The way Obama connects to people is the opposite of a Clinton, a Bush, or a Ronald Reagan. Those presidents were all relaters. They bonded with people based on common feelings, experiences, and interests. Reagan did this best through the medium of television. Bush did it best in person. Clinton could do it blindfolded and hanging upside down. For all three, connecting emotionally was part and parcel of their political skill. As a result, people tended to love them or hate them, without much neutral ground in between. Jacob Weisburg, Newsweek.
As I was reading this piece, I immediately wondered which camp I would be in. I only wondered if the camp I would place myself in was the same one others would put me in. Imagine myself more like Obama that Clinton at least 1/2 of the time. I don't imagine that warm fuzzies is the first thing someone thinks about when they meet me. What would those who know and love me say and would they be truthful?
If being able to connect emotionally to someone is only about political skill, then I am not interested but I think it is more than that. In Real Life, whether someone thinks you are approachable is a big deal especially if you are on the unemotional side. On the other hand, someone who feels like a door mat a mile away is a good reason to run away and quickly.
I want to live in the middle with 90% of the people I come into contact with and with the other 10% of my homies, be all the way there. Even Jesus had a caste system with the people around Him. We all need to have a layer of humanness but ideally, not run either warm or cold.
I like our current president's coolness. You can hear his voice rise in irritating or empathy. Warm or not, the last two president's warmness was lost on me. Which would I prefer to be and where am I in reality.
Whether you are the president or not, it is good to get some honesty feedback and if possible, do a bit of rearranging. It never hurts to improve and sometimes it only takes a bit of reflection and if that isn't what January is all about - I don't know what is...
