With Secretary Clinton coming to visit this past week, I found myself reflecting on all the notable speakers I have gotten a chance to meet in my four years at the center. I have been privileged to meet Lynn Chaney, George W. Bush, Chief Justice Roberts, Harry Reid, John McCain, Former president of India Dr. Kalam, and now Hillary Clinton. On top of the most notable speakers I have also gotten a chance to meet top leader at Yum! Jonathan Blum at a KFC Dinner at headquarters, Jerry Abramson at a lunch in the U-Club , Martha Lane Collins at the McConnell Center, and other notable speakers such as Attorney Generals, Governor’s Chief of Staff, local politicians, philosophers, authors, and quest professors. Although I know some of the speaker’s names have escaped me, the above list gives a very good overview of the personalities I have got a chance to encounter.
The reflection I have been encountering the past few week has been on each of these speakers’ personalities and charisma. I do not remember what every person said (which is why it is a good thing we have a blog so people can create a written history)but I do remember how they acted and interacted. This noted behavior is a skill and a lesson I can take away from the center and hopefully apply to my leadership.
To start off I wanted to reflect on the Senator natural charisma. Although for the most part he is stoic, meticulous, and a slightly dry speaker, in private sessions he often surprises me with how witty and candid he can be. Over the course of my four year I have probably had the chance to meet with him 8-10 times in private scholar sessions. He has always made a point to come to retreats, and then sometimes he just stops by. There are even some scholars he remembers their name (AKA KIRK).
Like the Senator Harry Reid, John McCain, Justice Roberts, and Secretary Clinton were slightly less candid then others. Clinton did have her moments of candidness- when she talked about college, Bill, and the election, but any policy question were very dry. John McCain got fired up about the military and Justice Roberts teared up about the loss of his dad. Honestly I still have not figured out why people ask policy questions when it is something they can find on the internet. For the most part the politicians are not going to stray one once from the written material prepared by their staff.
The most candid people I have met were Jerry Abramson, George W. Bush, President Kalam and Jonathon Blum. I remember all of these events scholars walking out dazzled by presenter and the one similar characteristic I can find was their natural charisma. George W. Bush was by far the most charismatic person I have ever met, and I didn’t even like the guy when he was in office. The natural way he spoke to the crowd about his daughter, baseball, and even invasion was not what I had expected. Bush said the he thought he would be written in History books in a redeeming light and he stood behind that belief 100%. President Kalam may not have been the most outgoing character, but he made an effort to ask people their names and compliment them on how brilliant their question was. He had a very calm, respectful (Buddhist-like) quality that was unlike any of the other leaders. Jerry Abramson and Jonathan Blum both worked the room like no one I have met. They also asked everyone’s name and remembered it, but still came off genuine. They both seemed very optimistic about life, loved what they were doing, and shared that with the group. They were also very open about their thoughts sharing philosophies about work and family. These are the type of leaders I want to be like because they made you feel reinvigorated about pursuing big things not distant like some of the dryer speakers.
Thanks for Reading,
Soon-to-be-gone-senior Jamie Giles