What can an 82-year-old man tell us about leadership? Plenty, when this is the man who refined the Ford Mustang and invented the Chrysler Minivan. And Lee Iacocca is concerned.

“My friends tell me to calm down. They say, ?¢‚Ǩ?ìLee, you?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re eighty-two years old. Leave the rage to the young people.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢d love to?¢‚Ǩ‚Äùas soon as I can pry them away from their iPods for five seconds and get them to pay attention. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢m going to speak up because it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s my patriotic duty. I think people will listen to me. They say I have a reputation as a straight shooter. So I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ll tell you how I see it, and it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s not pretty, but at least it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s real. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢m hoping to strike a nerve in those young folks who say they don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t vote because they don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t trust politicians to represent their interests. Hey, America, wake up. These guys work for us.”

“And don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t tell me it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s all the fault of right-wing Republicans or liberal Democrats. That?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s an intellectually lazy argument, and it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s part of the reason we?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re in this stew. We?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re not just a nation of factions. We?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re a people. We share common principles and ideals. And we rise and fall together.”

Leaders lead by pulling people together in a common cause. People follow leaders because they want to believe in the cause and arrive at the promised land. People yearn to follow a leader who inspires them, believes in their abilities and has the conviction to lead.

Iacocca details his Nine C’s of Leadership:

1. A leader has to show CURIOSITY. He has to listen to people outside of the ?¢‚Ǩ?ìYes, sir?¢‚Ǩ¬ù crowd in his inner circle.
2. A leader has to be CREATIVE, go out on a limb, be willing to try something different. You know, think outside the box.
3. A leader has to COMMUNICATE. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢m not talking about running off at the mouth or spouting sound bites. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢m talking about facing reality and telling the truth.
4. A leader has to be a person of CHARACTER. That means knowing the difference between right and wrong and having the guts to do the right thing.
5. A leader must have COURAGE. Courage in the twenty-first century doesn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t mean posturing and bravado. Courage is a commitment to sit down at the negotiating table and talk.
6. To be a leader you?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve got to have CONVICTION?¢‚Ǩ‚Äùa fire in your belly. You?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve got to have passion.
7. A leader should have CHARISMA. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢m not talking about being flashy. Charisma is the quality that makes people want to follow you.
8. A leader has to be COMPETENT. That seems obvious, doesn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t it? You?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve got to know what you?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re doing. More important than that, you?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve got to surround yourself with people who know what they?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re doing.
9. You can?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t be a leader if you don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t have COMMON SENSE. “If you don?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t know a dip of horseshit from a dip of vanilla ice cream, you?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ll never make it.”

Iacocca uses this essay to slam on President George W. Bush, which is fine I suppose, but I’m not convinced Mr. Bush is the only one with a leadership problem. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid haven’t exactly rung my bell either in their attempts to lead this country. In fact, no one has jumped up and shown me the way. Frankly, we have other problems besides Iraq, and I’m not sure I can handle another two years of stagnation and saber rattling while we attempt to pull ourselves out of the Middle East.

The leader who steps forward and declares it’s time for America to solve other problems, such as poverty, fuel independence, disease, gridlock and a host of other pet peeves may turn my ear and perhaps move me to listen. Until then, I’m still looking for a leader who has the Nine C’s and inspires me to follow.