By Kevin Fields
This article is part of a companion series to “Crisis Management: Seven Steps to Prepare Your Organization,” which appeared in the Winter 2019 issue of West Virginia Executive.
In 2018, author Doris Kearns Goodwin published Leadership in Turbulent Times. In this book, she focuses on four of the U.S.’ most influential presidents: Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson. An acclaimed presidential biographer, Goodwin uses the examples of these four American presidents as a practical guide for aspiring leaders and offers basic lessons from each about the way they dealt with crises in their personal lives and how those challenges ultimately prepared them for the most challenging leadership role in the world.
Goodwin begins by recognizing the ambition and leadership of these four American presidents. She then details the adversity and growth each had to endure along their journeys. Finally, she references the different leadership styles they displayed during their stints in office and explores how they navigated tremendously trying times facing the country.
The Creation of Leadership
Goodwin describes Abraham Lincoln’s adversity as coming from his poor and humble beginnings. His mother died when he was young, and he had a difficult relationship with his father. Lincoln was a self-educated lawyer who persevered through dismal terms in the Illinois Legislature and Congress and a loss in a U.S. Senate race to become the 16th American president. He entered the presidency as the union of the states fell apart and the Civil War began. Goodwin describes Lincoln’s leadership style as transformational, and the result of his leadership was a restored Union, the Emancipation Proclamation and the creation of the great state of West Virginia.
Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt’s childhood is described as one full of adversity. He grew up as a sickly child and was isolated from his peers due to a private education. He suffered great personal loss when both his wife and mother died on the same day. Roosevelt went on to become the 26th president following the assassination of President William McKinley. He entered the presidency with the country struggling through grief after the assassination of President McKinley and the rise of the industrial revolution that produced the Great Coal Strike. Goodwin describes Roosevelt’s leadership style as crisis management, which ultimately produced the Square Deal that delivered improved labor and capital relations.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) was struck with polio as a young adult, yet he went on to serve as the 32nd president of the U.S. and fundamentally change the course of history. He entered the presidency during The Great Depression and later led the country through World War II. Goodwin describes FDR’s leadership style as turnaround leadership. His leadership outcome was the New Deal, which created new government agencies and programs like the Civilian Conservation Corps, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Communications Commission, Federal Housing Administration, Securities and Exchange Commission and the Tennessee Valley Authority, aimed at restoring stability and prosperity to the people of the country and offering hope to the country in times of war.
Goodwin describes Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) as a man with a modest upbringing. He faced adversity when he lost his first Senate race and nearly died from the heart attack that followed. He became the 36th president following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He entered the presidency with the country reeling from Kennedy’s death and amidst significant civil unrest. Goodwin describes Johnson’s leadership style as visionary leadership, producing the Great Society, which included the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968, ensuring equal voting rights for all.
Crisis Leadership Theory
Goodwin talks briefly about the commonalities of these presidents by arguing they “reassembled and reinvented themselves in the wake of their crucible experiences” and “knew that people were more easily influenced by stories than any other way, that stories were remembered far longer than facts and figures.”
Goodwin’s collective view of these presidents is accurate; however, it goes much deeper than simply overcoming challenges early in life. These presidents also demonstrated self-awareness, trust in their team members, a strong moral compass and many other elements of crisis leadership theory (CLT). CLT is a synergy of four base leadership theories built upon integrity, including four types of leadership: authentic (self-awareness), discursive (bonding), team (adaptive) and leader-member exchange (obligation). These four theories are linked by four categories: moral compass, ethics, respect and resilience. Finally, the four main bonding agents that hold the leadership model together include optimism, hope, engagement and collaboration. The center core element of the model is trust.
Warren Bennis has said “leadership without mutual trust is a contradiction in terms” and “crisis is so often the crucible in which leaders are formed.” When the presidents profiled in Goodwin’s book found themselves in crises, they developed relationships with optimism, hope, engagement, collaboration and, most importantly, trust. This is the main takeaway for aspiring leaders who find themselves in crisis situations.
“Without trust we don’t truly collaborate; at best, we cooperate,” says Stephen Covey. “It is trust that transforms a group of people into a team.”
Leaders must build a strong team based on a foundation of trust to be able to move people and organizations to a better place. The crisis leadership theory model can help facilitate these important changes.
About the Author
Kevin Fields has worked for Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia for more than 20 years and is the production manager of the six-cylinder engine plant. A native of Parkersburg, WV, he holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from West Virginia University (WVU), a master’s degree in strategic leadership from the University of Charleston (UC) and is currently a doctorate student in executive leadership UC. He is a licensed professional engineer in Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia and supports college recruiting and co-op mentoring at Toyota. Fields is on the advisory board of Communities in Schools in West Virginia and has coached youth sports for more than 15 years, using this activity to develop and mentor the youth in his community. He currently lives in Red House, WV, with his wife, Chantal, and their son, Connor, who is attending WVU.
