History
has taught us many lessons on what to do and what not to do for the sakes of
our future. At the same time, we came across many examples of famous leaders
that taught or inspired us to be who we are today. Former United States
president Ronald Reagan was one of my personal favorites. Though his career
mainly focused on political subjects, there were often times Reagan included
personal stories as well as retelling historical and tragic events in his
speeches (Giuliano, 2004).
Ronald Reagan is often seen as a
great leader to many historians: he had amazing communication skills, along
with powerful strategies to motivate people. However, what really made Reagan
stand out was his ability to understand emotional drivers. Rather than playing
“the big boss” and point America to what he believed was right, his way of
connecting and speaking “in the language of a common man” truly inspired me.
(History.com, 2009).
Although I was not around at the
time of the event, Ronald Reagan’s response to the Space Shuttle Challenger
tragedy on January 28th, 1986 left an impression on me. On the day
of the tragedy, the president was scheduled to give his State of the Union
address. During the preparation, he and his staff heard the news and were in
shock. Rather than continuing with his duties, he postponed all plans and
instead made an urgent speech in response because America was “more than saddened”
(Grier, 2011). Though the speech was not written by Reagan himself, the speech
clearly expressed his mourning to the Challenger crew, along with the care and
concerns of his people- particularly children.
The significance of the Space
Shuttle Challenger mission was that the crew included a school teacher, Christa
McAuliffe. Many children looked up to her, and Reagan explained in his speech:
I want to say something to the
schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's
takeoff. I know it is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like
this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It's
all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't
belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was
pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them (Reagan, 1986).
The vision and
purpose was clear, and Reagan wanted to not only honor and mourn the loss of
the Challenger crew, but to clarify those confused and shocked about the
tragedy, and to reiterate the continuation of the space program. He made this
clear on the last sentence from the last quote, “The Challenger crew was
pulling us into the future, and we’ll continue to follow them” (Reagan, 1986).
Though
the speech may not have been written by Reagan himself, what really inspired me
was his tone and body language during the televised speech. The speech had a
combination of styles specified in Stephen Denning’s book: the raconteur,
orator, and the romantic (2011). The first and perhaps most clear indication is
that the speech was for the citizens of America: particularly those who watched
and were involved with the tragedy. The raconteur, or the polished, elegant
style were also present in the speech. It was very well-written and Reagan’s
delivery to the crowd was flawless most likely due to his early acting career
(Giuliano, 2004).
Though he may have once been an actor, we
can see that he’s sincere, and cared for his people. Personally, I believe that
it would have been difficult to see the romantic style if the speech was not
televised. During the entire speech, Reagan maintained a straight posture and
direct eye contact just as if he would be speaking to someone in person. I find
the tone of his voice to be similar to father speaking to his own child during
a difficult time: it was full of emotions and not only was it sad, but at the
same time, it was also very comforting.
Works Cited
Denning, S. (2011). The Leader’s Guide to
Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass
Giuliano, C. P. (2004). What made
ronald reagan "the great communicator". Public Relations
Strategist, 10(3), 46.
Grier, P. (2011). Challenger
explosion: How President Reagan responded. Retrieved from
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2011/0128/Challenger-explosion-How-President-Reagan-responded
History.com Staff. (2009). Ronald Reagan.
Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/ronald-reagan
Reagan, R. (1986). Explosion of
the Space Shuttle Challenger, Address to the Nation. Speech. Retrieved
from http://history.nasa.gov/reagan12886.html
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