Noted journalist and former presidential adviser David Gergen delivered the first of three scheduled Winter Term lectures Tuesday, Jan. 6, discussing three essential qualities good leaders must possess. Details...
Gergen, who is serving as Isabella Cannon Distinguished Visiting Professor of Leadership at Elon during Winter Term, said ambition, development of individual talent, and personal character are the three qualities he believes every great leader must have to be successful.
While many people view ambition as a negative trait, Gergen said history demonstrates that every great leader has possessed it. “George Washington was constantly seeking to advance himself as a young man,” Gergen said. “Martin Luther King wanted to be a great preacher, but he became a great leader when he took his preaching to the street and attached it to a great social cause.”
In the world’s great leaders, Gergen said personal ambition undergoes a transformation with age and experience. “The best leaders start out being ambitious for themselves and then become truly great by attaching their ambitions to something greater than themselves.”
Top leaders must also have the desire to develop their individual and professional talents, building their skills and reputation. A common trait among most leaders, Gergen said, is their voracious appetite for reading.
“Harry Truman never went to college,” Gergen said. “In fact, he was the only president in the 20th century not to attend college, but he was one of our best (leaders) because he read so much.” Gergen shared the story of Truman telling a group of school children visiting the White House that “not every reader is a leader, but every leader is a reader.”
Personal character is indispensable for leaders, Gergen said. He pointed to Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton as examples of what can happen when leaders lack character. “Nixon was bright and well-educated, but he was angry at the world,” Gergen said. “He could not control his inner demons, and his paranoia ultimately led (to Watergate).” Gergen said Clinton was incredibly intelligent and probably cared about learning the perspective of the oppressed more than most other presidents. “He had 360-degree thinking, but he lacked a true north, he lacked full control and mastery of himself. His inability to control his impulses cost him a chance at greatness,” said Gergen.
Other factors, such as circumstance and personal charisma, also play a factor in the development of leaders. “Winston Churchill was seen as washed up in May of 1939,” Gergen said, but within a year, his leadership at the start of World War II cast him as one of the most admired leaders in history.
Gergen said the quality of leadership is something every citizen should care about. “A civilization may rise or fall on the quality of its leadership,” Gergen said. “It is possible for human civilization to go backwards. Progress is not assured; it is something each generation must work at. The quality of leadership matters and the quality of the individual in leadership matters.”
Gergen, who has served as adviser to Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Clinton, will visit with Elon students throughout his time on campus, discussing leadership and the development of leadership qualities. His second public lecture is scheduled for 7 p.m., Monday, Jan. 12 in McCrary Theatre. Tickets may be purchased by calling the McCrary Theatre box office at (336) 278-5610, between 12:30-5 p.m., Monday-Friday. Tickets are $12 or free for those with valid Elon identification. Students should come by the box office with a valid Phoenix card to claim their free tickets