The 4 types of charisma (and how to apply them to leadership)

Let's see what are the most important types of charisma and what are their advantages and disadvantages.

Everyone wants to have charisma, understood as that know-how in social situations that allows us to reach people, influence them and make them admire us in one way or another.

While that is a definition quite worthy of how we see it, the truth is that there is a certain diversity of charisma. Famous people such as Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Mahatma Gandhi, Steve Jobs or Winston Churchill were charismatic, but not in the same way.

Today we will discover what were the types of charisma of these historical figures and which ones can be applied in leadership roles, going deeper into what are the characteristic traits of each one. Let's go there!

The 4 most important types of charisma

In ancient times, they believed that charisma was a gift bestowed by the divinities, something you were either born with or not. The Greeks, for example, believed that the Olympian gods gave a few lucky mortals the gift of being charismatic, setting them apart from other humans and giving them a divine advantage. Fortunately, this is not really the case, something confirmed by experts on the subject.

One of the foremost experts on charisma is Olivia Fox Cabane, who has worked for many of the Fortune 500 companies.. In 2012 she published a book entitled "The Charisma Myth: How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism", in which she explains how to achieve a charismatic personality using various methods of cognitive and behavioral therapies.

Fox's work is based on scientific research, insisting that in recent years psychologists, sociologists and even neuroscientists have demonstrated in a laboratory setting that levels of charisma can be both increased and reduced by adopting certain behaviors.. It is as if we had a charisma bar and we could fill it by putting certain techniques into practice, just like in the Sims games.

Thanks to her research, Olivia Fox explains in her book that, in the same way that there are different personality styles, with their defining traits, we can also find several types of charisma, of which she highlights the following four:

1. Focusing charisma.

Focusing charisma is based mainly on a sense of presence and active listening. With it the aim is to transmit to others the feeling that we listen to them and pay attention to everything they say to us..

Thanks to this type of charisma, we make others feel heard, listened to, attended to and understood. It is also through the focus charisma that we express respect towards our interlocutor. An example of this charisma is the one used by Mahatma Gandhi.

When we speak and pay attention to someone we must take great care of our presence because, even if we do not speak, our body does not stop transmitting information. Body language is very important when it comes to communicating.If we give the impression that we are distracted and inattentive, our interlocutor will pick up on this and think that we are not paying attention. Active listening is essential, along with a certain degree of patience.

It should be said that the charisma of focus presents two main risks:

• If we appear unimpressive or strong, it can be interpreted as a servile and submissive attitude.
• If it is not accompanied with cordiality and a certain delicacy, the interaction between both interlocutors can turn into a cold interview or an interrogation.

This modality of charisma is particularly useful when we need our interlocutor or audience to open up and share information that would be difficult for them to confess at first.. It can be of great help in difficult situations such as negotiations or to defuse hostile conversations.

Focusing charisma should be avoided when it is necessary to appear to have a high level of authority or during an emergency situation, when it is necessary to ensure immediate obedience.

2. Charisma of vision

The charisma of vision is the one that makes the audience believe and feel inspired by the transmitter, being a great example the famous Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple.A great example of this is the famous Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple. It is a type of charisma that can be extraordinarily effective, although it does not necessarily make others like us.

Transmitting this type of charisma requires a certain ability to project complete conviction and confidence in a particular cause, project or idea. It is based on power, but also on cordiality.

Charismatic visionaries are not always cordial people, but they feel their vision with passionate force.In order for their vision to be considered charismatically attractive, it must include a certain degree of altruism, cordiality and kindness.

This type of charisma has a very dangerous risk of captivating people to join movements or societies that can do them harm. This can be easily understood knowing that cult leaders often use their visionary charisma, even to inspire absurd ideas and motivate actions as evidently harmful as committing collective suicide, as in the case of Jonestown, led by James Warren "Jim" Jones.

3. Charisma of kindness

As its name suggests, the charisma of goodness is characterized by cordiality and kindness.. It is the one that connects people's hearts and makes us feel appreciated, understood, welcomed and, especially, accepted.

Here the most important area is the face, whose most kindly charismatic body language is expressed by the gaze, through the eyes.. Teresa of Calcutta is a great example of a charismatically charismatic person.

To express charisma of kindness it is necessary to work on aspects related to cordiality, such as benevolence, compassion, gratitude and indulgence. Gestures that convey tension, intimidation, coldness or criticism should be avoided.

It requires finding a certain balance between cordiality but also with a sense of strength.. If this is achieved, it will avoid giving the impression of wanting to please obsessively, showing power, will and individual freedom, but with the true intention of helping others.

The charisma of kindness has the disadvantage that, by captivating people, they may feel disappointed, hurt or resentful when they are not allowed to be more present in our lives, especially if we have managed to be charismatic through abusive flattery and excessive attachment.

This type of charisma is useful when we want to establish an emotional bond or make someone feel secure and trust us.. It is very beneficial when giving bad news or when dealing with difficult people. However, it should be avoided in case we have to show a bit of authority or if there is a risk that someone feels too comfortable, does not respect the boundaries between their life and ours, and wants to involve us too much in their life.

4. Charisma of authority

Finally, we find the charisma of authority, which is the one that plays the most important role. is the one that plays the most important role, although it has the disadvantage that those who possess it are not necessarily liked by the others.. This charisma is based on the perception of power and the conviction that whoever possesses it has the power to influence the lives of others.

Charisma of authority has the advantage that it motivates our audience to listen to us and obey us frequently, but it also has a number of drawbacks:

• It can inhibit our listeners' critical thinking.
• It discourages our audience from responding, so we don't receive information that might be of interest to us.
• It can make us appear arrogant. Therefore, a certain degree of cordiality is necessary when delivering a speech using the charisma of authority.

On the other hand, charisma of authority is useful in any situation where we want to be listened to and obeyed, especially in critical situations or where we want to be heard and obeyed.especially in critical situations or where we need the immediate conformity of others. It should be avoided in social settings, in sensitive business situations or if we want to encourage creativity and constructive reactions from our subordinates, especially considering that it can inhibit critical thinking in our audience.

Charisma of authority can be assessed by four indicators.

4.1. Body language

It is evaluated if he/she radiates confidence when trying to influence others.. As with all other charisma, this is the most important factor, since any sign of insecurity will eliminate the possibility of having a charisma of authority.

4.2. Appearance

Appearance serves to determine the status of the person. The appropriate clothing should be chosen, which, in most cases, is expensive or looks high-level.

4.3. Title or social position

The title or social position, understood as the position he occupies in society, his company or social circle, brings with it a degree of authority depending on what he does, even if the person himself does not initially show traits in accordance with his social position..

For example, if we meet someone who tells us that he is the boss of his company, we attribute a higher degree of authority to him than to any of his subordinates, even though he does not behave in a directive manner towards us.

4.4. Reaction of others to his presence

The way in which others react to the person is a factor that delimits the degree of authority, security and diligence that this individual has. If we see that others show respect, we will assume that the person holds a high position and is someone who should be respected. and is someone who should be respected for what he or she has done or is doing for society or a particular group of people.

The charisma of authority, although it is based on the personality traits of the person who exhibits it, is very contextual. As it is so affected by body language, it is necessary that, at the moment of wanting to exercise authority, we are very sure of ourselves. To do this, we can resort to certain tools to try to enter a state of mind that gives us security and self-confidence. We should also take care of our posture, reduce unnecessary non-verbal gestures (e.g. nodding our head too many times), talk less and speak with the right intonation.

Which charisma is the best?

According to Olivia Fox, no one style of charisma has a guaranteed outcome in any given situation.. It all depends on one's circumstances and personality traits. Based on what the same author says, to decide which is the most appropriate charisma, we must evaluate the following three indicators:

1. Personality

We must choose the styles, tools and techniques that best fit our qualities and our emotional states.. For example, if we are not very cordial people, trying to achieve a charisma of kindness will be a difficult task, while it may be useful for a charisma of authority if we combine it with self-confidence.

2. Goals to achieve

Depending on the goals we want to achieve, one or another type of charisma will be appropriate. If what we want to achieve is obedience, we need a security charisma. If, on the other hand, what we want is to give the sensation that we are trustworthy people and that we take care of others, we will resort to a focusing charisma..

3. Situation to intervene

Depending on the situation or context in which we want to intervene, from two perspectives:

• Emotional: assessing how the people around us feel and what their needs are at that moment.
• Social: a behavior may be interpreted as charismatic in one culture but not in another.

Fox herself gives as an example that the same degree of eye contact in Western societies such as the United States may be received as a sincere and direct gaze, while in Asian countries, such as Japan or the United States, it may be received as a sincere and direct gaze. in Asian countries, such as Japan or Korea, that same look is perceived as aggressive and intimidating..