Oprah was (and still is) such a popular and admired figure on TV because of the charisma and inspirational story of her life. The charismatic leadership qualities that Oprah posses have seen her build a brand that everyone, including the audience, would love to associate with. The communication style she employs in her daytime talk show is simple, direct, and honest. She is also confident and not ashamed about her past as she always cites examples of her own life on TV. Apart from being compassionate and mature, she offers her audience substance and something unique that they live to want more and more every time they see her on TV. The inspirational journey of Oprah is another thing why she is such a popular and admired figure on TV. From her childhood which was characterized by poverty, sexual abuse, racism, and weight loss to becoming one of the world’s richest, popular, and a leader of her time. The story itself inspires and makes her a person of interest in the United States and across the globe.
Oprah’s charisma is more of a function of her personal qualities than the environment. The traits, mostly leadership skills, that Oprah possess have propelled her to becoming someone she wanted to be and above all, a charismatic leader. She is resilient and never succumbed to her childhood problems or become ashamed of the same. She instead used her story as a motive or driving force to stay focused and get things done. She has stood against everything negative that happened to her such as sexual abuse and poverty. The charisma have affected Oprah’s followers in a good way as everything “she endorses or mention turns out to become an instant seller in its category,” (p 320).
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Oprah embodies the example of a socialized charismatic leader as she is interested in benefiting and inspiring others. The qualities of charismatic leadership that Oprah possesses include acceptance of oneself and strong communication skills. It is because of good communication skills that Oprah has become a popular and charismatic figure on TV. She is both a charismatic and transformational leader. After venturing and investing in a Network, OWN, industry experts predicted that she would not make it. She transformed a network that was failing to a profitable venture despite the conditions and negative speculations. Childhood problems such as sexual abuse and poverty contributed to Oprah sense of purpose in life.
Review Questions
A charismatic leader can use vision and strong communication skills to make his/her case. For instance, Oprah employs the use of superb communication skills to inspire and persuade her audience to stand against sexual abuse, racism, and poverty in the world. Another example is that of Martin Luther King Jr. who used strong communication skills to advocate for equality and against discrimination of the African American population. The leading characteristics of charismatic leaders are superb communication skills and confidence. These two traits can easily make an individual be loved and embraced in equal measure.
Martin Luther King Jr. was self-confident and had a moral conviction that why he turned out to be an effective charismatic leader. John F. Kennedy possessed the trait ‘achievement orientation.’ Hitler was able to build a relational power base and that is why armies became loyal to him and his course. Nelson Mandela could inspire trust as he promised his people colonizers they will not be chased away after liberation. David Koresh had high energy and action orientation to inspire a following of a cult and music group. Kelleher was a self-promoting personality as he rose to become an American billionaire who majored in business and law. Richard Branson can empower followers as well as to inspire trust.
Charismatic leadership theory is a double-edged sword because both desirable and undesirable leaders are mold from the same. For instance, leaders are loved based on the course they drive. Hitler led a loyal team to drive his course, and he was ‘loved’ for it, regardless of the outcome: desirable or not. This theory has limitations such as leaders riding on the backs of followers to build themselves or implement their motives. Charismatic leaders can take their followers for granted and use the support to pursue their individual motives. The first behavior characteristic of transformation and charismatic leaders is a vision as it is the backbone of their cause. They communicate and persuade others about an idealized vision that is perceived to be greater than the current situation. Both leaders have superb communication skills. The employ good communication skills to persuade and make their followers feel ‘great’ and appreciated. A servant leader is one who can sacrifice self-interest to be of service to others. Such a leader earns the trust of the people as well as help them discover their inner potential.
References
Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2010). Leadership: Theory, Application, and Skill Development, Mason. Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning , 6.
