On Leadership, Transformation, FDR and Al Gore — Huffington Post

[NYCGirl]

Fascinating article that makes me want to read Jonathan Alter's new book...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/fdr-and-eleanor-profiles_b_20685.html

Excerpt:

I've been doing a lot of traveling -- and a lot of reading on planes -- recently. Among the best reads was The Defining Moment, Jonathan Alter's new book on FDR. Ostensibly a recounting of the tumultuous first 100 days of FDR's presidency when, according to Alter, "he saved democracy," the book is actually more psychological exploration than political treatise.

As prologue, Alter offers a fascinating look at how FDR's struggles with polio, and his work with other polio victims at the clinic he built in Georgia, helped transform him from patrician "lightweight" to towering leader able to lift the spirits of a nation suffering through both an economic and a psychological Great Depression.

It's a portrait of authentic leadership grounded in experience and conviction rather than focus group-approved positions and soundbytes. Elements sorely missing from today's political landscape.

Being thrust back into the dark days of 1933, and seeing how Roosevelt, by sheer force of will and personality -- and the rhetorical gift that gave us his "nothing to fear but fear itself" inaugural speech and his fireside chats -- revived America, reminded me of a series of conversations I had back in 1999 for a column I wrote about what makes for a great president. Across the board -- and across the political spectrum -- came the same reply: someone who can stir our spirit and, in the words of historian David McCullough, "cause those who follow them to do more than they thought they were capable of."

[janx]

1. Gore sure seems to be in the news a lot now because

of the documentary. This should be fun.

[NYCGirl]

2. Yep, it'll be in theaters in a couple of weeks. NT

[Javaman]

3. Not all but many great leaders have suffered some sort of

personal hardship in their lives. Something that directly changed how they look, feel, empathize and communicate with the people around them.

FDR was certainly unique.

[NYCGirl]

4. KICK.