Overtly political blogs are not always a joy. I sometimes stray into this area and it is a mixed blessing for me and I suspect for those who read my words; so, please give this one a miss if you have had enough of the news and endless commentary. I am not saying anything you don’t already know.
If you have decided to read on, this won’t be too ranty or polemic, and I hope not offensive either. Also, safe in the knowledge our Prime Minister will never read this, I do not feel I am adding to the burdens she carries, but it does feel she is in a bit of a pickle and mostly of her own making. Anyway, here are some thoughts I might share if we had a cup of tea together.
Let’s start with slogans. Crafting a soundbite is not the same as leadership. Wanting a headline grabbing strapline to repeat endlessly, is fabulously easy compared to the grind and graft of implementing your ideas. Your predecessor was also mightily tedious in this regard, but leadership is about doing not spinning. Without achievement, it is not only the slogans that look hollow. Leadership therefore is to selflessly lay foundations on which others may build. If you want to be a columnist or a commentator, feel free to create straplines and slogans to your heart’s content; but if you want to lead, you have to build.
Humility is not weakness. If you were elected in part because of your attack lines on your former colleagues, it should not be a surprise to you if they are indifferent or hostile when things are not going well for you. If you have created the atmosphere where people are less likely to help you at the time of your greatest need, then you are the one who needs to change. We might all reflect on how we alienate people with words and deeds (or no words and no deeds). If you lead, you must gather people around, don’t push them away or leave them wondering if you care.
Not all experts are right, and even good advisors will sometimes get things wrong, but if you have not listened to experts who have experience and insight you make yourself look isolated and foolish when things turn against you. It is always better to have experts around you who might sometimes get things wrong, than to have experts against you because you rubbished their ideas, especially when they will have the blessing of hindsight when they choose the most uncomfortable time to share their opinions.
Standing by someone, in this case for example your Chancellor, when they have made a monumental mess of their first set piece intervention, is admirable in many ways. Loyalty is important, however set against the peremptory sacking of a key Treasury civil servant and the assertion that broadly not much is wrong, suggests you have not actually understood what is happening or you hope to bluff it out. This is a calamitous plan. “It was the iceberg’s fault” is a thin defence when the ship is sinking under your captaincy.
Your big ideas may have merit. You may have waited all your political life to share them. You may be bursting to get on with them, BUT context is everything. A comedian may have the best joke in the world but if they burst into a funeral and regale the mourners with the brilliance of their wit, we might anticipate that the joke will land poorly.
Leadership is trying to do the greatest good for the greatest number. We all matter, not just your most ardent cheerleaders. Your job is to govern the whole country, to reassure us and to leave everyone with a sense of competence so that we can get on with our lives. If you treat the first few weeks of your time in office like trolly dash down the wine aisle with your best mates cheering you on, you risk becoming detached from everyday reality and finding yourself caught up in a world where sycophants, empty drones and vested interests hold too much sway.
We should all focus on what our teams need from us in order for them to succeed. In the UK right now, most people are worried about the cost of living, their energy bills, climate change and the war in Europe. If the things your Ministers want to talk about involve small boats landing on Kent beaches, or whether the BBC is impartial you should not be surprised if voters do not think you are talking to them. And if your ministers say daft things at your annual conference to a small, agitated faction within your tribe, we can of course all hear what they say. Dreaming of sending a few poor souls to Rwanda is perhaps not something to share out loud when the country might prefer you to be more exercised by how many people rely on foodbanks to feed their families.
Ironically most people want you to succeed. It is no fun to be governed by people we don’t much like or rate. I suspect most voters just want sensible normal politicians who seem to know what to do. We are broadly not very revolutionary in temperament and would prefer not to be bothered by what you do. Getting on with it would be a start, but if you continue spinning in ever decreasing circles then this is how it will end.
Leadership is hard. We are all poorly equipped when it arrives. In addition, your ideas, your approach, and your strengths, are all largely unknown to us. We need you to reflect, listen and earn our trust. No leader landing suddenly and unexpectedly has an easy time, but they will make it harder for themselves if they choose to plough on without checking if their people are with them.
Finally, it is so easy to criticise and your job is unbelievably hard; so, I do wish you well and I do hope you get better at being our PM. If I may I will finish on a familiar theme for me. Sometimes less is more. Sometimes small things count more than headlines. You are now in the swirl of a dust storm of your own making. Talk to us and be kind. Right now, I see no kindness in your approach and in those around you. You need no budget for kindness, it does not cost a penny. When money is short, kindness is the first and best resource you can go to. It does not run out; indeed it will only grow with use and it always, always pays back. Be kind, it will help.
Take care. Paul xx
