President Obama and Effective Change Leadership

Almost two years after Barack Obama's promise of hope and change was elected President of the United States, many Americans are frustrated by the hope and change has not reached them yet.

Or fair in his office in the first 20 months of this unfair assessment, I believe there are lessons to be learned in terms of effective change management are. And although it is not meant to be a political blog, politics and business I believe there is much to be learned in the business of politics.

John Kotter, Harvard Business School professor, best-selling author and widely regarded as an authority on leadership and change, according to the "Great leaders help people get in touch with their aspirations and help them then a private vision to make those aspirations. "

Kotter 1996 book is the author of "Leading Change," successful change initiative provides a step by step process. Although our government is not run as a business, there are certainly lessons to implement effective change to that relationship can be learned from the business world.

Kotter's eight step process

1. Establish a sense of urgency
2. Create guiding coalition
3. Developing a vision and strategy
4. Change Vision Communications
5. Empowering employees for broad-based action
6. Creating short term wins
7. Strong growth in the production of more changes
8. Anchoring new approaches in culture

Kotter's eight steps in each one central challenge is to change people's behavior: people do and what people need to make significant changes. More analysis of this behavior change in a matter affecting his ideas as it is helping them a way to influence their emotions do not see the truth.

"People change what they do because they do not reduce the analysis because they are a reality that affects your emotions are shown in comparison to shift their thinking is" Kotter says.

Obama often overly cerebral and perhaps that is why he focused mainly on the analysis of thinking is considered as a change. Her predecessors Bill Clinton and especially Ronald Reagan, unlike Obama, I believe the truth to present at the changes necessary to accelerate the kind of feelings is successful in effect.

Deep recession, domestic and two unpopular war despite the legacy, Obama's financial regulation, health care and withdrawing troops from Iraq has been significant change. Republican resistance to these changes have focused on their belief that the first two of these changes are far reaching and expensive.

The growing popularity of talk radio and television news sensational events with little sense or balanced analysis rely on hard facts to support what could be heavy or may not be true. Regardless of what the feelings are excited to inspire change and that change now with the upcoming mid-term elections could be a dramatic change in Congress.

Kotter's eight stages, it seems that Obama may move left. What Obama did so well during his campaign to develop a vision was, but the strategy where it can fall at once elected. Which he also did well during the campaign - - a vision of hope and change communication in the office almost two years later seems to have little resonance.

A definitely an argument that Obama also improve financial regulation and health care than some short-term wins should set but may be, of course, the hand he was dealt some unpopular decisions during a crisis including the need to play and a very divisive atmosphere.

He said that successful leaders need to employ the method of changing the look, feel change: Kotter later book "Real Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations in the heart of change.

Identify the problem or solve a problem and others cause changes in behavior in a way that enables it to imagine - watch.

Feel - to dramatize a compelling image that catches people's attention, and ensure that it results in feelings that passion, confidence, trust, pride, hope, excitement, enthusiasm, diligence and / or involved need to fear change is needed. That change can undermine feelings anger, false pride, pessimism, arrogance, vision, panic, exhaustion, insecurity and anxiety are included.

Different emotions - - a change of heart - are the changes that behavior change. "Behavior change feelings" Kotter says. "And with this change in spite of great difficulties people often change largely through the eight essential steps are able to move."

Obama can look at so effective and his presidential campaign during the parts had to guess, but during times of war and recession, with a fiercely divided Congress is operating proves particularly difficult challenges to navigate. Perhaps as a guide to the eight-step process Kotter Review, Obama, their leadership skills to reclaim this country so desperately needs can affect change.