Five Infallible Commandments for Sound Leadership

I have seen the light.

I know how to fix it all. The keys to Sir Thomas More’s utopia are in my left hand, and in my right hand is a new groundbreaking manifesto.

My manifesto contains five infallible commandments for any national leader in power. Follow them correctly, and the fields of Elysium are but a stone’s throw away. 

I have kept the commandments short – because, as noted by deep thinkers of unquestionable intellectual heft, the longer the laws, the more deceitful they are. The shorter, the more profound. The fewer the big words, the more likely you and I will win bigly.

As I build on this revolutionary school of political thought and leadership, we will begin with a hypothetical country. Let’s say you lead the world’s superpower:  a democracy with cutting edge technology, military supremacy, economic dominance, and an unrivalled web of alliances.

This treatise is not limited to such a nation. With a few tweaks, this can be the playbook for leaders from any nation. I don’t discriminate, but you should, as we will cover shortly.

1.     You Are Never at Fault

You are never the problem.

Unfortunately, some things might not go according to your immaculate plans. One of your totally honest campaigns promises unexpectedly turns out to be unrealistic - let’s suppose you promised to end inflation on day one of your term.

Fret not, because obviously, it’s not your fault.

It’s them. The pesky immigrants, the opposition, your predecessor, the deep state, foreign meddlers, and so on.

As mentioned above, this is where you should discriminate. Immigrants have recently been in fashion - but always assess the social climate before crafting your boogeyman of choice.

This method is an effective response to any politically sensitive failure.

On the flip side, effective and sound leadership dictates that you take immediate credit for any positive occurrence. Your actual input is irrelevant.

Below is a pragmatic guide to help you follow this commandment.

If followed correctly, your credibility and reputation as a strong, reliable leader will soar. With the right choice of mouthpiece sycophants and a well-placed media strategy, you’ll be one step closer to attaining the holy grail of leadership – a cult of personality.

Having the looks for it is helpful, but not necessary as history clearly shows us.

2.     Be Unpredictable

Your people need something to talk about - and being unpredictable will make you the talk of the town. It’s a surefire way to boost your reelection efforts.

More importantly, financial markets love unpredictability and volatility. After all, that’s where the best buying opportunities emerge. The markets will even throw on a pearl-studded flashy red dress just for you.

Pearl Studded Flashy Red Dress Worn by Financial Markets

Given this hypothetical country we have established, making full use of its unique capabilities is essential.

 Leverage your military dominance to threaten your closest ally with annexation, or to gently unravel your web of alliances. Use your economic dominance to threaten highly disruptive trade policies (like tariffs), or to publicly doubt the veracity of your gold reserves.

The constant news coverage about you will reduce costs for future media campaigns – allowing you to redirect funds for better use. If followed correctly, this commandment brings you ever closer to implementing a beloved theory among international relations experts: the madman theory. 

Your unpredictability will make every threat you utter sound believable, giving you an upper hand in negotiations for your beloved country. Concerns about losing soft power are the empty words of soft intellectuals. They don’t understand what it takes to win.

3.     Surround Yourself with A Symphony of Sycophants

“Yes, sir” has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

A symphony of yeses from loyal, intelligent yes men is not only melodical to your ears, but essential for swift decision-making and policy execution. Any pushback to your prerogatives will clearly do nothing but slow you down and breed inefficiency.

The chains of bureaucracy, dragged by unenlightened contrarians, have long been used to impede great progress. Hence, the need for what some might call a gentle purge.

Replacing the old guard with those more enlightened is simply to the benefit of the public.

If followed correctly, this commandment will empower you to implement the reform you promised - the one you were divinely chosen to deliver. 

If your administration still fails to deliver? Please refer back to Commandment 1.

Any leader following these five infallible commandments is sure to lead us all to prosperity and peace - a Pax Romana of our times.

Spreading this groundbreaking manifesto is key, and I humbly ask for your assistance.

Of course, some unenlightened contrarians might doubt the intellectual depth of this manifesto, claiming only three commandments and not five have been listed, but what do they know?

Optics matter. Numbers? Not so much.