Abraham Lincoln's Transformational Leadership

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal”3. This is arguably one of the most famous quotes in the history of the United States. When Abraham Lincoln gave his famous Gettysburg Address, it was at a time in our nations history in which there was a great divide. The United States was facing a civil war in which the country would rely on one man, Abraham Lincoln. It was through the actions and determination of Lincoln that allowed the country to rally and support one of the greatest leaders in history. Not only was Lincoln the leader of the military for the North, and the President of the United States, he helped shape this nation by allowing the freedom of slaves in his famous Emancipation Proclamation. At a time when the outlook of the United States looked grim, the faithful and continued leadership of Abraham Lincoln propelled our nation forward. The history books all demonstrate that Lincoln was a great leader, but was there a specific leadership style that allowed him to be so successful? The characteristics of an individual are often shaped over many years of …show more content…
One of the qualities that he possessed was leadership. When we look at Lincoln’s leadership style it can often be described as transformation leadership. The definition of transformational leadership is “a leader who motivates their followers to go beyond their own self-interests for the good of their group.”5A transformational leader’s success is often measured in the follower’s ability to feel trust, loyalty, and respect of the leader. As a way to demonstrate Lincoln’s transformational leadership, we will look at it from three perspectives; how he acquired trust from his followers, his ability to inspire them and his ethical appeal to