After an exciting campaign the election is over and we have a new leader
in the form of David Cameron. Politicians like to tell us that they
should be judged on their policies not their personalities.
This is partly true and partly a smokescreen: the manifestos tell us
what they will do but make no mistake, their personalities tell us how
they will do it. With this in mind I have been carrying out analyses on
some of the leading politicians using biographical and in some cases
autobiographical sources. Their psychological profiles are drawn up
using art as much as science and whilst I can't guarantee the accuracy
of the profiles I feel it gives us an insight into the characters of the
people who lead us. With this in mind I thought it would be interesting
to see what sort of leader the new Prime Minister will make.
Incidentally, this profile, whilst appearing after the election, was in
fact written in 2009
Cameron's Strengths
One of the most noticeable aspects of David Cameron's personality
profile is the very high degree of self confidence. This profile
suggests someone who knows who he is, feels pride in his background and
who has a belief in his own abilities. This is someone who sets himself
greater and greater challenges, pushing himself to fulfilling potential.
He is someone who is motivated by achievement and who strives to reach
his objectives. This means that he not only thinks about setting
challenging goals but how they can be achieved, in other words someone
who can be relied upon to deliver what he has said he will do.
Unusually, perhaps, for someone at this level, he also has a good eye
for detail. These qualities will undoubtedly have an effect on those
around him. This is someone keen to deliver on commitments and his
expectations of those around him will be high in this regard. He
respects those around him for their knowledge and their ability to work
at the pace that he does, but this is not someone who will not suffer
fools gladly. He approaches his work systematically and methodically
with a need for frameworks, structure and system. The profile suggests
that whilst he will try to make the best use of the people around him if
he senses incompetence then he is likely to disempower by taking things
on himself, which is something which he and others close to him need to
keep an eye open for.
When setbacks occur, which they inevitably will, this is someone who can
respond positively. Generally speaking he remains calm under pressure,
is self-assured under the spotlight and will continue to express his
views with confidence. He possesses a high degree of resilience. When
this is allied to a generally optimistic approach it is a combination
which means that he is capable of creating a team around him that also
feels confident. His energy and enthusiasm are factors too which should
help to create a high performing team of people.
Cameron's profile indicates someone with considerable social skills,
which are clearly evident and more genuine warmth and empathy than
either Blair or Brown for example. Contact with others is something
that is relished rather than avoided.
His self-confidence means that he is not overly concerned with the views
and opinions of others which does give him a hard edge. He will not shy
away from the difficult decisions. He is prepared to be very direct and
unpopular with some people and to take tough action if this means
achieving the objectives that have been set.
This is someone who is intelligent, knowledgeable, and is a quick
learner. He is analytical, and dealing in facts rather than emotions.
He is logical in his approach to decision making.
He is able to analyse data and more likely than most to use this as a
basis for any decision making. This is not someone who is necessarily
rash or impulsive but will take his time deciding what to do and when.
Emotions do not play a great part in his decision making.
The contribution of factors such as good social skills, planfulness,
intelligence and enthusiasm means that he is likely to create a team
around him who are motivated to work together. He appears to be someone
who is prepared to delegate tasks and responsibilities but will put
systems in place to ensure that these are carried out. Team members
will be encouraged and empowered by his confidence in them.
Overall then, this is a very positive picture of a leader.
Cameron's Weaknesses
So what are the potentially problematic aspects of his profile?
Whilst this profile suggests someone who is pragmatic, planful and
practical it does not suggest that he is prepared to be flexible in his
approach to get out of a tight corner.
Under pressure, whilst he may well appear on the surface, to be calm,
underneath there seems to be a tendency to close in, to procrastinate
and possibly to display a degree of stubbornness. There could be a
degree of rigidity in approach. At these times criticism from
colleagues will not be welcome and they may be viewed badly as a result.
He can also, under pressure, attempt to mislead and misdirect, behaviors
which will cause him difficulty.
His high degree of self-confidence is without doubt one of his strengths
but if these impulses become too strong he will appear arrogant. He
needs to ensure that he continues to listen to feedback.
Furthermore the practical planful side of this profile should not
distract from the fact that this is someone who may find it difficult to
project his own vision for the future. Certainly the 'Big Society' idea
was not well understood by the electorate. This is someone who is
relatively reluctant to change, unless there is a great degree of
external pressure to do so. His self confidence and the belief in his
own abilities, plus the reluctance to change just for the sake of it,
means that his natural tendency is to stick with the status quo.
What type of Prime Minster will he make?
This profile suggests someone who will definitely be a very credible and
competent Prime Minister. His strengths are considerable and
much confidence can be gained from that. Whether he can become a great
Prime Minister really depends on how he develops as an individual and
how he uses his Cabinet.
On the individual level, the biggest concern will be that his
self-confidence turns into arrogance. Once he begins to believe in the
power of his own judgments then his decline will start. This is a
serious potential issue for him. If he disregards negative comment or
feedback then trouble looms.
It is critical that he has a Cabinet that has diverse voices within it.
Whilst he has strong beliefs they are not fixed in stone. He is
prepared to challenge, debate and argue but much will depend on whether
he is prepared to be challenged. He needs to have people around him,
therefore, who are not like him in their perspectives, outlook and
background. He has the strength of character to handle the different
perspectives and the enthusiasm and energy to keep people focused on the
priorities. Forming a coalition government therefore may be one of the
best things to happen to him. Being forced to have diversity of opinion
around the Cabinet table will mean it is less likely that he will
believe that his view is always correct. If anyone can make this work,
he can I believe.
Under pressure however, he needs to be able to not give in to the
temptation to mislead.
Cameron appears to have an interesting way of dealing with career
transition. At critical points in his career he adopts, whether
consciously or not, the behavior of successful people whom he admires.
At the moment his model appears to be Tony Blair. But the comparison is
superficial as this personality profile suggests that he shares little
in common with the former Prime Minister. A lot will depend on his
choice of role model, as this will help him establish in his own mind
the way he envisions the position. This choice clearly will impact not
only him, the government he leads, but also the country.
