Acting Presidential

Great leaders can emerge from diverse backgrounds including politics, military, law, farming, and business, so let’s see what lessons we can learn from two great leaders who started as actors.

President Ronald Reagon was a B-movie actor and spokesman for the General Electric Company. This role forced him to think through important social and political issues, write his own speeches, and broadcast them on his weekly radio talk show.

Reagan served two terms as Governor of California, and two terms as President of the United States. In 1980 he won 44 states to defeat President Jimmy Carter, and four years later won again in a landslide victory by taking 49 states.

The two pillars of Regan’s governing strategy were: the Soviet Union is an evil empire and must be defeated; our government has grown too big and must be cut in size to allow Americans more freedom to lead their lives.

Born into a Jewish family and educated as a lawyer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky chose to become an entertainer and excelled as an actor, dancer, and comedian. His acting role as the Ukrainian President in a satirical TV serial called The Servant of the People catapulted him into a landslide victory by capturing over 73% of the votes cast in 2019.

Underestimating his opponent, on February 24th Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, setting the stage for another David vs. Goliath moment in history, or maybe a Haman vs. Mordechi situation that will set Russia back many generations, regardless of the outcome of the war. Zelensky’s quote at the outset of the war, “I don’t need a ride; I need more ammunition,” will go down in history as a great example of natural courage.

I want to draw two valuable conclusions from this comparison: 1) it is a mistake to judge others and underestimate our opponents, and 2) we create our own reality, so acting the part, and hoping to grow into it is as good of a strategy as any.

May our next leader be worthy of our trust.

— Sina.

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