Charisma in Leadership LO17506

Richard C. Holloway (thejournal@thresholds.com)
Mon, 23 Mar 1998 06:28:32 -0800

Replying to LO17491 --

Just to offer an alternative viewpoint. Charisma relies on a relationship
between two people. Charismatic leaders are charismatic because the
people who follow them find them so. A person who has this characteristic
won't change because we tell her that she must . . . rather the followers
must understand their volition and power in following. These tools you
describe for a century which hasn't arrived yet (this is always an
exercise I find quite remarkable) are age-old tools that must be
understood by followers also. It's just that they require more effort
than the available energy to produce that effort (egads--am I referring to
entropy production here?).

I was hoping, John, that you might have some insights into why some people
choose and follow charismatic people. It occurs to me that this knowledge
could be a source of power to those who are predisposed to this
relationship.

regards,

Doc

-- 
"Love not what you are, but what you may become."  - Miguel de Cervantes

Thresholds--developing critical skills for living organizations Richard C. "Doc" Holloway Please visit our new website, still at <http://www.thresholds.com/> <mailto:learnshops@thresholds.com>

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