[January 30, 2016] For those of us who study leadership, we know that style varies over circumstances and over time. Each individual leader has their own preferable way of leading others; one they are most comfortable with and have had past achievements using. The bombastic leader is a popular approach for a leadership style.
One of my favorite military commanders I personally worked for in the U.S. Army gave real meaning to the concept of bombastic. He was loud, good with jokes, and had a presence that people noticed whenever he walked into a room. A successful officer, he could put you at ease and instill confidence at the same time. The troops gave him the call sign “bomber” because of his bombastic style.
Is this an out-of-character description of a bombastic leader? I don’t think so. Many will argue that such leaders are actually unsure of themselves and are prone to overcompensate for their lack of other key leader traits. Others associate bombastic leadership with a style referred to as authoritarian leadership.1 Scientific studies on leadership, however, don’t support these views.
Businessman Donald Trump, the current leader in the Republican field of presidential candidates is the most bombastic of those running. He gives us a good chance to look at such leaders and see why they succeed and fail. A common complaint, for example, is that bombastic leaders – and by extension Trump – are intellectually shallow, lack attention to detail, and are not trustworthy.
Our opinions of such leaders are strong; we either like them or not. My commander, like Trump, possesses a number of traits that help in getting things done. They have:
- Credibility: especially well-known for their successes over adversity.
- Intelligence: quick witted and fast on their feet to explain complex issues.
- Well-honed social skills: can move easily in many social circles.
- A desire to take care of their people: this leads to more productive teams.
- The ability to make you feel part of the team: an important aspect of expanding their influence.
- An honest disposition: talking to many people they must be open and honest.
- A loyal following: people truly love them (or conversely hate them).
- An intellectually diverse inner circle: thinkers who place value on mission accomplishment, creativity, and thinking “outside the box.”
The bombastic leadership style is highly successful. Tempered with certain traits, the technique can be a winning strategy for anyone able to pull it off.
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- Authoritarian leadership was one of the styles of leaders identified by psychologist Kurt Lewis in 1939 in his ground-breaking study. This early research was very influential and established three major leadership styles: authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-fair.