We have just completed an intense and partisan election cycle. What else is new? Well, plenty. We are in unprecedented times when a former President, Donald Trump, ran again after losing the last election four years ago. And his opponent? Vice President Kamala Harris was brought in when the Democratic Party decided it was a liability to continue having President Biden as their front-runner, especially after his disastrous debate with Donald Trump earlier in the year.
Both Trump and Harris evoked extreme emotions on both the right and the left. Each was the greatest thing since sliced bread to some, or they are the devil incarnate to others. Neither position is valid or should be a criterion for electing someone to the most powerful office in the world. This brings me to my topic: personality or policy.
Four years ago, during the last election cycle, I had conversations with people in which I challenged them on the notion that as an informed voter, you must, I repeat, MUST, vote for policy and not the candidates' personalities. I received some pushback, mostly about Trump.
"He's a buffoon." "He's arrogant." "He's childish in calling people names," etc. And guess what? I agree with all those statements. From a pure leadership perspective, he doesn't pass the test. Real leaders keep their egos in check. Real leaders listen more than they talk. Real leaders don't put people down in public and never act childish enough to make up derisive names for people. Yes, I get it. Trump, from a leadership perspective, fails. I talk about Trump because he was the lightning rod for people four years ago to not vote for him because of his behavior in office. However, my contention is that you cannot just vote for someone, merely because you don't like his/her personality. I wouldn't vote against VP Harris because I don't like her laugh. Whoever I vote for will be based on their policy statements and what policies I believe will be best for the country.
Personality, when it comes to a vote, it means absolutely nothing. The same friends have expressed "buyer's remorse" due to their vote four years ago. Well, they own that. And so do you. I don't care if you are left, right or independent. All of you are obligated to this country to practice true leadership in your voting practices by using your critical thinking skills. I don't care if you hated Trump. I don't care if you hated Harris. All I care about is whether you, as a voter, look at the policy statements of both candidates and then ask yourself, "Which policy do I believe is best for our country?" Period.
The analogy I give is when I was the CSO at Microsoft. Let's say we submitted a budget for the next FY and hope to get funding for five strategic initiatives. The CFO returns and says we only have enough money to fund three out of five initiatives due to budget restrictions. So, my leadership team and I go back to the drawing board and have to stack rank the five initiatives. Which ones go by the wayside?
Let's say one of the five initiatives is something in which I am very invested. I must put my personal feelings out of the equation. I must look at these initiatives from the lens of "which ones are best for my organization and my company and which ones will bring the most ROI to us." That's it. And if my pet initiative doesn't pass that test, it is one of the ones we push aside for the next FY. That is what leaders do. Make the hard, critical decisions for the betterment of the org. Egos and personal opinions have to be put aside.
Same thing with your vote. Trump may bring out a visceral hate reaction in you. A Kamala Harris presidency may make your head want to explode. Fine. Your emotions are your emotions. Ultimately, your vote should have been founded on the policies you agree with that are best for our country. This is not a TV reality show. This is the fate and future of our country. Your vote is worth more than checking the box on who you like best or dislike the least. Putting on the same leadership hat you do in business to your vote this season was a critical responsibility. Voting policy, not personality, was a civic duty during the past presidential election.
