With the talk about the upcoming presidential candidates, it is natural to look back at some of our nation’s best presidents to compare them to. One of the best and most admired presidents the United States has had is Ronald Reagan. The National Review (2015) looked back at Reagan’s presidency and why the example he set is still relevant to today’s world. Reagan “led a great American comeback” by revitalizing our military and restoring citizens’ American pride. He understood what Americans care most about: family, home, and the future. He also understood his place and role as a leader, recognized potential dangers, and was adaptable to change. Throughout his presidency, he united, inspired, emboldened, and protected our nation. As a leader,
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This relationship helps both the leader and the follower reach their full potential. These leaders are role models; they exemplify what they hope to see in others in their own behaviors. (Miller, 2015). Ronald Reagan related to the American people. This was evident through his referring to citizens as “we” and showing that he shares the same values as the much of the nation. (National Review, 2015). By bringing himself down to the same level as his followers, the followers see him as more relatable and are willing to follow what he says. It is valuable for a role model to practice what they preach. The personal lives of many celebrities and political leaders are cast in the limelight for all to see. This is shown to be problematic for quite a few of these figures. Ronald Reagan, however, lasted through his presidency without scandal. Other Presidents’ mistakes have had a large effect on the remainder of their presidency. Nixon was nearly impeached from the Watergate scandal, which lost the Americans’ trust in him as the leader of the country. Clinton was also caught in an adultery scandal which lost many of his followers because he did not follow the values of family and home that our nation cares …show more content…
The transactional theory states that a leader uses rewards and punishments to motivate performance. As a leader of the country, this does not fit for Reagan as he did not evaluate the performance of Americans, rather he set the tone for where he wanted the country to go and acted as a role model for Americans. His focus was on relating to people not leading above them. Style/behavioral theory relies on structure in leadership. Reagan was a sociable leader who preferred to lead based off that instead of by a specific structure. On the other hand, the contingency theory believes there is no best way to lead. Although this has relevancy, each leader finds their niche in leadership and although every leader has their downfall, a good leader finds their strengths and stands by them through their mistakes. The closest theory to transformational that Reagan could potentially fall under would be environmental. The environmental theory refers to a leader creating a culture or environment of motivation and self-improvement in the leader and followers. The transformational theory takes this a step further and adds the leader’s example as a main point within a positive environment. (Reutlinger,
This relationship helps both the leader and the follower reach their full potential. These leaders are role models; they exemplify what they hope to see in others in their own behaviors. (Miller, 2015). Ronald Reagan related to the American people. This was evident through his referring to citizens as “we” and showing that he shares the same values as the much of the nation. (National Review, 2015). By bringing himself down to the same level as his followers, the followers see him as more relatable and are willing to follow what he says. It is valuable for a role model to practice what they preach. The personal lives of many celebrities and political leaders are cast in the limelight for all to see. This is shown to be problematic for quite a few of these figures. Ronald Reagan, however, lasted through his presidency without scandal. Other Presidents’ mistakes have had a large effect on the remainder of their presidency. Nixon was nearly impeached from the Watergate scandal, which lost the Americans’ trust in him as the leader of the country. Clinton was also caught in an adultery scandal which lost many of his followers because he did not follow the values of family and home that our nation cares …show more content…
The transactional theory states that a leader uses rewards and punishments to motivate performance. As a leader of the country, this does not fit for Reagan as he did not evaluate the performance of Americans, rather he set the tone for where he wanted the country to go and acted as a role model for Americans. His focus was on relating to people not leading above them. Style/behavioral theory relies on structure in leadership. Reagan was a sociable leader who preferred to lead based off that instead of by a specific structure. On the other hand, the contingency theory believes there is no best way to lead. Although this has relevancy, each leader finds their niche in leadership and although every leader has their downfall, a good leader finds their strengths and stands by them through their mistakes. The closest theory to transformational that Reagan could potentially fall under would be environmental. The environmental theory refers to a leader creating a culture or environment of motivation and self-improvement in the leader and followers. The transformational theory takes this a step further and adds the leader’s example as a main point within a positive environment. (Reutlinger,