“The earth is very much the quintessence of the human condition.” 
Hannah Arendt (German historian 1906-1975)

Leadership is essential…in a home, in a company, in a county , in a country. There is a common thread that describes leadership, one might consider ambition, character, education, resilience and empathy. Leaders share a vision, intelligence and a gift of storytelling.

Words and decisions have consequences. In her brilliant, insightful book titled Leadership in Turbulent Times Doris Kearns Goodwin, the presidential biographer and historian, writes about four of the most important leaders of America of the past, one during the Civil War and three leaders during the 20th Century. The stories shed a light on these famous leaders as individuals, the strength of their personalities in the powerful growth of this Nation.

Ms. Kearns Goodwin portrays President  Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)in very insightful ways and writes:” When he was ignorant on any subject, no matter how simple it might make him appear he was always willing to acknowledge it and worked hard to develop a simple, compact style of speaking and writing, with short, clear sentences that could be understood by all classes.” It was through the language of his leadership that a moral purpose and meaning was imprinted upon the protracted misery of the Civil War. No man resolved to make the most of himself can spare time for personal contention. So surely did Lincoln midwife this process of social transformation that we look back at the United States before Abraham Lincoln and after him.

President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)is held in high esteem, even today. He was a man of clear purpose and a very inquisitive mind, studying Latin, Greek, literature, history , science and mathematics; he never procrastinated to find a solution, for he understood from a very young age, that leadership had to be earned, it was never granted by rank or title. He argued : “The first success belongs to a man, who has in him the natural power to do what no one else can do, and no amount of training, no perseverance or will power, will enable an ordinary man to do.” He had the ability to retain and remember everything he read and viewed politics as an arena where good battled evil, he also maintained that empathy, like courage, could be acquired over time and is sustained by hard work. His leadership is seen as the dawn of a new era. Under his banner of his Square Deal, a mood for progressive reform swept the country, creating a new vision of a relationship between labor and capital, between government and the people.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) will be remembered to have been elected during a time of deep poverty and prolonged unemployment. The future of capitalism, indeed, democracy appeared grim. The terrible drama had reached a terminal state. The whole house of cards might fall before he was sworn in. Roosevelt knew something about cards , (he was a fine Poker-player) as he knew about faith, poise, hope and action in the face of a devastating illness. During the first hundred days to stem the immediate banking crisis he set in motion a turnaround that would forever alter the relationship between government and people. Like Lincoln, Roosevelt’s gift of communication proved the vital instrument of his success by developing a common mission, clarifying problems and earning the people’s trust by telling a story. About sixty million people listened to his radio-chats; his voice projected empathy, confidence and warmth. His wife, Eleanor¸ provided ‘unvarnished truth, ’and he had absolute trust in the dependability and accuracy of her observation. If ever an argument can be made for the conclusive importance of the character and intelligence of a leader in fraught times, at home and abroad, it will rest on the broad shoulders of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908-1973)started his presidency with the tragedy of President Kennedy’s assassination. Johnson later said:” A nation stunned, shaken to its very heart had to be reassured that the government was not in a state of paralysis. It was imperative that I grasp the reins of power, do so without delay. Any hesitation or wavering, any false step, any sign of self-doubt, could have been disastrous.” In this time of dark national emergency, he was inclined by temperament to act quickly and lead with strength. Johnson could never unwind, had a phenomenal memory for names and faces. At forty-six, he was the youngest Democratic Majority Leader, with an unflagging energy, guile, single-minded determination. His Civil Rights Act of 1957 became the law of the land. It was the most dramatic moment in his career until he was sworn in as President. He accomplished everything he set out to do: tax reduction, civil rights, federal aid to education, Medicare and voting rights…all fueled by his vision of the Great Society programs. One of his last statements was,” If I am ever to be remembered , it will be for Civil Rights.”

Each one of these leaders had disastrous wars to deal with, yet it was the Power of One, which made it possible for this Nation to become the leader in free speech, freedom of choice and many other strong provisions, based upon the most precious of documents, The Constitution and The Declaration of Independence. America became the light for other Nations to follow its lead. In this story Doris Kearns Goodwin defines these extraordinary men to lead a Nation through very, very complex and dark times. Leaders of today should pay homage to these forward-thinking men! Courage and knowledge and the respect towards others are needed at all times.

“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.”
Lyndon B. Johnson (36th US President 1908-1973)

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