BU Now » temperment http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow News, information and research from Boston University Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:14:24 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.4 Anger and leadership http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2010/07/07/anger-and-leadership/ http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2010/07/07/anger-and-leadership/#comments Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:30:15 +0000 Dick Taffe http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/?p=6275 Obama angryAlthough “coolness” was a factor that helped get him elected, President Obama has come under fire for not showing more anger — with banks, terrorists, or oil spills.  School of Management Professor Kathy Kram, an expert on executive leadership development, says temperment is basically a set of preferences for how one wants to be in the world — and staying cool has been what has worked for Obama through his career.  Leaders must show emotion, she says in a BU Today interview, and Obama seems more inclined to express his emotions in a planned, thoughtful way rather than in random outbursts.

“I think a lot of times constituents are looking for passion. I suspect that Obama’s logical, rational, fact-based approach can sometimes mask his passion. Maybe that’s what the public is looking for at the moment: the passion to get things right.”

Contact Kathy Kram, 617-353-4269, kekram@bu.edu

]]> http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2010/07/07/anger-and-leadership/feed/ 0