Why Gloomy People Make Good Leaders

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Laconic and seemingly gloomy people often possess some kind of inexplicable magnetism, as if they know a certain secret, keeping which they can no longer look at the world with a smile and surprise. Isn't that why they make great leaders?

Why do skeptics like to grumble so much, but we still involuntarily listen to their opinion? Because we know that grumblers are not easy to fool around with.

In a sense, they bring a lot of benefits, sharing their wisdom and life experience with others. Negativeness is not necessarily weakness and is not at all a sign that a person is flint and is not capable of compassion. In fact, this is a very common reaction to various events.

Both history and psychology know many examples showing that a real, sometimes even pessimistic view of things is a distinctive feature of many world famous leaders.

The negative will put everything in its place

Some studies show that pessimistic, sullen people are more persuasive and tend to get along better when communicating.

Joe Forgas, professor of social psychology at the University of New South Wales in Australia, found in an experiment that dark people tend to cope better with stressful situations.

The participants in the Forgas study were shown funny and sad films in order to influence their current mood. Subjects were then asked to rate the plausibility of a story that supposedly happened once in reality. It turned out that those whose mood was worse performed better on the tasks.

Other studies have led scientists to draw similar conclusions. Kate Harkness, at the Department of Psychology at Queens University, believes that people who tend to see life in dark colors are more attentive to details and are better at picking up changes in facial expressions.

Based on this, it can be assumed that when we are not in the best mood, we become more focused and thoughtful, able to cope with a wide range of tasks.

If we turn to history, we can find examples of such personalities among prominent leaders of different times.

About the dark sides of the greats of this world

Take Churchill or Lincoln. Both figures were often in a bad mood and suffered from depression. At the same time, the severity did not in the least interfere with their managerial abilities. On the contrary, it was this characteristic feature that was a source of additional strength and support in solving the most important issues in the history of mankind.

Churchill often experienced negative emotions, especially in the evenings. The leader himself jokingly called his desperate melancholy a black dog, his eternal companion. However, he did not fight depression: it gave Churchill the wisdom and determination he needed as a leader during World War II. One of the famous statements of the British politician reads:

A pessimist sees difficulties at every opportunity, an optimist sees opportunities in every difficulty.

Winston Churchill

Similar problems with mood were noted in Abraham Lincoln, who completely suppressed any attempts by dark thoughts to take possession of his consciousness and influence the process of making responsible decisions.

Lincoln was the one who was able to prevent the collapse of the United States and made a significant contribution to history, advocating the abolition of slavery and the need for the development of the country. Despite his strong melancholy, he had an excellent sense of humor and was always considered one of the most intelligent presidents.

Here's what The Atlantic, one of America's oldest literary magazines, writes about:

Lincoln's depression tormented his soul, but the continuous struggle with it helped him develop the most important qualities inherent in strong spirits. His amazing personality has kept him calm and determined throughout his career.

Many scientists tend to think of gloominess as a sign of a mental disorder. A person can be somewhat gloomy in general, and this is most often normal, but this condition can also be caused by health problems. Joe Forgas explains: “A moderately bad mood can help mobilize in a critical situation. On the other hand, when a feeling of unsettledness develops into a prolonged depression, we can face serious problems, which will not be easy to cope with."

In our life, balance must be observed in everything - this is a mandatory rule if you want to be happy. And if your own strength suddenly turns out to be insufficient, there is nothing shameful in turning to someone for help. After all, everyone has the right to be cheerful, sad, depressed - what's the difference?

Both science and many years of practice show that negative emotions and feelings help us better adapt to the world around us, making us more decisive and prudent.

Frown as if you were Winston Churchill. Stroke your beard like Lincoln. And think a little about life - it should be good for you.