Empirical Definition of a leader (Haitian or not)

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D. EMPIRICAL DEFINITION OF A LEADER
a. Not every one in charge is a leader
i. The term is very much abused (leader of the political party - no just the head of the party, leader of the country - no just the head of state)
ii. There is a misconception that the head state is automatically a leader
iii. The head of an organization is not always a leader especially if he or she crawled on her belly to claim this steep mountain.

iv. Finally, many individuals in charge have lead to disastrous results for companies, countries, and political parties.

b. Empirical proposal of a definition
i. Charisma: The ability to convince lots of people you are right through speeches and braveness.

ii. Clairvoyance: The ability to foresee what is coming; the ability to foresee what most people don't.
iii. A noble achievement: The ability to take a people out of an impasse and by attaining a noble goal; a positive connotation.

A leader is a positive person.

1. End slavery, end segregation are positive and noble achievements
c. A leader will cross the dangerous crossroad when the situation has passed beyond compromise.

i. Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines...

ii. Abraham Lincoln in 1861
iii. Antenor Firmin
1. Popular with the youth and all; he foresaw the Americans were bluffing about Mole St. Nicolas so he temporized and bluffed as well; he saved the Mole st. Nicholas and the Dessaline's doctrine.

iv. Gontran Rouzier: Interior Minister and Information under Elie Lescot
1. The PaP newspaper listen to him not to publish anything that Trujillo could use against the Haitians; he predicted the numerous assassination attempts from Leonidas Trujillo to Elie Lescot; he managed to save the day, the presidency or any pretext for invasion that Trujillo may have cherished.

2. I am sure there are many more but we may never know since Haiti's bibliography contains few biographies and autobiographies.

d. I gave examples mostly in politics but the definition is universal
i. Michael Jordan, Koby Bryant, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs
Both JB Aristide and Francois Duvalier do not comply to the empirical definition of leadership although they were heads.

Rubens Titus, February 20 2011, 11:04 AM

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