Charismatic leaders communicate powerful messages and compelling visions. They are capable of attracting, if not arresting, individuals and nations alike.
They convince our minds with evidence, touch our hearts with stories and capture our imaginations with visionary possibilities. They fill us with hope and make us believe.
Their accolades are well documented in leadership journals, history textbooks and contemporary newspapers. Much of history has been shaped by powerful, charismatic leaders. But some of those chapters should never be repeated.
When leadership is reduced to the mere gaining of more followers, the line between leadership and manipulation is blurred. That’s the dark side of charismatic leadership.
When leadership is reduced to the mere gaining of more followers, the line between leadership and manipulation is blurred. That's the dark side of charismatic leadership. Click To TweetMost charismatic leaders start off with good intentions. In the pursuit of greater influence and power, they sometimes digress into manipulative habits, often without recognizing it.
Left unchecked, they can begin to view people as things – cogs in the wheel, numbers in the crowd, followers in a movement, and a means to an end.
Leadership researchers identify four common characteristics of manipulative leadership.
- Fierce control over decision making, regardless of who the decision impacts.
- Delusions of infallibility, “I’m saying if the President did it, it’s not wrong.”
- Excessive optimism to gain allegiance and participation.
- No succession planning because they never plan to give up control.
It’s easy to identify these faults in cult leaders and political tyrants. But this isn’t a check list to measure psychotic behaviour, it’s a warning sign for every leader.
Do you see any of these tendencies in your own leadership?
There are some controls and measures all leaders can put in place to keep themselves in check. Here are six ideas:
- Form an inner circle of outside people that are willing to call you on with any and all ‘offside’ behaviour or thinking.
- Try jumping on another leader’s bandwagon and make it a habit of cheering on other organizations. It’s not all about you or your organization.
- Imitate Jesus’ life of service: get a bucket of water and a towel and wash the feet of others. Humble service, especially of those who can never give anything in return, is a great antidote to the dark side of charismatic leadership.
- Pray the Litany of Humility. You can find it here: Litany of Humility
- Stop taking yourself and your organization so seriously. As Fr. Bob Bedard often said, “Take God very seriously, but never yourself.”
As a leader, you never want to be in a position where your giftedness takes you further than your character can sustain you. Be vigilant and never ignore even small character deficiencies.
Imitate Jesus' life of service: get a bucket of water and a towel and wash the feet of others. Humble service is a great antidote to the dark side of charismatic leadership. Click To TweetSubmit yourself to some good, honest people for feedback on what you need to change, and pray for the grace to overcome. Remember you cannot ‘will away’ character issues. They have to be replaced by the opposing virtue. Make a plan, measure progress.
Vision is one of the top qualities we most admire in our leaders. We also want to see genuine humility and service-mindedness in the people we follow.
The list above will help keep you on the path to authentic, humble, servant-leadership. Here’s another good habit: ask yourself this question at the start of every week, “Why do I want to lead?” If you lead for the sake of your people and the organization you serve, you will likely never fall into the dark side of charismatic leadership.