Leadership with opposition – Palin and Bachmann screen attendees

April 11, 2010

If you lead, you will have opposition. How you handle this opposition is, in many ways, the key to effective leadership.

Recently, at a Republican rally for Michelle Bachmann in Minneapolis, a Democrat was turned away. Perhaps someone should let Bachmann know that, as long as she is in office, she represents all of her constituents. The fact that Sarah Palin, a former Vice Presidental candidate, participated in this divisive rally raises a similar concern.

As a leader, it is never fun facing a crowd that may oppose your policies or beliefs, yet it would hardly be called leading if you did not have to figure out how to engage others towards a unifying outcome. Perhaps that is the shortcoming of those political leaders who are blinded by the catagory called party.

If you take this post as partison, think again. I am as independent as they come. I believe by the age you can run for office, you should be able to think, reason, and feel for yourself.

As a leader, are you allowing the voice of opposition through? And are you speaking to everyone, not just your loyal followers?

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