American Idol Presidency
Barack Obama won the election mostly because he was able to transfer his own leadership into many other people and empower them. He declared a clear goal and clear communication from the top down about why it was important and why everyone should help. Then he empowered people to do more than simply say “I agree.”
There was a lot more to it than everyone rising up. A lot of people had to go back down. From executives to designers, some people did not work at the strategic level they were used to. I suppose some people rose up over their repressive egos to do manual labor when the collective goal called for it.
I just wonder what everyone is going to do now that they’ve been empowered like this. Will everyone be able to stomach the fact that not everyone can rise up and become #1? Will this reinforce the narcissism and entitlement already plaguing my generation of 20-somethings? Will the next campaign just be a clusterfuck of self-interest?
Probably not. The thing about this campaign was that many of us willingly laid down our individual banners in the name of this one. We organized together against problems that seemed so interconnected and large that only a large movement such as Obamas could solve it.
The thing is now that we’ve started, what is next? I have found myself asking this question over and over. Can we hold this together? We need a new monster to slay that looks as big and bad and that is something that could come from many places and in many forms. Let’s hope it’s an honest one.
Please chime in with comments.