Abraham Lincoln was one of the great leaders in U.S. history. Lincoln became the 16th President of the United States in 1861. The previous President allowed southern states to secede from the union without any punishment. Then, on April 12, 1861 the United States entered into a civil war between the southern states that referred to themselves as the Confederate States of America and the northern states. Lincoln was the first and only President to govern over a divided country. He was faced with the daunting task of trying to govern a divided nation and had to figure out a way to reunite the country (White House.gov).
His leadership during this trying time was inspirational to anyone who seeks a leadership role. Faced with the fighting in the south, Lincoln put his own agenda of freeing slaves on the back burner until he could get a handle on the Civil War. During the earlier stages of the war, Lincoln had a hard time finding followers to his war cause. Any good leader has to have followers. The generals in the early part of the war did not buy into Lincoln’s ideals. He had to replace numerous generals until he could find followers (Boorstin & Kelley, 1996).
Besides the Civil War, Lincoln was the first U.S. government official to end slavery. His original idea, that slaves were people and should be freed, lead to a large following for Lincoln. Lincoln was finally able to reach his goal of freeing slaves when more Americans followed his cause and asked him to free the slaves. When he gathered enough support he issued the Emancipation Proclamation (History.com).
As a U.S. History teacher, I am partial to U.S. Presidents. Lincoln’s leadership sets a great example for any person who wants to be a leader. He was able to gather followers and did not push his agenda before he knew he could succeed. Finally, his ability to govern over a divided country until it could be reunited shows his determination. Lincoln also led our country economically and politically. Lincoln was the first Republican President and his ideals helped shape the political party that still exists today. Those facts show his leadership and also his longevity.
References
Abraham Lincoln. (n.d.) In White House online. Retrieved fromhttp://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/abrahamlincoln/
Boorstin, Daniel & Kelley, Brooks Mather. (1996). The Civil War. A History of The United States (pp. 341-348). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall
Abraham Lincoln. (n.d.) In History Channel online. Retrieved from
http://www.history.com/presidents/lincoln/biography
Abraham Lincoln
I find it interesting that two individuals with such altering beliefs from different periods of time can be driven by the same leadership qualities. Both Abraham Lincoln and Margaret Sanger were driven by the qualities you mentioned; passion, daringness, and guiding visions. I would also say that the two both had the quality of stubbornness, which can go hand and hand with passion but is a driving force for many.
ReplyDeleteMargaret Sanger was determined to empower women with the courage needed to take ownership over their bodies. This passion and guided vision was faced with many road blocks. Margaret Sanger was imprisoned and fined large amounts due to the passion that eventually lead to results, which was similar to Lincoln’s lost senate seat but continued pursuit to promote change. Both individual’s were aware of the reluctance to change on the part of those around them. Such a challenge was tackled with perseverance and determination to prove their visions to be true and reach the minds of as many people as possible at whatever cost.
The most admirable leadership quality that the two individuals possessed was that of daringness. It was the willingness to be brave and to dare to speak their mind of questionable beliefs that made them true leaders and role models. Despite whether or not their beliefs were “right” they dared to be different in an effective and appropriate manner.
Nice leader choice, Jason! I chose Abraham Lincoln as my leader as well for some of the same reasons. He succeeded in working to achieve his passion through justice and human empathy despite facing extreme opposition. I frequently refer to Abraham Lincoln while rationalizing the adaptation of antiquated policies on the basis that just because something went on for a long time, i.e. slavery, it doesn’t justify it. Slavery went on for a long time before a voice of reason came along and fought for what was just and logically sound. I also chose Abraham Lincoln because his success as a leader is defined by working hard and intelligently to achieve his purpose.
ReplyDeleteConjointly, I agree that he demonstrated the very important leadership quality of follow-through in his execution process by ruling a newly united nation after tremendous turmoil and change. Abraham Lincoln’s influence as a leader for his cause is demonstrated in his magnificent accumulation of followers both during his life and in death.