Put Yourself Last

The world has been amazed by the constant surprises and changes surrounding governments in so many places around the world this year. This year we are seeing bundles of elections taking place, and it wouldn’t be politics without a few shocks and learning curves.

With leadership often comes sacrifice and the best leaders do not shy away from them, especially when it means putting others first.

The names in everybody’s mouths lately are Joe Biden and Donald Trump. It doesn’t need to be said again that the people of America have highlighted their division towards their leadership options pretty clearly. But the big news that has changed the race to president has been Joe Biden making the ultimate sacrifice to step down from the running, but was it just too late to salvage his people from another Trump sentence in the White House?

We question if it is a little too late because Biden hadn’t seen to have been himself for some time, and many were calling for someone new to step in, that now being Vice President Kamala Harris. Albeit the decision didn’t seem to be entirely off his own bat. In June, his poor debate performance made many Democrats in Washington question his ability to continue as president, this challenged even his most ardent and loyal followers. Things had heated up because it was about so much more than Biden’s standing. The looming fear of another dose of Trump soon forced the issue.

The endorsement of Kamala Harris, for many brought an instant lift and hope. It soon started to become clear that many had doubted Biden’s ability at 81 to have the energy and fluency to endure what would be a physically and emotionally draining campaign.

However, you can’t take away that it was certainly the right decision for Biden to put his country first. It is most certainly a lesson that other leaders need to learn from. When you earn the right at becoming a leader, especially a president or prime minister, the people of your nation should always be seen as the priority, followed by those who voted for you and those in your party, and even then, it’s debatable if you come anywhere in the pecking order. The best leaders serve others, not themselves.

Taking on the Presidency of the United States is never an easy task. It’s a position that many dream of, but soon realise the job is maybe the toughest in the world once they get there. The UK has experienced it countless times, and although we have a new leader in Sir Keir Starmer, the 14 years of chaos and a mixed standard of leaders is a hard one to clean up.

Rishi Sunak’s stint in Parliament saw an obsession with the machinations of his party’s internal politics. There appeared to be limited time set aside for the country and they paid a high price for failing to put their country first for years. It never got any better, it actually felt even more self-indulgent as time went on. Even Sunak eventually had had enough and dashed to call an early general election.

Sunak attempted like many of those who came before him to seek approval from the extreme right wing of his party and in doing so, he ruined his own, and the Conservatives’ chance at staying in power. In his mistake of putting the party first, he lost himself and his nation’s trust.

The two stories of both Biden and Sunak’s end in power are comparable because of how different they are. Their behaviour said it all about their leadership, as one knew when it was time to go and made the sacrifice that was needed – Biden had his country at the forefront of his mind, he had the necessary priorities that a political leader must possess. Rishi Sunak failed to see the importance of putting himself last and ultimately put many out of their misery by the fatal calling of the early election – yet another misjudgement of the nation’s mood.

I want to come back to Donald Trump’s current run for President again. He had dangerously refused to accept his defeat at the ballot box; he had now become a convicted felon and recently experienced an attempted assassination. Despite all of this, with his divisive rhetoric firing up his base, he was marching way ahead of Biden. The courageous decision to stand down by Biden has materially changed what felt like a losing battle. The Democrats have become energised with Harris’s approval ratings shooting past Biden’s and fundraising dwarfing that raised by the Republicans.

We have previously covered how charismatic leaders who could connect with the public at large were soon found out and were completely overrated like Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson – the blueprint was all Donald Trump’s invention. His true character hidden away, but his belittling of rivals and his abject racism when pointed out by a formidable opponent would force the true cracks to show, as we have seen in recent weeks.

It feels important to conclude this week by acknowledging the horrendous attacks and aftermath of the recent stabbings in Southport. We have seen a radicalized reaction that is absurd and unacceptable. Many have felt as though such an unfortunate event has been used as an excuse to push racist and damaging ideologies. This is not a protest, this is chaos.

We should be focusing on how we make our streets safe and prevent the violent crimes that we have seen far too often for many years in the UK.

Keir Starmer has spoken out and has ensured that there will be harsh punishments and arrests for those involved in such abhorrent and unacceptable behaviour. Whereas leaders such as Nigel Farage have called for more leniency, suggesting that the actions planned by the government are what are causing the approach taken by this vocal minority of the population in the first place.

It is unfortunate but rather predictable to see Starmer being blamed for what is occurring on our streets, when it is the unravelling of the poor leadership before him. But Starmer must continue to put the safety of the nation first, and not be side tracked by those with ulterior motives.

There are those who only look to exploit problems for their gain, we need leaders who are looking to solve these problems for everyone’s benefit.

Being neutral when it comes to inclusion is no longer good enough. The best leaders are brave enough to speak up and speak out whilst remaining calm amongst all the chaos brought by those looking to exploit problems rather than try and fix them.

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Thought of the week:

Be honest with your team and they will believe in you

Tips for becoming an A player:

• Don’t let your team become homogeneous
• Embrace inclusion everyday
• Always learn from your mistakes
• To prosper, we must include everyone
• Engage with those that see the world differently to you

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