Leadership is the proper use of power, no matter how it is gained. Jeffrey Pfeffer says about "power" that it comes from being in the right place. "But, what is the right place?" (Pfeffer 1992 1). In the case of Rudy Giuliani, the right place was at the center of the September 11 World Trade Center tragedy. Until that time, he was seen as a conservative, if somewhat limited mayor of New York, who made more headlines with his extra-marital affairs and his impending divorce than with what he achieved as Mayor. His greatest achievements, so he would be the first to admit, was to increase police presence and power and thus reduce crime in New York City. However, September 11 elevated him, made him visible day after day on network television, and gave the whole world the impression that, if not for his leadership, things in New York would have been even worse. He deserves the Leader of the Century award.
According to TIME magazine (December 31, 2001) Giuliani looked to the words of one of his historical heroes, Winston Churchill, and was motivated by Churchill's words: "'I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.' There is a bright magic at work when one great leader reaches into the past and finds another waiting to guide him" (Pooley 2001 44). The official TIME rationale for making Giuliani Person of the Year was "afor not sleeping and not quitting and not shrinking from the pain all around him, Rudy Giuliani, Mayor of the World, is TIME's 2001 Person of the Year" (Gibbs 2001 41).
Perhaps one of the key elements of leadership is the ability to experience pain- that of oneself or one's followers- and be able to successfully cope with it. It can, as in Giuliani's case, make extraordinary men out of ordinary people. In the wake of a terrible tragedy, Giuliani was the right decision-maker at the right place at the right time. Unlike some corporate executives who are pragmatic and wait for untold hours and d...