Shy People can be VERY Charismatic.

Without getting too Jungian, some of us enjoy being introverts. Some of us are loners; we’re not
really shy of people. We just prefer to be with ourselves. Some people are truly misanthropic or
–phobic. Most just shy from certain situations: But we can all be VERY Charismatic.

Now to Max Weber: From whom we gain our modern understanding of charisma. Every
religion speaks of a soulful connection. And most mysticisms points to charms, talisman, and
spells. Nowadays we still don’t quite fully understand charisma.

Charisma is hard to define, but we know when we see it, that is, feel it. People are charming;
and sometimes we’re charmed. To be sure, charisma is more the response, the relationship. It’s
how people respond that evidences true charisma. Charismatic people act in common ways: But
– as modern leadership development training tries to figure it out – charisma has a more spiritual
element to it: There are noble moments of charisma; and there are truly evil anecdotes of
charismatic leadership.

From leaders like Bill Clinton to George Bush, Jr., from leaders like Mahatma Gandhi to Adolph
Hitler, we see how charisma propels community action. Most of us may not have the power to
‘suade great movements. But we can still enjoy the everyday benefits of role-playing
charismatic qualities. All charismatic leaders share 4 qualities; start practicing.

There are three ascending levels to being charismatic: We can act the part; elicit a typical
response. We can base it on our talents and strengths. We can cooperate and grow our supreme
spiritual connection.

Regardless of the situation, we can act with basic charismatic qualities. These 4 have been
summarized by the handful researchers and thinkers of modern charisma. Notable leadership
thinkers like Covey, Maxwell, and <Gallup poll>, would recommend the latter 2. But role-
playing and acting with qualities help us develop the right habits. I think we call it, “fake it, ‘til
you make it.”

All charismatic leaders share these VERY qualities:

Visionary
Exaggerated/Energetic (Eccentric/Extreme)
Rationalistic, and
Yoking.

VISIONARY. Charismatic leaders can describe a future in emotional descriptions. To the level
we can do this, we elicit a typical response. To ourselves, our visionary stories are private
affirmations; to others our visionary stories act at public stimuli.

We are natural futuristic storytellers as we describe a vision. We may not necessarily believe the
future; you can make believe. But often when we too have bought into its spell, we exude the
appropriate (“natural”) charisma.
You know when you see it. Who do you know who is visionary? We may or may not agree with
what they expect, but it’s spectacular when somebody is cast upon a vision: Great and evil. Do
you know of visionary people in your family? Perhaps there are family legends. Who tells the
great stories?

EXAGGERATED/EXPRESSIVE. We’ve all experienced long, tiring days – and then had to be
a great host in the evening. We’ve all had to greet people when we’d rather be alone. We have
to be entertaining, energetic, and maybe even excited. At such moments, we c