So this week, we are allowed to write about any topic leadership related but it needs to be controversial, and thought provoking!
My question to you is why do successful leaders often fail in government? We are certainly at a critical point in US History to see if Obama can overcome the barriers to effective leadership in government, and and advocate for the changes he wants to make. Robert Reich talked about some of the errors and successes that past Presidents have made, particularly with Health Care Reform attempts, and gave examples all across the spectrum; Johnson was successful in passing Medicare, although his economic advisors tried to dissuade him, because he left the details up to Congress. Clinton on the other hand, made some critical errors; he took too long (allowing big pharma and insurance to form an opposition), and he handed Congress a finished bill with a bow on it leaving them feeling like they didn't contribute.
So how can Obama be a successful leader? How can he make progress with Health Care Reform? Should he lower the bar, and settle for something that is an easier win? Should he be advocating more for the explicit changes he wants? How, in such a bipartisan country, can we be united in change?
This week, I am asking a lot of questions. I can't type this pretending I know the errors of past politicians or solutions to ensure future success. Robert Reich talked about how successful leaders prevent their team from making the Four Fatal Work Avoidance Mechanisms (although I don't think he titled it so dramatically). These work avoidance mechanisms don't take much energy from the opposition and are powerful impediments to progress. Here they are, and corresponding rebuttals:
Denial - you can't just ignore the problem, it exists and is real.
Escapism - it IS your problem, and affects you.
Blame - it is no one else's fault, lets look at the root of the problem.
Cynicism - we CAN do something about it. we CAN make progress.
Are these the holes that political leaders get trapped in? How can leaders, in politics or otherwise, overcome these barriers?
I'll keep you posted if I figure anything out!
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These are all excellent questions that I think about all the time and wish I had the answers to. I myself am trying hard not to be a cynic when it seems like nothing gets done in D.C. at all these days because of politics. As for Obama and health care reform, this is my biggest criticism of him. He needs to be forceful, forget bipartisanship and just get the thing done. Republicans are never going to work with him, so he needs to be stronger in standing by his principals!
ReplyDeleteMarkell,
ReplyDeleteI like a lot of the questions you pose. It is so tough to be president of the United States right now with everything going on in the world Healthcare reform is such a difficult problem, and in order to get meaningful reform passed, you have to have proponents on both sides of the political aisle. With so many republicans trying to block reform, however, this is very difficult to achieve. Lowering the bar would be the easiest to achieve politically, and maybe, at the end of the day, incremental change is the most feasible.