Platero, Ella Jane D.

| IV- BS Business Administration | BA 198 WFU ASSIGNMENT #7

​ he Great Dictator
T
“The very first essential for success is a perpetually constant and regular employment of
violence.” ​This line is from one of Adolf Hitler’s many speeches. What he said really imposes a
negative feeling towards the reader and it reflects the type of leader he was. Adolf Hitler was
part of the list of transformational leaders from the Legacee website but I strongly believe that
his leadership was one of the most problematic leaderships in history. Not because of his ideas,
but his actions.
According to Northouse (2016), one criticism of transformational leadership is its
potential to be abused since the charismatic nature of this type of leadership prevents risks for
organizations as it can be used for destructive purposes. Adolf Hitler is an example of a
charismatic leader who used persistent power to lead people to evil doings making him a
problematic leader.
We cannot deny the fact that Hitler is really a charismatic and influential leader who can
strongly persuade his followers but I do believe there are two main reasons that led him to
become a problematic leader: (1) used his influence in a problematic way by establishing a
supreme race and (2) abuse his power.
First, Hitler used his influence to establish a supreme race by influencing the Germans
that Germany will remain in the postwar situation; hunger, unemployment, and economic
stagnation will prevail if the Jews will remain in the country. He pushed people to believe that
Jews will only prevent the Germans from having enough job opportunities, enough food, and a
great barrier from having economic growth. Germans were controlled by this mindset and
racism thus, influencing their behavior towards the Jews. This is an example of Hitler being
aware of his great influence and using this as an opportunity to influence his people to follow his
ideals. In line with this situation is my second point which is Hitler’s abuse of power. With the
Germans now having this racist mindset, Hitler legalized the abuse and the killing of the Jews.
Initially, he ordered the division of Jews based on usefulness or utility. Second, those who are
determined useless will be sent to the gas chambers in Auschwitz. This is an example of his
abuse of power and thrived social acceptability of killing Jews.
One of the criticisms of this type of leadership is that it puts the burden on individuals
and the nation to be aware of how they are influenced. When followers are aware of how they
are being led, the potential for abuse of this leadership can be mitigated (Northouse, 2016). In
Hitler’s case, his followers were really unaware of how they are led and they were clearly
blinded by loyalty. Furthermore, according to Winans (2020), Hitler was not a great leader as he
was a master of disguise that diverts his peoples’ attention from his negative shortcomings as a
leader to the other issues in his country. This shows his nationalistic ideals that are problematic
as well.
To conclude, the leader Adolf Hitler was full of charisma but his leadership was really
problematic to the point that his followers have lost their sense of humanity. His regime
cultivated not hate and wrath, but apathy. From the words of Ian Kershaw, a major historian of
the Third Reich, ​"The path to Auschwitz was paved with indifference"​.

● 125 Transformational Leaders: Lists of Famous Ones From Many Countries​. (2020,
August 2). Legacee. https://rb.gy/qr2zxu
● Winans, N. (2020, June 1). ​Was Hitler a Great Leader? - Nathaniel Winans​. Medium.
https://rb.gy/leyii4