Comparing Leadership Styles: Eight Historical Leaders

Introduction: The Nature of Leadership

Politics and social history are dominated by the views of those who shape movements and events. These views include not only the basic assumptions of leaders regarding ideas of human and civil rights, religious values and beliefs, and thoughts on right conduct and appropriate moral behavior, but also the attitudes of those leaders toward how such goals should be attained.

Some leaders espouse only the most peaceful of paths, while others advocate violence. For still others, the pragmatic offers the only solution — they hold in contempt those who cling to high ideals at all costs. Leadership can be gained in numerous ways. It is earned and it is inherited. It is acknowledged only after long struggles, or it is easily won. A leader can appear who guides only his co-religionists, or who frees an entire people or race. Leaders may be heads of governments, or those who strive to oppose those same institutions of coercive control. Indeed, instead of paving a new path, a leader may actually typify — even embody — the ideals of his or her time and place, providing an example that is emulated down through the generations.

Certainly one of the primary qualities of a leader is that individual's ability to serve as an exemplar of a set of ideals. These ideals inspire followers and encourage further action, much of which might require great personal courage and sacrifice. Yet not all leadership requires a loss of the advantages of one's original standing in society. While almost inevitably adding to his or her stature, the natural leader may build upon an already high social rank, using that great advantage. Miyamoto Musashi, Queen Elizabeth I, Jack Welch, Confucius, Niccolò Machiavelli, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Mohandas K. Gandhi, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are all great leaders whose actions and ideas have inspired human beings in different places and times, and who continue to attract new admirers and believers in their special talents and goals.

Miyamoto Musashi: The Lone Hero

Miyamoto Musashi is an excellent example of the leader as lone hero. Musashi, one of the greatest swordsmen and martial artists in Japanese history, gave to posterity his Book of Five Rings, in which he described his tactics, technique, and martial strategy. An expert with the samurai sword and a truncheon-like, spiked weapon called the jitte, he traveled across Japan engaging his rivals and adversaries in bold feats of combat, always alone, and always outdoing his opponents in skill and cleverness. A follower of Zen Buddhism as well as a master of the sword, Musashi demonstrated that one's state of mind was as important as — if not more important than — one's skill with the blade. The Book of Five Rings stands as a testament to his ability to understand the inner psychology of combat and of striving in all one's endeavors:

"In the science of martial arts, the state of mind should remain the same as normal. In ordinary circumstances as well as when practicing martial arts, let there be no change at all — with the mind open and direct, neither tense nor lax, centering the mind so that there is no imbalance, calmly relax your mind, and savor this moment of ease thoroughly so that the relaxation does not stop its relaxation for even an instant." (Hanh, 2000, p. 128)

Musashi's philosophy and lifestyle were well in tune with the Japan of his day, and continue to serve as inspirations to those who admire the values of traditional Japanese culture. Traditional Japan was a world in which loyalty, devotion to duty, perseverance, and integrity were highly prized. Musashi showed how, by understanding one's own inner being and remaining in tune with the outer world — including the far greater world of the spirit — one could accomplish monumental things for oneself and one's people.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Queen Elizabeth I of England was not a lone woman who became a model for her people, but the actual ruler of those people. Ascending the English throne at a time of great change and reigning through a period of great crisis, she demonstrated qualities of leadership that are still valued today. The Virgin Queen faced both serious problems at home and dire threats from abroad. On the domestic front, tensions simmered between the newly Protestant state and those who wished to continue following their ancient Catholic faith unmolested. From without came the onslaught of King Philip of Spain's armada. Spain was the most powerful nation of the day, and its mighty fleet threatened to crush England and her independence.

Queen Elizabeth I and Jack Welch: Duty and Enterprise

The Queen faced an immense personal challenge as a woman in a man's world — a test of strength and resourcefulness that particularly inspires many today. She needed to demonstrate that she could show the same determination and valor as a king. Elizabeth took seriously her responsibilities to her people. As God's chosen instrument, she believed it was her duty to keep her people safe and, if necessary, to give her life for them. In a powerful speech given just after the spectacular victory over the Spanish Armada, she proclaimed:

"I have always believed myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good will of my subjects; and therefore am come amongst you, as you see, at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live or die amongst you all, and to lay down for God, for my kingdom and for my people, my honour and my blood, even in the dust." (Bassnett, 1988, p. 73)

Elizabeth's address paints the image of the ideal ruler as still imagined by many today. As Queen, Elizabeth cultivated the virtues of selflessness, courage, and steadfastness. Heads of state and politicians continue to speak of themselves as concerned only with the welfare of their people. Even more, Elizabeth transcended the limitations imposed by society on women. She proved herself the equal — indeed, the superior — of the men who surrounded her, and is remembered as England's greatest monarch.

In contrast, Jack Welch, American industrialist, represents an entirely different kind of hero. His skill was not as the leader of a people, but as someone who inspired a people. Chief Executive Officer of General Electric from 1981 to 2001, Welch demonstrated a genius for modern business. Joining the company's Plastics Division immediately after receiving his PhD in Chemical Engineering in 1960, he rose through the ranks based on his remarkable abilities (Strohmeier, 1998, p. 16). GE's youngest-ever CEO, Welch made judicious use of his apprenticeship in the Plastics Division, reveling in its "freewheeling atmosphere" and using his experiences to hone his skills as the quintessential American entrepreneur (Strohmeier, 1998, p. 16). As CEO, Welch pioneered a philosophy of continuous "restructuring" that was soon followed by many other major corporations, making it possible for General Electric to adapt seemingly endlessly to changing conditions (Strohmeier, 1998, p. 16).

Welch laid out his management philosophy on his very first day as CEO, stating that "a decade from now we would like General Electric to be perceived as a unique, high-spirited, entrepreneurial enterprise... A company known around the world for its unmatched level of excellence. We want General Electric to be the most profitable, highly diversified company on Earth, with world-quality leadership in every one of its product lines." (Strohmeier, 1998, p. 16)

Jack Welch commands respect because he speaks to a deeply held American tradition of self-reliance and a "can-do" spirit of pioneering discovery and adaptation. Whether entirely true or not, these American myths of rags-to-riches success — emphasizing education, hard work, and inborn talent — remain powerful motivators. The former GE CEO calls to mind the best of American ingenuity and business genius. He stands above the rest both because of what he achieved at such a young age — he was only 45 when he assumed the helm of the company — and because he made his corporation highly competitive and extremely profitable during a time of rapid change and vastly increased global competition. Welch's story is the Horatio Alger tale rewritten for the contemporary world, a narrative for all those seeking market success in an era of high technology and globalization.

Conclusion: What True Leadership Means

It is the challenge posed by the Reverend Dr. King that we must all work together to alleviate suffering in the world, and to free oppressed peoples, bringing us all together as one great human family. This is what true leadership is all about.