Leadership Traits of Barack Obama

This essay analyzes the leadership traits of Barack Obama, focusing on his effective communication, charisma, and transformational leadership style. It discusses his impact on the public and his role as a motivator and role model, highlighting his historical significance as the first African American president.

Running head: LEAD AND INFLUENCE
Lead and Influence
Name of the student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1LEAD AND INFLUENCE
Introduction
Leadership is one of the rare qualities that is possessed by a person, leading a group
towards the right direction. The quality of leadership could be in-born or developed with
experience. In this assignment, Barack Obama, the 44th president of America has been chosen as
an effective leader. The leadership traits that he possessed along with charisma with which he led
the people of America has been highlighted in this assignment. The effectiveness of the chosen
leader is also shed light upon in this assignment.
Leadership traits
The leadership traits possessed by Barack Obama made him create a history, of being the
first African American president. The leadership style followed by him, could be termed as the
transformational-charismatic leadership (Azari & Vaughn, 2014). His personality and charm
attracted millions of people all around the world and they voted for him in the presidential
election. The diligence that he exhibited, along with the personal risks that he took, makes him a
true leader (McAdams, 2014). Communication is one of the major traits of an effective leader. A
leader has to be a good orator, such that the mass follows his ideals. Barack Obama is a good
orator as well as a keen listener (Mio, Riggio & Herndier, 2017). With his communication skills,
he has been successful in convincing the whole world, and people all over the world supported
him as a president. He also received the award of “The marketer of the Year”, in the year 2008.
He truly deserves this award since using his communication skills he reached every citizen in US
(McGuire et al., 2016). Perseverance and conviction as also among the essential leadership traits.
The confidence, with which he faced the world and his conviction, indeed makes him a true
leader.
Effectiveness of the chosen leader

2LEAD AND INFLUENCE
A leader is considered to be an effective leader, by the impact that he has on the people.
The influence that Barack Obama had on the people is witnessed by the results of the presidential
election, where is contested many others and served as the American president during the years
2009 to 2017. The various risks that he took for the people of his country make him popular all
over the world (Azari & Vaughn, 2014). He believed in leading from the front. Barack Obama is
considered as an effective leader considering the leadership traits that he possessed and the
popularity than he gained among the people all over the world.
Conclusion
This assignment highlights the leadership traits of Barack Obama. The leadership traits
that he possessed include effective communication, diligence in work, perseverance and
conviction. Along with these qualities, he has a charismatic charm that attracts thousands of
people towards his leadership. Along with being an effective orator, Barack Obama is also a
motivator, motivating the youth of the world to take up various challenges and serve the world.
He has been successful in becoming a role model for various people all around the world, with
huge number of followers.

3LEAD AND INFLUENCE
References
Azari, J. R., & Vaughn, J. S. (2014). Barack Obama and the Rhetoric of Electoral Logic. Social
Science Quarterly, 95(2), 523-540.
McAdams, D. P. (2014). Leaders and their life stories: Obama, Bush, and narratives of
redemption. In Conceptions of Leadership (pp. 147-165). Palgrave Macmillan US
McGuire, D., Garavan, T. N., Cunningham, J., & Duffy, G. (2016). The use of imagery in the
campaign speeches of Barack Hussein Obama and John McCain during the 2008 US
Presidential Election. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 37(4), 430-449.
Mio, J. S., Riggio, R. E., & Herndier, R. E. (2017). Metaphor Density in President Obama’s and
Governor Romney’s Presidential Acceptance Speeches: Implications for Leadership and
Conveyance of Vision. Acta Psychopathol, 3, 3.