leads from a different orientation. Barack Obama leads with his spirit, John Edwards with his heart, and Hillary Clinton primarily with her head. Neither we, nor the candidates are one-dimensional. We are all whole people with hearts and minds and spirits that move us.

But just like the candidates, each of us orients differently and we tend to connect better with the candidate who orients similarly to ourselves. The most effective leaders are those who can best integrate all three and perhaps that's what we are ultimately waiting for…..the leader who will connect with us in all our multi-dimensionality…as whole people.

An effective leader not only has the capacity to influence, but develops that capacity in others. S/he uses one's own inspiration and conviction to inspire others toward a shared vision for the future that they have participated in creating, and then helps build commitment to that future by providing both the confidence and competence needed to get there together. The best leaders listen more than they speak so that they come to understand what conditions they need to create for others to see the possibilities for the future, and then they engage others and support them to be ready and capable of taking the journey….and there is no substitute for the journey. A leader cannot deliver us into the future on his or her back. A leader guides us and creates the conditions that enable us to get there together.

And we must remember that the presidency is one of three equal branches of government. The president must be capable of building the kind of reliable relationships with the American public, all branches of government, and with other world leaders, to be successful in moving his or her policy agenda forward.

Personally, my assessment is that Hillary Clinton demonstrates that she has integrated more of the qualities of an effective leader and has experience building such relationships at all levels. But while she is being realistic about what it will take to achieve our aspirations, her message about what it will take feels like hard work on some of the same struggles that have dogged us for years. We know she is ready to do the work, but are we?

She must further develop her ability to mobilize us around that which inspires her. Speaking ABOUT one's own inspiration is different than speaking FROM that inspiration. Such inspiration is more likely to motivate action from all age groups.

It is my view that Barack Obama speaks from his own inspiration quite eloquently. But, while he paints a vision of the future that is highly attractive and excites us all, he has not yet provided enough clarity about the desired change or how we will get there, so we have nothing but faith that it's even possible. And so he offers us the audacity of hope and optimism, which has mobilized people to hold him up but with more fervor than they hold up his vision.

There are those who argue that the greatest challenge for most leaders is mobilizing others toward a shared vision and leaders who already demonstrate the ability to rally people around a cause are one step ahead. But a critical condition for success has not been created. Because people have not signed on to a vision that includes the steps to get there, the faith and commitment people are building is in the leader, not in the vision. Two things can happen: People loyal to a leader may follow him in any direction (we've seen what that looks like!) or, once they realize the vision is unrealistic (or realistic but requires more of them than they thought), commitment could wane.

John Edwards, I believe, has created a strong bond with us as he reaches out to us from the bottom of his heart; and just as he has and will continue to fight for us, we will fight for him and his honor (look at the outpouring of sympathy as Senator Kerry endorsed Obama). But while we are ready to fight FOR him, not enough of us have yet shown we are ready to fight BESIDE him.

I am concerned that Edwards has not sufficiently interested us in joining him in the battle with special interests. Perhaps we're tired and weary of doing battle on one front or another. We are grateful he is strong enough to still be standing after a lifetime fighting special interests, so we won't turn our backs on him. But his message, while it moves us deep in our hearts, apparently hasn't been enough to mobilize us to stand up and get into the boxing ring with him.

His message also relies upon our ability to compare the past to the present. Could it be that young people may not be old enough to truly relate to the American Dream he represents.

So with Edwards, we are called upon to connect the past with the present and join him in the battle to lift up the middle class. With Clinton we are called upon to bridge the present to the future by joining her in making a difference in the lives of all Americans. And with Obama, we are called upon to focus on the future by believing in our own ability to change the country in a new direction.

I believe the challenges ahead will require us to do all three and more.

So are we any closer to an answer to my fantasy game show host's question:
"Will the real leader please stand up?"

Perhaps the answer is you and I.