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CHAPTER 12: LEADERSHIP POWER AND INFLUENCE 361
Charismatic leaders create an atmosphere of change and articulate an idealized

vision of a future that is significantly better than what now exists. They have an
ability to communicate complex ideas and goals in clear, compelling ways, so that
everyone from the vice president to the janitor can understand and identify with
their message. Charismatic leaders inspire followers with an abiding faith, even

if the faith can’t be stated in specific goals that are easily attained. The faith itself
becomes a “reward” to followers. Charismatic leaders also act in unconventional
19
ways and use unconventional means to transcend the status quo and create change.
Charismatic leaders may sometimes seem like oddballs, but this image only en-
hances their appeal.
Charismatic leaders earn followers’ trust by being willing to incur great per-
sonal risk. Putting themselves on the line affirms charismatic leaders as passionate

advocates for the vision. According to a personal friend of the King family, Martin
Luther King received death threats against himself and his family almost every
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day during the civil rights movement. By taking risks, leaders enhance their
emotional appeal to followers.

The final characteristic of charismatic leaders is that their
source of influence comes from personal characteristics rather than

Take the short quiz in Leader’s Self-Insight
a formal position of authority. People admire, respect, and identify Action Memo
with the leader and want to be like him or her. Although charismatic 12.2 on page 362 to help you determine
leaders may be in formal positions of authority, charismatic leader- whether you have the potential to be a
ship transcends formal organizational position because the leader’s charismatic leader.
influence is based on personal qualities rather than the power and

authority granted by the organization.
The Black Hat of Charisma
One characteristic of charisma noted by most researchers is that it can be a curse
as well as a blessing. Leaders such as Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, and
Mohandas Gandhi had tremendous charisma. So did leaders such as Adolf Hitler,

Charles Manson, and Idi Amin. Charisma isn’t always used to benefit the group,
organization, or society. It can also be used for self-serving purposes, which leads to
deception, manipulation, and exploitation of others. Because the basis of charisma
is emotional rather than logical or rational, it is risky and potentially dangerous. 21
One explanation for the distinction between charisma that results in positive
outcomes and that which results in negative outcomes relates to the difference be-
tween personalized leaders and socialized leaders. Leaders who react to organi-
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zational problems in terms of their own needs rather than the needs of the whole
often act in ways that can have disastrous consequences for others. Personalized
charismatic leaders are characterized as self-aggrandizing, non-egalitarian, and
exploitative, whereas socialized charismatic leaders are empowering, egalitarian,
and supportive. Personalized behavior is based on caring about self; socialized
behavior is based on valuing others. Studies have shown that personalized char-
ismatic leaders can have a significant detrimental impact on long-term organiza-

tional performance. Leaders who have been consistently successful in improving
organizational performance show a pattern of socialized behavior. 23

Power, Influence, and Leadership

Power and influence are highly important concepts in the study of leadership;

indeed, leadership relies on the use of power to get things done. However, getting
a grasp on the meaning of the terms power and infl uence can be diffi cult. 24