Being charismatic is a powerful personality trait. We are drawn to charismatic people. We tend to listen and follow charismatic individuals. This has included charismatic celebrities such as talk show host Oprah Winfrey and actors Meryl Streep and George Clooney, and charismatic sports stars like Rugby Union star David Pocock and boxer Muhammad Ali. Notable charismatic politicians have included leaders such as Gough Whitlam, Bob Hawke and Bob Brown (Australia); George Washington, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama (United States); Justin Trudeau (Canada); and Jacinda Ardern (New Zealand); as well as conservative leaders such as Pauline Hanson (Australia), Donald Trump (United States) and even Adolf Hitler (Germany), whose dark charisma resonated with the German people and led the Nazi Party to commit horrific atrocities during the Second World War.
Charismatic leadership is a leadership style that utilises ‘a leader’s authenticity, communications prowess and inspiration to pull out the best in others’.124 First comes passion for the purpose that you wish to pursue. Passionate people, whether they be managers, politicians, sports stars, celebrities or everyday individuals, are charismatic and their passion is contagious to others. Their passion is expressed in a very optimistic manner and motivates those around them to also become interested in the ideas that the charismatic person is so passionate about. Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg is one such passionate person. Despite only being 20 years old (as of 2023), Thunberg has motivated millions of people around the world to take action on climate change through protests and climate strikes. In August 2018, at 15 years of age, Thunberg began striking about climate change outside the Swedish parliament instead of attending school (‘Skolstrejk för klimatet’). This inspired other students to begin doing the same thing and organise school climate strikes (‘Fridays for Future’). Less than a year later, more than a million students across multiple cities were involved in the protests. Thunberg would eventually deliver a powerful speech in New York at the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit, sailing to New York from Sweden rather than flying due to the impact that flying has on the environment. Thunberg demonstrated her charisma and passion for fighting climate change in this speech when she exclaimed: This is all wrong. I shouldn’t be up here.
I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope? How dare you! You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction. And all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!125 Greta Thunberg’s speech and charismatic personality exposed even more people around the world to her passion about tackling the looming climate change disaster facing the planet. This, in turn, inspired others to take action on climate change through strikes, protests, restricting or reducing flight travel, and adopting a more vegan lifestyle. This inspiration is known as the ‘Greta effect’. Charismatic leaders are uplifting, marked by communications prowess, courageous, original and likeable – all characteristics exhibited by Greta Thunberg in her pursuit to raise awareness and reverse climate change. Further, research shows that while ‘charismatic leaders (whether in religion, politics, or elsewhere) may appear at any time, they most often emerge – or are called into existence – during a crisis’.126 In this instance, the worldwide climate change crisis was the impetus for Thunberg to leave school and emerge as a leader. While the media’s focus is on charismatic and passionate individuals, the problem for many managers and employees in general is that they rarely think too deeply about what they are passionate about. Lack of passion can result in lower levels of engagement both in and outside the workplace. If you are not passionate about your purpose, it is extremely difficult to be charismatic and motivate others to care. However, being around someone who is passionate about their own purpose can inspire others to start thinking about what it is that they care about. Greta Thunberg’s purpose to see climate change action started with her sitting by herself on the steps of the Swedish parliament, becoming increasingly disillusioned by the inaction of Swedish and overseas governments. Through her charismatic leadership, Thunberg was joined by millions of people in protest marches around the world, helping motivate others to become aware of the climate emergency and demand change as a result.
Questions Mainstream
1. What are the traits of a charismatic person? Why aren’t all people naturally charismatic?
2. Which of Greta Thunberg’s charismatic traits mentioned in the case study do you think were the most effective for motivating people with regard to climate change action? Explain your response.
Critical
1. When we think about a passionate person, we often think about the person being passionate about something that they love, such as artistic pursuits (acting, writing etc.) or helping others. But passion and charisma can stem from anger (such as with Greta Thunberg) or hate (such as with Adolf Hitler). Why do you think that is? Why do we still think of these individuals as being charismatic?
2. Why is it that charismatic leaders ‘most often emerge – or are called into existence – during a crisis’?
Is there less of a reason for these leaders to exist outside of crises? Explain your response.