“If only I had charisma, I’d finally be able to light the path.”
This breaks my heart, because it’s really the other way around.
Charisma is among the most misunderstood ideas in leadership circles. So many people get it exactly upside down.
They think it’s the secret ingredient to great leadership.
That if you just had more of it, people would follow.
But this belief limits the influence of so many smart thinkers.
They basically give up thinking “I’m simply not charismatic.”
Which couldn’t be further from the truth.
I mean, first of all, it’s not a magic gift you either have or don’t.
But it’s also not even something you can consciously do.
In fact, the moment you consciously try to be charismatic is most likely the moment you lose all the charisma you had.
Charisma is the effect, not the cause.
It’s what people experience when they are in the same room with someone who is fully present.
Who listens so intensely that they feel understood.
Who finds words that capture what they think and feel but couldn’t put into words themselves.
Who shows them a future that matters and a next step they can take.
That’s what makes you charismatic.
That’s why others say you’re charismatic.
You were the one to light the path.
Charisma followed.
Keep lighting the path,
Michael
PS: The people who are uniquely positioned for this are precisely the smart thinkers. If they stop doubting their lack of charisma and start trusting their clarity, they’ll discover they had it all along.
