Leadership

Leadership

When Ronald Reagan said, 'What I'd really like to do is go down in

history as the President who made Americans believe in themselves

again', he probably was not thinking too much about the definition of

leadership. However, without realizing, he pretty much defined it. I

believe the definition of leadership is having a impression on others, and

not only inspiring them, but making a physical difference in their lives

(hopefully in a good way). Without that aspect, there is not only no

effective leadership, but there is no leadership at all.

To have this ability to make impressions and differences, you need

communication skills. One who can not communicate well will never be a

leader. A leader must know how to speak so his ideas are understood in

the correct way. Ronald Reagan very own nickname was 'The Great

Communicator.' The examples that prove his nickname true are his great

acting skills, the fact that his talks with the Soviet Union

push to the Russian move toward capitalism.

Former President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nanc...

Ronald Reagan wearing cowboy hat at Rancho del Cie...

English: Ronald Reagan speaking in front of the Br...

The next aspect of effective leadership is the ability to make

decisions to change, and not always stick to the status quo. What good is

a leader who is afraid of change? Despite economic setbacks, President

Reagan reduced government spending tremendously, and cut back on business

regulations to strengthen the business sector of the economy. By making

this change, the inflation rate fell 13% to 2%, and created thousands

of jobs for Americans. When Reagan entered office, the unemployment rate

was 10.8%, when he left it was 5.3%. This economic growth would have

never come if Reagan did not have the will to change.

Even though Reagan's term sounds successful, there were many

problems. Failure is an aspect of leadership whether we want to believe

it or not. The drug...