Bill Clinton: Leadership Profile

The community needs leaders to function and to bring social changes. Does it mean that leaders are powerful members of the community who use their charm or do they have specific sets of skills to bring about the transformation in the community. There is not a specific definition of leadership. Silva (2016) has defined leadership as a process of interactive influences which occur between the leader and the followers to accomplish the shared goals. Leadership is also described as a process of social influence which maximized the efforts to achieve a specific goal (Nsoedo, 2016).

One of the finest leaders which I would like to discuss is the former prime minister of the United States of America, William Jefferson Clinton, otherwise known as Bill Clinton. Bill Clinton was the 42nd president from January 1993 to January 2001.Bill Clinton met President John F Kennedy at the age of 16 when he was attending the American Legion Boys Nation Program in the Rose Garden of the White House. This brief interaction inspired Clinton to pursue his life in public service. Clinton was also inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ability to communicate a clear vision and pull people together to work for a common goal (Nsoedo, 2016).

Clinton was a people’s president. He was from the southern part of the United States and he was aware of the fact that the black people don’t share the equal opportunities, access and could not attend the schools, use the public facilities such as toilets or go to restaurants. He witnessed his grandfather’s generosity and same respect for Blacks and Whites. He had the privilege of playing with all the children from diverse backgrounds. Therefore, he was able to see people without preconceived notion and did not think of them as inferior to him (Nsoedo, 2016)

He has many accomplishments during his presidency. He improved the welfare system to increase the employment ratio and reduce the poverty. The Congressional Budget Office reported an approximately 35 % increase in the family income (Anderson, 2016). Bill Clinton’s another strategy to benefit the middle and low income working class was to implement the new tax rules. According to which the individuals and companies with higher income pay a higher percentage of tax. The other achievements are the lowest crime rates, lowest inflation in 30 years, the highest home ownership in the country’s history. He proposed the first balanced budget in decades and achieved a budget surplus (Nsoedo, 2016).

Northouse (2013) states that the best leadership styles are the intelligence, confidence, charisma, determination, sociability and integrity. Bill Clinton has demonstrated many of these qualities such as rhetorical skills, personalized leadership, and charisma (Northouse, 2013). Bill Clinton had an ability to understand emotional cues of his followers and make strong bonds with them. He showed the ability to share his visions of the world with others. Dannenberg (2014) has mentioned that, during his speech at the graduation ceremony of United States Military Academy (West Point), Bill Clinton not only appreciated the hard work of the graduates but also addressed the hopes and fears of the family members of the graduate. According to Dannenberg (2014) President Bill Clinton was one of the most charismatic speakers he had ever listened too. there were around one thousand people in the audience but he still felt as Bill Clinton was speaking directly to him.

Bill Clinton continued to serve the people in America after finishing his term as president. He established the Clinton Foundation to overcome the challenges and improving the lives of people across the United States and the world. He continued to work in partnership with the government, businesses, and nonprofit sectors to improve public health, create economic opportunities. Bill Clinton also established Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) which convenes global and emerging leaders to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges (Clinton Foundation, 2019). For example, after the devastating hurricane season of 2017 the leaders from Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Dominica approached the former president Bill Clinton to help them rebuild. The Clinton foundation stepped forward by launching CGI action plan to mobilize the local leaders from various sectors to develop plan to advance the recover and promote resilience across the region. The Clinton Foundation worked to control and remedial treatment of HIV/AIDS, preventing malaria, eye treatment, childhood obesity, climate change issues, natural disasters, and global warming.

Bill Clinton inspires me because he has proved that he can serve the community without being the president. New York times reported that after leaving the White House, at first Bill Clinton did not know how to proceed as a private citizen. Bill Clinton proved this wrong and established The Clinton Foundation to help the nation and the world in need. He has proved himself as a true leader and continues to inspire people to follow him. He did not come from any influential or political family. He showed beyond doubt that he was a born leader.