March 20th, 2009

Truly New Days of Great Leadership?

This video is truly remarkable. I was as encouraged by this video as I recall being dismayed by reading the last administration’s early, but serious rumblings toward Iraq not longer after 9/11. I also believe there are great lessons here for corporate leadership, long-term planning, courage and transparency.

I have always admired Theodore Roosevelt’s “speak softly and carry a big stick”, interestingly taken from a West African proverb (according to Wikipedia). While this phrase has been criticized as “realpolitik” with Machiavellian undertones, I believe that’s based on interpretation, as well as some of Roosevelt’s actions, that the “big stick” was meant as a threat.

I’ve always liked to interpret this quote to mean that you should make and keep yourself strong, so you can most effectively act from your heart and love, rather than your head and fear. (Growing up, that seemed to me to be the philosophy of the buddhist and taoist martial artists increasingly depicted in both esoteric and popular media, such as TV’s original Kung Fu series.)

In my opinion, the U.S. has not had to prove anything to anyone, as far as its military strength and ability to effectively use it, at least since the end of the cold war in the early 90s. So, we’ve been in an amazing position to do what Obama is doing now, but which has taken at least 20 years too long.