Charisma as a Leadership Trait

Daily in life we meet people, some we instantly like, and some we immediately dislike. These judgements on whether to like or not like someone are usually made on first impression, without the person having to prove themselves. Ever wondered why often come up with such judgements and conclusions? A simple word could describe this phenomenon; Charisma.

Charisma is defined as, a compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion. It is that quality or trait about a person that makes you naturally and easily has a feeling of being drawn towards them without effort. It’s almost like you can’t help but just love or like them without volition. Ever heard people say something like, “I don’t know, but I just like her?” such is the power of Charisma. Inspiring the opposite feeling in the same manner would just mean the lack thereof of Charisma; you haven’t done anything wrong but yet still you have an air of being unpleasant or obnoxious around you.

Why should be important to study Charisma as a must have trait for a leader? Well as you will notice, Charisma is a force in itself, which if harnessed can produce significant and important results for the wielder. Having Charisma makes life easy for a leader; lacking it would require much effort from the same leader. This does no off course assert that to be an effective leader one must be likable.

So where does this Charisma come from? While some are born naturally charismatic, it does not mean that those who are not should despair. Charisma can be developed. It can be consciously developed and mastered. As a matter of fact there is nothing much required. Charisma is derived from our simple and usually subconscious daily gestures and expressions. It’s mainly a product of our body language and nonverbal communication.

Simple things like how you carry oneself or even dress could inspire Charisma on your subjects. Without saying a word, you could have it going for you. Next time you have a meeting or event, try to make it early or be the first to get in a place. Observe how people walk in and the reactions they get from people thereafter. Some people really know how to walk into a room. Get this right, Charisma is different from trying to make a statement or being extravagant! You will realise that with some people you will make a mental note to talk to instantly as they walk in while there might be some you might actually decide to avoid even if you don’t know both.

Some leaders know how to charm their subordinates to compulsively like them. Realise how different leaders make speeches. Some know exactly when to pause and just smile during a speech, while some will read the whole speech without even inspiring any emotion in you. To help you understand try and really figure out why you like certain news readers and remain indifferent about other readers even when you don’t know their personalities away from the screen. It all boils down to charm. Great leaders have used Charisma to their advantage since time began, they do not lose their audience when talking to them because they have them enchanted by their charm. In fact it’s almost like they have them enchanted into a trance every time they speak, because the subordinate will fixate all their concentration on the leader. Average leaders on the other hand do not inspire any emotion at all in their audience and they often lose them.

You will realise that Charismatic leaders also don’t find it hard to gain a followership and this is what matters the most. Leadership is simply about influence that generates followers. This trait can be used in all sectors and social spheres. Religiously we have Charismatic preachers who do not find it hard to draw large crowds to them. They know the right words to say, when and how to say them. At times followers are drawn to them not because of their word only or not even because of their miracles, but just because of how charismatic they are in their delivery of sermons.

It is important that you become charismatic to get things easily going for you in whatever you do, even if you are not a leader. Do away with things like gloom and sadness which repels people away from you. Develop an aura of positivity around you so that people naturally like you, it will sway many things in your favour. Figure out some known charismatic people; study them so that you put a pulse onto what exactly makes them charismatic so that you too become that.

Just remember that being Charismatic doesn’t mean pleasing everyone, it means charming people. You need it.

The writer is a motivational speaker

He can be contacted on glendhliwayo@gmail.com