Obama’s lessons in leadership
Study of former president’s years in office of benefit to all bosses
‘CHANGE will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we have been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” These are the words of former US president Barack Obama, who recently completed his two terms in office.
Obama is one of those rare leaders respected the world over. His approach to leadership presents valuable lessons to those seeking to grow as leaders. Who better to learn from than the man who was sworn in when the global economy was in recession and was able to lead effectively during the economic turnaround?
This situation is similar to that faced by leaders in all fields as they attempt to turn around the performances of their organisations in the current economic environment.
Obama understood the importance of leading from your strengths — regardless of the pressures from the economic context. Known as an incredibly poised and effective orator, he successfully influenced millions of Americans to gather behind his cause.
Leaders need to learn to stand firm on their strengths, especially since those are the reasons they find themselves in positions of leadership in the first place. Too often we shy away from leaning on our strengths, especially during tough economic times when leaders are scrutinised from all angles, resulting in selfcensoring and self-constraining behaviour.
Leadership is ultimately about influence. You cannot be influential when you are acting in ways that are unnatural to you. We have seen too many wannabe presidents pretend to care about certain causes that are guaranteed to win votes — only to end up losing votes as the public sees through their inauthenticity.
Obama was also focused and targeted. Delivering the Affordable Care Act was an example of one of the goals he focused on from beginning to end. Too often leaders place broad agendas on their shoulders — often impossible to achieve — believing that is the way to impress when you are called to lead. Ultimately, the more focused you are, the more likely you are to achieve your goals. It makes it easier for those around you to support your agenda too. Sometimes the challenge with goals is not so much in their design as in the ability to execute them — even trickier in a large organisation.
Obama was also wary of becoming a victim of the glory of being “the first”. As the first black president of the US he did not rest on his laurels merely because he had broken through the glass ceiling. Often when we break barriers we tend to grow complacent, choosing to stay in the spotlight instead of maintaining the drive that helped us break through in the first place.
Obama also did not do the opposite: working to prove to the non-believers that he did, in fact, deserve to be in the position. He bestowed the honour on himself and wore it with dignity — he did not wait for others to bestow the honour on him.
As much as he became HAIL AND FAREWELL: Barack Obama at his farewell address. He left a potent legacy increasingly grey-haired during his term in office, it was because he was focused on the cause, not so much on seeking validation from others.
Obama has also been good at reminding the rest of the world that we are human beings first before we are robots — there is no shame in displaying your emotions as a leader. This is evidenced by the number of times he felt comfortable crying in public — from the time he gave a press briefing about the Newtown Elementary School shooting to when he acknowledged first lady Michelle Obama during his farewell address.
Displaying emotions is not courage — it is human. Effective leaders are those who have learnt to confidently display their vulnerabilities and, in doing so, are able to build trust and instil confidence in others.
I am sure Obama had many failures and shortcomings in his time in office, but that should not preclude us from learning from what he did well. Many Africans have honoured him by naming their children after him.
Let’s take it a step further by role-modelling the elements of his leadership that have shown him to be worthy of respect.
Sikhakhane is an international speaker and an executive at Circle Food Group, with a business honours degree from the University of Cape Town and an MBA from Stanford University