How Is Abraham Lincoln An Effective Leader

Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince, written in the 1500’s, is still the most referenced piece of literature on the subject of leadership. The suggestions that Machiavelli made centuries ago remain clear and effective to this day, and leaders throughout history have been influenced by the writing. At one point in The Prince, Machiavelli wrote that common people can be satisfied easily, as all they desire is not to be oppressed. Following in the words of Machiavelli, Abraham Lincoln desired nothing more than to avoid oppressing anybody when he gained power. Lincoln, a man of extreme empathy and kindness, was such an effective leader due to these potent capabilities of his. Several of Lincoln’s characteristics led him to be a powerful leader; these
characteristics included: his extremely empathetic nature, his impressive sense of timing, his thirst for knowledge, his commanding oratory skills, and his ability to forgive his enemies and create alliances with them.
One of the most potent traits that Lincoln possessed as a leader was his extraordinary ability to empathize with others. Lincoln was able to understand the ideas and feelings of the working class American better than any other presidential candidate could, simply because he was the candidate that came from the working class. While the other nominees had grown up without experiencing the strife of poverty, Lincoln had “faced obstacles unimaginable to the other candidates for the Republican nomination” from his childhood (46). He was born in a log cabin and performed manual labor to sustain his family, as did his father and siblings. Lincoln understood hardship; because of that, he could not stand to bring any pain upon others, if he could help it. With this empathy came a kind, honest, and compassionate politician who rarely gained an enemy, and who always acted to gain the best for his people. When discussing slavery in front of audiences, Lincoln never insulted or ridiculed plantation-owners, despite his dislike of the South’s peculiar institution, choosing instead to “expose flaws in logic” when challenging any idea so that he did not appear biased or offensive towards anybody (190). Clearly, Lincoln’s ability to empathize with others led him to be a highly respected man by both his friends and his adversaries, and many men felt “bound to him in admiration” for his amiability and compassion. The intense empathy that Lincoln felt was something that rarely entered national politics in the 1800’s, making Lincoln a uniquely powerful leader of his time, and a ‘man of the people’ with great respect from much of his country.
Lincoln’s unparalleled gift as a raconteur was one of his most prized abilities as a political leader. From his earliest years, Lincoln expressed a great passion for storytelling; he would sit by his father’s fireplace analyzing the stories of his father’s friends, and he would then reword the stories so that his younger friends could understand them. Using this strategy throughout both his legal and political careers, Lincoln enthralled audiences of all sizes with his anecdotes, becoming one of the most persuasive public speakers of his time. At this point in history, “the principal weapon of political combatants was the speech. A gift for oratory was the key to success in politics.” (140) Many of Lincoln’s speeches became renowned throughout the country for their effect, and once a speech of his was described “as an effort remarkable for its clear statement, powerful argument, and massive common sense”. In an antislavery speech, Lincoln drove the issue of slavery deep into the history of the United States and into the morals of the country’s citizens, leaving the audience shaken with its message. Lincoln’s childhood fascination with his father’s stories transformed him into one of the most celebrated orators in the history of the country. Lincoln’s ability to mold words into memorable stories and messages became one of his major advantages as a politician, as his speeches demanded the attention of his contemporaries and are remembered as monumental works to this day. Lincoln never let personal grievances interfere with his vision for the country’s future, allowing him to become allies with many past opponents; this was an effective ability for Lincoln to possess as a leader. Lincoln never held grudges against adversaries, often gracefully admitting defeats as they came, congratulating his opponents, and then appointing those past rivals to positions of power in the future. Most notable of these appointments were his appointments of William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, and Edward Bates to the positions of Secretary of State, Secretary of Treasury, and U.S. Attorney General, respectively. These men had all run against Lincoln in the presidential election of 1860; this past rivalry, however, did not stop Lincoln from seeing their potential as capable members of his political team. Lincoln, Chase, Seward, and Bates composed part of Lincoln’s ‘team of rivals’, a powerful political team that helped tackle one of the most difficult times that the United States has ever seen. Along with political rivals came personal conflicts that led to alliances, as well. One example is that of Edwin Stanton. Stanton had, at one point, ridiculed Lincoln’s appearance as a lawyer, rejecting his assistance in a court case and leaving Lincoln fairly disappointed. This however, didn’t stop Lincoln from realizing Stanton’s efficacy. Stanton would be appointed to Secretary of War during Lincoln’s presidency and learned to admire Lincoln just as countless others had. Lincoln’s ability to overcome grievances to allow others to serve his country was a very powerful tool that he utilized in his leadership. From Lincoln’s childhood, he possessed an unquenchable thirst for knowledge; this desire to learn was a major asset for Lincoln as a political leader.
Lincoln did not get much formal schooling, as he was expected to work for his father in the fields; Lincoln himself admitted that all of his formal schooling probably did not even total to a full school year. Because of this, Lincoln immersed himself in books. Throughout his life, he could be found reading any book that he could acquire. He concerned himself with learning mathematics, Latin, law, and other subjects, and his law partners had memories of Lincoln being so buried in his equations and writings that he wouldn’t even notice their presence in the room. Lincoln’s desire for knowledge created an ever-growing advantage for him in his political career. Lincoln was known for speaking to the public using pure logic, and not resorting to outbursts of emotion to prove his points. He had such a wealth of knowledge that he could fight with facts, often providing statistics to prove his rivals wrong in discussions. Lincoln’s law partner William Herndon once said that “he would express no opinion on anything…until he knew his subject ‘inside and outside, upside and downside” so that he could express his opinion with the strongest, most informed argument (164). Lincoln’s passion for learning assisted him in his role as a political leader due to his outstanding pool of knowledge that allowed him to argue any of his beliefs based
on facts, and not opinions. Lincoln’s desire to learn was one of his greatest characteristics as a leader and public speaker due to this ability. Lincoln had impeccable intuition for the timing of political actions; his sense of timing was one of his most outstanding facets as a leader.
The greatest example that can be given of Lincoln’s impressive timing is that of his issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln, with the advice of Seward, was suggested to wait until after a major Union victory in the Civil War to issue the Emancipation so that the statement was received more seriously by both the Union and the Confederacy, and not seen as a cry of retreat. Five days after the major Union victory at the Battle of Antietam, Abraham Lincoln issued his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22nd, 1862 and the final Proclamation on January 1st, 1863. By doing this, Abraham Lincoln chose the best possible time to end slavery in the rebel states, at a time where the South was recovering from a harsh loss. Because of Lincoln’s timing, the Proclamation became a massive step towards abolition in the country and created chagrin for the Confederacy. Another example of Lincoln’s impressive sense of timing was earlier on in his political career. When running in the presidential election, Lincoln was a dark horse candidate. In this position, Lincoln knew how to expertly prepare his timing so that he could gain support and avoid creating adversaries early on. Lincoln “knew it was important not to reveal his intentions too early, so as to minimize the possibility of opponents mobilizing against him.”(212) Of
course, this strategic planning was a huge asset in winning the presidency for Lincoln. Lincoln’s patience in his political strategies helped him not only gain his positions of power but effectively proclaim his desires for the country at precisely the right time. Abraham Lincoln is remembered in history as a vital leader to a divided country. Several of Lincoln’s personality traits and abilities were critical in making him as an effective of a leader as he was. Nobody showed as much empathy for both his followers and his adversaries as Lincoln did, allowing him to relate to and act in favor of his followers whenever possible; his extraordinary oratory skills gave him momentum in a time in history when the power of speech was the key to political rule; his thirst for knowledge allowed him to create logical arguments to cripple his opponents’ biases; his sense of timing allowed him to pack a powerful punch in elections and in proclamations; and his capability to set aside personal grievances allowed him to create a team of past rivals that helped manage the nation with marvelous efficiency in the strife of the Civil War. These five qualities of Abraham Lincoln’s are what rendered him so successful in his leadership during one of the most horrific time periods in American history.