Contemporary Leader - Essay Example

Contemporary Leader: Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II, is a candi the Democratic Party for the presidential election of the United s of America for the year 2008. Currently a junior senator from the state of Illionis, Obama is the first ever African American to be nominated by such a dominant political party for this office. He is currently in the limelight, splashed across all the media – digital and print on account of the upcoming Presidential Elections as well as his opponent from Democratic Party – Hilary Clinton (Obama, 2008).

His strengths include bipartite political policies, acute judgment, visionary qualities, as well as strong leadership skills. He has genuine charm and a charismatic personality to capture his audience. His political motto “Change we can believe in” is attractive and believable and has already drawn several supporters from both the major political parties in the country – The Republicans as well as The Democrats, who advocate and promote his views and beliefs (Obama, 2008). His bipartisanship quality has the ability to bring the nation together and create a bond that would further strengthen the nation’s overall supremacy.

His policies have the capability of bringing two of the nation’s biggest political parties – The Republicans and The Democrats together in terms of agreement and acceptance of his desired goals and visions. He has the required wisdom and intelligence to foresee the impact of certain political decisions, which is evident from his firm stand on the Iraq war issue. His strong leadership qualities are characterized by his exemplary vision for the nation which involves creating hope and maintaining the promises that the leaders make to the citizens of the country.

His stand against the establishment on non acceptance of money, especially from special interest groups and beliefs in being upfront and ethical further strengthen his image as a leader and a visionary that America today, needs.However like several other contemporary leaders, Obama too has certain weaknesses such as lack of experience, his race, name, views on foreign policies, etc. Obama lacks largely on the experience factor. His political experience is far less than the other top tier politicians in the country.

Moreover, his race might also prove to be a deterrent to probable voters, as African Americans, historically, have barely made it to the top. Also his unusual sounding name, Barack Hussein Obama, might confuse voters about his real identity and pass wrong messages raising doubts about his political caliber as an eligible trustworthy candidate for such a high ranking position. The two major leadership styles that most fit Barack Obama have to be charismatic leadership and transformational leadership.

His charismatic leadership style is brought to the fore in his traditional approach of addressing certain political issues, and yet receive widespread acceptance amongst his followers. In spite of being unconventional in his approach, millions of American voters would wish to see him in the President’s chair. Transformational leadership on the other hand deals with leaders who assume a visionary position inspiring his supporters to follow (Bass, Riggio, 2006). Obama has the influential powers to guide and influence his supporters towards the common goals.

His speeches instigate inspirational motivation and reconstitute the belief that bringing about change is possible through channelizing combined efforts in the right direction. His image has been rightly portrayed which showcases him as a strong contender for the coveted position and his leadership styles are worth adapting by every individual, aspiring to be a leader in his / her own right.REFERENCES:Bass B. M., Riggio R. E. (2006). Transformational Leadership, Routledge Obama B. (2008) Meet the Candidate.

Retrieved October 11, 2008, from Obama’s website: http://www.barackobama.com/learn/meet_barack.php