It’s about Time.

It has been a long time gone.

They finally have the time to try to make it work.

You know that thing called Democracy.

No, not the rhetoric  — well, the false promises…  words, words, words.  The Politician. The lies.. The grabbing of power, and holding on.  The Tyrants. Rulers.  Leaders, in name only.

Enough..

You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately … Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!  — Oliver Cromwell to the Rump Parliament.

They have gone in two countries.  Male tyrants and scoundrels.

It’s about time for their turn:  two strong and determined women.  The Challenge of Democracy.  The men have been mostly a disaster.

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Joyce Banda are the first two elected women leaders in Africa.  And their Temperament, Fieldmarshal Rational, most likely will help them in their near impossible task.  Bringing peace, prosperity, and stability to countries and a continent that badly needs some firm but gentle leadership.  Good government — not pillaging public coffers or sucking up all the Western Aid money, plus naked and rampant corruption: which is endemic in the continent.

It’s not an easy task.  It’s almost impossible.  With the resource grab of the Chinese and the power vacuum of the West, Africa is a chaotic political football game, bloody at that.

However, Fieldmarshal Rationals are leaders where the near impossible is possible.

Fieldmarshals more than any other type desire (and generally have the ability) to visualize where the organization is going, and they seem able to communicate that vision to others. Their organizational and coordinating skills tends to be highly developed, which means that they are likely to be good at systematizing, ordering priorities, generalizing, summarizing, marshaling evidence, and at demonstrating their ideas. [Please Understand Me II]

“Iron Lady” has been one of the sobriquets that female leaders have been labeled with, not always as a compliment.  The “Iron Man” is not a sobriquet used in politics.  Women, even at this point, are not be accepted as a political leader in the West without being “tough.”  Politics is a rough and tumble business, and in Africa it can be deadly.  However, hopefully and maybe “The Velvet Fist” will be a better sobriquet for a more enlightened 21st century: gentle on impact but strong in force.

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (born 29 October 1938) is the 24th and current President of Liberia. She served as Minister of Finance under President William Tolbert from 1979 until the 1980 coup d’état, after which she left Liberia and held senior positions at various financial institutions. She placed a very distant second in the 1997 presidential election. Later, she was elected President in the 2005 presidential election and took office on 16 January 2006. She successfully ran for re-election in 2011. Sirleaf is the first elected female head of state in Africa.  Sirleaf was awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with Leymah Gbowee of Liberia and Tawakel Karman of Yemen. The women were recognized “for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work. [Wikipedia]

Joyce Hilda Banda née Mtila (born 12 April 1950) is a Malawian politician who has been the President of Malawi since 7 April 2012. An educator and grassroots women’s’ rights activist, she was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012. Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She is Malawi’s fourth president and its first female president. Prior to becoming president, she served as the country’s first female vice-president. She was also Member of Parliament and Minister for Gender, Children’s Affairs and Community Services. Prior to an active career in politics she was the founder of the Joyce Banda Foundation, founder of the National Association of Business Women (NABW), Young Women Leaders Network and the Hunger Project.  [Wikipedia, revised]

Joyce Banda, President of Malawi

Joyce Banda Interview

Yes, it’s about time, and only time will tell.

I respect that decision. I respect Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir as head of state of Sudan, but I as President Joyce Banda, my main agenda right now is economic recovery. —  Joyce Banda, President of Malawi

We are rebuilding everything, and this is an open society where basic freedoms and rights are respected. — Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

12 thoughts on “It’s about Time.”

    1. This is true. George Washington is the iconic example. However, successful establishing of democracy is uncommon, no matter the Temperament. Preserving (long thriving) social institutions, the Proactive Guardian Female is unparalleled in accomplishment: Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth I.

  1. Maria Theresa von Habsburg: Idealist

    Besides having a likable personality, she governed well a realm of multiple and mutually resentful ethnic groups in a time when similar problems and questions as today were coming up. She was not an “instrument of social change” as such but had the common sense to know when to intervene and when to let be. And, she had a sense of moral principle that was rare in monarchs.

    Elizabeth I : No comment really needed

    Aethalflaed: A little known character, she was the daughter of Alfred the Great(who really was great by the way) and a great ruler in her own right. She lead the hosts of Mercia in repulsing the Danish invaders and helped establish the nation of England.

  2. Dr. Keirsey, can you list some essential differences between Coordinators and Administrators? I am a Fieldmarshal Rational and I often think of people around me about their most suitable Temperament, Role and Role Variant. Due to the effectiveness of this temperament theory I rarely face problems. But I have a friend tested as ENTJ(by a free internet test that I consider unauthoritative) far from EN characteristics(I know for sure that she’s TJ). She’s not as abstract and initiatory as me but she is very ambitious for sure. Unlike me, she is not very diplomatic and she can handle office works that need patience. The difficulty that I have identifying her as an Administrator(STJ) is that she’s proud(not humble as SJs are described) and not traditional. Considering the experience you have in identifying the temperament of famous untested people, what can you infer about her Role Variant?

  3. I find it useful to mention that she prefers the Jungian congitive function Si rather than Ni.

    1. Sorry telling me the “Jungian cognitive function” does not tell me what she says and does — and I don’t understand them (the tiny nineties) anyway. We also typically don’t trade in the Myers’ letters either. The Concrete versus Abstract is a difficult distinction, so you might want to concentrate on the Adaptive versus Compliant distinction. The Rationals are more Adaptive to circumstances than Compliant to norms, and the Guardians are more Compliant to norms than Adaptive to circumstances. Briefly, Rationals are concerned with what WORKS, only later on what is RIGHT (according to the norms of the organization or her (often) implicit cohort). Guardians are more concerned with what is RIGHT (you will often hear the refrain –“that’s not fair”) rather than what WORKS. Pride — Guardians -> Administrators -> Supervisors can be really bad on that, often Supervisors are the worst of all the sixteen types. Rationals are arrogant, not proud. Conventional — there are many kinds of conventionals.

      In regard to Stats — 45% of the population are Guardians. Statistically speaking, it doesn’t hurt to assume Guardian — correct later if necessary. Rationals will let you make a mistake once, Guardians are like elephants.

  4. …and thanks again JT, you just know I am going to study Aethelflaed, (to be sure her story is told), as best I can anyway. She sounds a fine leader. Fascinating. (Am on my third Wallenberg book btw).

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *