More on Machiavelli

Several months ago I mentioned Machiavelli's oft-quoted question: is it better to be loved or feared.  Click here for a recent article on Machiavelli, "The Florentine."

Tired of negative campaigns?

Unfortunately, negative campaigns are nothing new.  The Founders knew how to sling mud too.  For the full story, click here.

Book Review: What Would the Founders Do?

I recently purchased a copy of Richard Brookhiser's What Would the Founders Do? Amazon.com is currently selling it for $5.99. For the price of lunch at Subway, you can hang out with the Founders. Not bad.

Brookhiser is knowledgeable, interesting, and readable. That sets him apart from most academic history texts, and What Would the Founders Do? is certainly intended for a popular audience. The book begins by establishing similarities and differences between the Founders' world and ours - and this section alone is fascinating. After laying that foundation, Brookhiser moves on to asking questions, addressing several hot-button issues (he begins with gun control, the death penalty, and stem cell research). The book is divided into topical chapters, which are further divided into specific questions, so readers need not work through the entire book to find answers to their particular concerns.

Some critics will say that Brookhiser is selective in his illustrations and speculative in his conclusions. Yet all history is such. The question is: does the historian select and speculate responsibly. Since I don't have a PhD in history, I'm reluctant to make a final call on that question, but based on Brookhiser's reputation, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Additionally, his conclusions will frustrate conservative and liberal readers alike, which makes me think his approach is even handed.

IDEA LEADER: Do you have any historical role models? If so, why do you look to them for guidance? If not, spend this week considering who would make a good role model for you.

Meet Catherine Booth

Though I don't know a lot about the Salvation Army, I do appreciate their efforts to alleviate human suffering - both physical and spiritual. For a brief introductory article to the Army's co-founder, Catherine Booth, click here.

Think Different

Several years ago Apple Computers began to use "think different" as an advertising slogan. Though grammatically awkward ("different" is being used as an adverb, and should therefore use the -ly ending), it is certainly a good motto for leaders. The phrase also describes one of George Washington's key leadership principles. Besides his concern for posterity and his ability to accept and renounce executive power at-will, George Washington exhibited the ability to "think different."

Washington's refusal to play by the standard rules of European warfare helped his rag-tag army survive and eventually overcome the threat of the British Army. However his ability to "think different" predates the Revolutionary War. His entrepreneurial spirit demonstrated itself in how he managed his Virginia plantation. At the time, Virginia planters typically relied on tobacco, which was to be sold in English markets. Washington felt that he never received a good return from England on his tobacco crops, so in 1766 he ventured into other crops. These ventures included successfully growing wheat, milling it himself, and selling it locally. He also harvested fish from the Potomac and produced clothing for his workers.

Though traditional methods may seem safe, they are not always best for you or for those you lead. Those who truly want to lead others (and themselves) to new successes must "think different." The first step in learning to "think different" is to consider the areas of your life that are bound by tradition. Tradition in itself is certainly not a bad thing, but an unreflective submission to tradition will keep individuals from discovering their full potential.

IDEA LEADER: In what ways are you bound by tradition? What are three particular ways you can "think different" this week?

Photo: Diego Medrano

Why Old Ideas Matter

Washington's approach to executive power may have seemed novel in his day (King George III was quoted as saying that if Washington could voluntarily resign his power, "he would be the greatest man in the world."). However, his refusal of a tyrant's crown had historical referents. Both of these referents originate in the Roman world.

Washington's favorite play was Addison's Cato . He even had it performed during that terrible winter at Valley Forge. In the play, Cato is an embodiment of republican virtue, and an enemy of the tyrant Julius Caesar. Cato is willing to resist Caesar's despotic rule - even if it means taking his own life.

During Washington's lifetime, he was compared to Cincinnatus. According to the historian Livy, Cincinnatus was twice given the power of a despot in order to save Rome from her military enemies. Twice Cincinnatus was able to repel the foreign threat and then willingly return to his plow. Like Washington, he served his country in its time of need and then resigned from executive power.

Since I teach at a classical school, I have high regard for the classical tradition, and I am thrilled to see the connection with Washington. Yet there is something here for leaders to glean: leaders benefit from historic role models. Don't become so consumed with being "cutting edge" that you forget what is "classical."

IDEA LEADER: Which historical heroes influence you? Why? How can you share their stories with those you lead?

Sometimes Quitters Do Win

Why would a popular and successful executive willingly resign his position when everyone expected him to keep his power? Why do it twice? We'll explore this question for the next several weeks.

George Washington twice resigned his executive power: first when he resigned his position as commander and chief of the continental army and second when he chose not to seek a third term as President (he still got 2 electoral votes in the 1796 election).

Shortly before Washington resigned his military command, a group of soldiers wanted to march on congress in response to unresolved grievances. After quelling that near-rebellion, he rode to the continental congress, meeting in Maryland, to surrender his sword. He was met by huge cheering crowds in three different cities - in a scene not unlike the triumph processions of Roman military generals.

Washington could easily have become a military dictator. The English revolution that preceded him by less than 200 years ended with such. Why didn't Washington follow that path?

There are a variety of reasons. One of those was his ability to pick up and lay down executive power at will. Even more impressive, he could lay down this power and not be diminished in any way. In fact, his decision to resign his military command made him even more heroic. I believe in this act Washington demonstrated something of the character that Christ discussed when he said, "Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth."

IDEA LEADER: Not only were Washington's executive positions full of authoritative power, but they were also symbols of status. What status symbols could you give up to enhance your leadership? How would your organization benefit if you shared power with others?