In the reading, charisma is defined in many ways. In the Encyclopedia of Leadership, charisma is defined as a “quality” people have that in one way or another affects people. Something I found interesting was that the first mentioning of “charisma” is in spiritual or religious texts and defined as supreme. Today, charisma is more of a combination of skills that make one more or less appealing or fit to be a leader.
As I was reading I could not stop thinking about leaders in history that clearly showed charisma but their effects on the world were horrible. Hitler, for example, was an extremely charismatic person. Hitler was good with words, amazing at speeches, and was able to convince multitudes of people that the Jewish people were to blame for the downfalls of Germany. More importantly, however, as stated in the reading, charismatic people are “committed to a cause.” Hitler was charismatic because he not only had a way with words and persuasion but was very passionate about the goals he had in eliminating a whole race of people.
While many think charisma is something or a golden trait some people are just born with, it was surprising to me that studies show that I can be developed.
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