Theo Hunt

Politics, Philosophy and Religion (Bailrigg) | Year 3 | Degree: Politics and International Relations

Political Leadership: A New Approach

While much is said about individual political leaders and their distinctive achievements, less is discussed about their fundamental similarities: the responsibilities they have remain generally the same no matter the context, as do the limits and options of their ability as human beings. This creates shared boundaries for all leaders, and demands the same practical skills to secure and retain power. I have therefore found that all successful political leaders share five key qualities – the more successful leaders possess more of them: storytelling, philosophy, empathy, innovation, and management. The individual is important in political leadership; while the institutional machinery and political weather around leaders is relevant, individual leaders’ influence is often misunderstood or downplayed in popular and scholarly observations respectively. All leaders, to ascend and remain in high office must possess some of these social skills in depth to stay in high office. I have drawn on a range of case studies to support my argument: these skills are used by historical (Lincoln) and modern leaders (Merkel), eastern (Xinping) and western (de Gaulle), autocrat (Gorbachev) and democrat (Trump) and a miscellany of others (May & Heath). This is a new approach to political leadership, which simplifies our understanding of events by returning responsibility to key individuals and their personal qualities (or lack thereof). It also allows for direct comparison by scholars, increased depth of understanding by media and popular observers, and for lessons to be learned by would-be political leaders from quarters previously closed to them.

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Theo Hunt

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Theo Hunt

Politics, Philosophy and Religion (Bailrigg) | Year 3 | Degree: Politics and International Relations

Political Leadership: A New Approach

Welcome This poster presents a new, original understanding of political leadership, as developed and researched myself in Summer 2021 for a personal blog. I refer to this new typological approach as the 'linked leadership' model, due to the similarities between diverse leaders revealed in this analysis. For background context I will first describe the scholarly environment this argument is set in, and my research process. I will then present my argument: that leadership can be analysed through five set social skills (a shorter overview is also available - right). Finally, I will lay out the consequences of this argument for popular and scholarly understandings of political leadership of all kinds. Here, I understand 'political leadership' to mean individuals representing a community of people by making decisions on their behalf and providing for them in various ways; therefore any leader relying on popular legitimacy can be understood through this model.

Key Influences Books & Figures Steve Richards - The Prime Ministers David Cannadine - Victorious Century Max Weber - Politics as a Vocation Iain Dale - Prime Ministers, & Presidents books/podcasts Self-Produced Material Theo's Prime Ministers, Poorly Informed YouTube Series (see below) All Post-War Prime Ministers, Poorly Informed Blog Series Leadership Experiences Station Manager, 87.7 Bailrigg FM Impact Group Coordinator, Lancaster University Christian Union Lead Producer, Poorly Informed

This is a rollover page - hover over it for more on my influences on this project!

A looping gif of all the leaders covered in my research. In order, photos are shown of: PM Theresa May, President Donald Trump, President Abraham Lincoln, President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Ted Heath, President Joe Biden, President Charles de Gaulle, General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, Chancellor Angela Merkel

All the leaders covered in my research, in order: May, Trump, Lincoln, Xi, Heath, Biden, de Gaulle, Gorbachev, Merkel

My Argument: An Overview I argue that all political leaders - who share fundamentally similar repsonsibilities and fundamentally similar human qualities - can be analysed using a standard criteria of five leadership skills. The range and depth by which they possess these skills will be reflected in their securing and retaining of power. These skills are: storytelling, philosophising, empathy, innovation, and management. In my research I have found a range of case studies that reflect the neccessity of these skills in retaining political power. While the literal expression of these five leadership qualities will differ, the core skills are easily observable. This provides a simple, standardised measurement to political leadership, cutting through institutional machinery and media speculation. While the five skills can overlap, they are mostly distinct, reflecting the diversity of leadership's responsibilties and approaches.

The State of Study 1/2 Current studies in political leadership are largely local affairs, focusing on Prime Ministerial or Presidential operations, and how they function within the insitutions around them. The Institute for Government understands 'political leadership' in terms of 'elections, reshuffles, advisors, and cabinet committees'; little deep consideration is paid to the ability of individual office-holders. ¹ While there is a professment that leaders are understood as individuals, the reality is that many other components of political life crowd discussion out and prevent clear-headed understanding of the personality, background, and emotional approaches of humans towards their political responsibilities...²

[This is a rollover page, drag your mouse accross to read on!

The State of Study 2/2 ...There seems to be a gap in our understanding of leadership - in popular conception, it is confused with ideas of communication and presentation. But experience tells us that such skills are only a part of effective leadership. The scholarly literature, in turn, is overly focused on the structures and quantifiable events around leaders. But this ignores the fact that powerful leaders draw power from their interactions with others and social abilities. We therefore need a comparable, consistent approach to understanding political leaders, and which provides a ready shorthand to the individuals who lead our communities. That is what I hope this model provides.

A looping gif plays of a whiteboard with five words on: 'philosopher', 'innovator', 'empath', 'manager', 'storyteller'. Each is in red pen and circles, with green notes below

Whiteboard notes jotted down during a dull revision session in mid-June

The Research Process I was reflecting heavily on leadership in idle revision moments in May/June, and was categorising leaders into different character traits of my own imagination. But I soon realised that almost all political leaders could be categorised within just five areas. On this whiteboard (where?) Trump and Churchill are storytellers, Robert Peel a philospher, and FDR an innovator, while empaths include Harold Wilson, and managers Deng Xiaoping. This seemed to mean that political leadership, by neccessity, requried one, or more of these qualities. So, I decided to write these categories out on a personal blog; I explored each skill in turn, judging its presence or absence in specific case studies, and the conseqeunces of it on political power. I aimed to use two case studies per skill, analysing its use across different contexts. This relied on extensive political-historical research, especially in French and Soviet political history. I set myself a deadline of one blog post per day, including an introduction post. I sketched out the definitions of each skill, identified possible examples, researched how they were relevant and the impact on the retention of power by said leaders. Then I wrote the post, redrafting and editing roughly 1600 words a day. It took two chunks of time, but was completed by late June. The full model is below, and you can read the original posts by hovering your mouse over this box and clicking the link.

The original blog posts can be found at:

https://thepoorlyinformedblog.blogspot.com/!

(The link will take you off this page)

Here's some more of my work on political leadership!

The Queen in 2002 with Prime Ministers (l-r) Blair, Thatcher, Heath, Callaghan, and Major. I've attacached an analysis of the skill strengths and weaknesses behind each's rise to and fall from power

Tony Blair - New Labour (1997-2007) Skills: storytelling, empathy, innovation Weakness: management

Margaret Thatcher - Conservative (1979-1990) Strengths: storytelling, innovation Weaknesses: management, empathy (somewhat)

Ted Heath - Conservative (1970-1974) Strengths: innovation, philosophy Weaknesses: empathy

Jim Callaghan - Labour (1976-1979) Strengths: management Weaknesses: innovation, storytelling

John Major - Conservative (1990-1997) Strengths: empathy, govt. management Weaknesses: innovation, party management

Linked Leadership: In Detail This model rests on the belief that human nature is essentially unchanging; that leaders and their communities will always interact over similar trends and engage with each other in similar ways. The responsibilities conferred on leaders are broadly the same, as are communal reactions to certain leadership behaviour. Therefore, there are consistent incentives and disincentives for how political leaders should behave in certain contexts, as well as neccessary requirements for leaders to meet. Leaders who meet those requirements, and recognise the incentives correctly wil secure and retain power. Doing so, however, demands certain leadership qualities; and these abilities do not change, just as, broadly, political desires and interactions do not change. When natural disaster occurs, communities will need leaders to engage in mourning for the victims and organise a relief effort. When economic pressures cause declining living standards, there are expectations of a solution. When political crises emerge, political leaders must provide a fix. These occurances are eternal (see Machiavelli), and these expectations have lasted as long as political leadership itself. Therefore to meet these similar challenges, leaders have always used a common range of social abilities. These social abilities can be reduced to five broad skills - though 'skills' is too narrow a word. Leaders who possess more of these skills and to a greater degree will have greater ability to engage with their community then various leadership is required. Those who do not will be recognised as unable, and will lose power as a consequence. All effective leaders in high office will possess one of these skills in depth, and when they lose office it willl be because of their inability in another skill. They are: 1. Storytelling - telling the community how and why it is hurting and why only you and your plan can help

Ideal example: President Trump

Failed example: Prime Minister May

2. Philosophising - understanding the leadership role; the responsibilities it has, the power available to it, and the opportunities attached to that power

Ideal examples: President Xi & Lincoln

Failed example: President Carter

3. Empathy - being the chief individual who can reflect, articulate, and shape how a community understands a crisis

Ideal Example: President Biden

Failed Example: Prime Minister Heath

4. Innovation - being willing to challenge and change the community in important (and painful) ways in order to resolve substantial probloms

Ideal example: President de Gaulle

Failed example: General Secretary Gorbachev

5. Management - leading a unified (and politically diverse) team that can reliably govern the community despite the difficulties of governance

Ideal example: Chancellor Merkel

Failed example: Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn

These five skills interact, but are distinct. They may be used in a variety of situations and, when applied well, will persuade the community to affirm the leader's retaining of power. They are also neccessary in originally securing power - election campaigns and political manouvering will demand all the above to various extents. The more that are possessed by would-be leaders, and the greater the extent, the more easily a leader will secure and retain power.

Consequences of Research The impact of my research and its outcomes can be understood in two ways. There are also further questions to consider. Firstly, the linked leadership approach changes our understanding of political leadership. It emphasises the agency of individuals at the top of bureaucratic structures and places responsibility on their personal nature, rather than allowing them to look elsewhere when power is lost. While contextual factors play substantial roles in shaping the power a leader possesses, we can also see how this hinges on leaders bringing, for instance, storytelling or innovation to bear to retain power nevertheless. Therefore lesser leaders are not 'overwhelmed by events'; they simply do not possess the requisite ability to continue in high office. This creates a more coherent framework to apply to all leadership case studies, and we can draw consistent conclusions about what skills are neccessary in specific situations. This is helpful in and of itself for scholars and those who study political leadership. Secondly, and consquently, this allows for a sharper, clearer popular understanding within communities of their leaders and how to understand them. Media absorption is at a premium in most working lives, so using a consistent, reasonably understandable guide to how leaders behave provides a common shorthand to current events without requiring a detailed knowledge of special advisers, insitutional structures, and leaked cheese & wine party photos. More public understanding of political leaders is an ideal thing, as it incentivises decision-making more sensitive to community needs. Linked leadership still possesses many smaller tensions. Are certain skills more neccessary than others? How exactly do these skills lead to retention of power? Can skills change over time into a new thing? What other skills do leaders possess or are these five such a catch-all that all successful politicians can identify with them? However, it is clear that a new approach is plausible, marking a clearer, more straightforward difference to what has been available before.

Case Study References:

Bader, J. A. (n.d.). How Xi Jinping Sees the World…and Why. 21.

Bader—How Xi Jinping Sees the World…and Why.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved 28 February 2022, from https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/xi_jinping_worldview_bader-1.pdf

Burlinghame, M. (2016, October 4). Abraham Lincoln: Impact and Legacy | Miller Center. https://millercenter.org/president/lincoln/impact-and-legacy

Crawford, A., & Czuczka, T. (2013). Angela Merkel: A chancellorship forged in crisis. John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Hochschild, A. R. (2016). Strangers in their own land: Anger and mourning on the American right. New Press.

Jackson, J. (2018). De Gaulle. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Mushaben, J. M. (2016). The Best of Times, the Worst of Times: Angela Merkel, the Grand Coalition, and “Majority Rule” in Germany. German Politics and Society, 34(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.3167/gps.2016.340101

Osnos, E. (2020). Joe Biden: American dreamer. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Richards, S. (2019). The prime ministers: Reflections on leadership from Wilson to May. Atlantic Books.

Service, R., & Service, R. (2003). A history of modern Russia: From Nicholas II to Putin (New ed., publ. with revisions). Penguin.

Spielberg, S. (2012). Lincoln (2012)—IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443272/

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