obama ~ the leadership of "we are one"

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This book explores what makes Barack Obama a superior leader. It defines 'intrapreneur' in terms of his phenomenal grassroots organization and the positive impact of the nonphysical human energies of mind, emotion and spirit on organizational results. Barack Obama understands that while the negativity of smear and fear has its initial impact, what really moves most of us is a desire to feel good about and to be in control of our circumstances, our futures, our communities, and most importantly, ourselves. He understands the difference between inspiration and motivation. Understanding this difference is what moves ordinary people from complacency to positive action. Positive action, originating in positive energy is what yields positive results. In the future, Obama will be studied as one of the greatest leaders of modern times. Obama doesn't call forth volunteers– he calls forth the leader that resides in all of us. He demands personal accountability—and gets it. He has created an army of grassroots volunteers that is not only contributing financial resources but hours of service in any number of tasks. He has tapped into the spirit of first-time voters and re-kindled the spirits of baby boomers, long searching for a return of the days of JFK, MLK and Bobby. This book details how Barack Obama has succeeded in establishing a culture of ingenuity, enthusiasm, passion and collaboration– unlocking new levels of personal power and control. Leaders such as Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King know the secret to unleashing the human potential. These leaders understand that the power of the human spirit is the fuel on which we will ride into the third millennium. This book is more than a book on human energy leadership principles, however. It is a compilation of the voices of America with contributions by leadership experts, authors and citizens from all corners of the globe. For more info visit www.obama-leadership.com and www.galileoconsultants.com

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Obama The Leadership of We Are One

Victoria C. DePaul

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Obama ~ The Leadership of We Are One Published by Galileo Business & Learning Consultants, LLC 482 Southbridge Street Suite 205 Auburn, MA 01501

For more information about our books, please write to us or visit our website at www.GalileoConsultants.com.

Printed and bound in the United States of America. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission by the author or copyright holder, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages.

ISBN 13: 978-0-9794508-2-2 Hardcover Edition

Copyright © 2009 by Victoria C. DePaul

Front cover image design by Mitchell Powell

This book is available at quantity discounts with bulk purchase for educational, business or sales promotional use. For information, please write to Galileo Business & Learning Consultants, LLC, 482 Southbridge St, Suite 205, Auburn, Massachusetts, 01501. Please supply quantity, how the book will be used, and the date needed. Requests can also be sent to [email protected].

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Table of Contents

Preface ........................................................................................ 1

Intrapreneurial Leadership Defined ................................... 11

Innovation ............................................................................... 29

Commitment ........................................................................... 55

Autonomy ............................................................................... 69

Risk ........................................................................................... 83

Situational Analysis ............................................................. 111

Empowerment ...................................................................... 135

Communication and Relationship ..................................... 161

Diversity ................................................................................ 177

Vision ..................................................................................... 195

Obama: An International Perspective . 217Error! Bookmark

not defined.

Epilogue ................................................................................. 233

About The Author ................................................................ 247

Acknowledgements ............................................................. 248

Contributors………………………………………….…….253

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Preface

I’m asking you to believe.

Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington

... I’m asking you to believe in yours.

Barack Obama

ON JULY 27TH, 2004 I busied myself around the house, lost

in my thoughts as I completed household chores. In the

background the TV droned on, tuned in to the Democratic

National Convention. A man that I had never heard of

caught my attention. He introduced himself as Barack.

“Was that a first name or a last name?” I wondered. I

ceased what I was doing, sat down, immersed in his

address.

There was an energy—a passion, in this young

man that was very different than other politicians. He was

direct, purposeful, sincere—dare I say—authentic—in his

remarks. He conveyed integrity, enthusiasm and com-

mitment. I was riveted, barely able to move. “Who is this

man?” I repeatedly asked myself. It was in those moments

that I knew that I was looking at a future president.

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What is remarkable was that I was not alone. The

next day at work, Barack Obama was the topic of conver-

sation. I was not the only one replaying his speech on the

internet. I was not the only one who believed that a

distinguished leader had emerged. Others felt the same

energy. I hadn’t lost my mind. The journey that we are

now on, what Barack labeled, “the audacity of hope”, began

for many of us on that day in Boston, on July 27th, 2004.

It is now August of 2009⎯ one year from Denver,

the site of the Democratic National Convention of 2008.

For this convention, Barack Obama was not the keynote

speaker. He did, instead, offer his acceptance speech as

the Democratic Candidate for the Presidency of the

United States. In Chicago, on November 4, 2008—before a

crowd of more than 200,000—he delivered his first speech

as President Elect. And how the world stood still on

January 20th, 2009 when Barack Obama addressed the

nation and the world with his first speech as President of

the United States of America.

This comes as no surprise to many of us who first

heard his 2004 DNC keynote address. We understand that

this was the inevitable next step for a man who has

already claimed his place in history. In the past four years

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we have watched as Barack Obama has inspired and

motivated millions throughout the United States and

across the globe. This inspiration has been the backbone

of a grassroots movement previously unseen in our

political history.

Citizens of all ages, religions, races, economic sta-

tus and gender have claimed a piece of the 2008 Demo-

cratic presidential campaign in unprecedented numbers.

As of October 31, 2008 the campaign had raised 750

million dollars with over two million donors. Barack

Obama launched a successful primary campaign by

mobilizing first time voters through nation-wide voter

registration drives. He demanded our attention with

promises of change and has restored the legacy of hope in

baby boomers, long lost in the cynicism of the late 60’s

and 70’s.

The pages that follow describe just how Barack

Obama has etched his place in American history. Here

you will find essays, anecdotes and quotes on leadership,

contribution and hope. Leadership experts will offer their

perspectives on how Barack Obama and Joe Biden serve

as sterling examples of some of the emerging leadership

strategies of the 21st century.

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Some of the words will come from Obama himself;

many from ordinary citizens who have been moved from

complacency to action. This book, this chronicle, indeed

this story, is a historical event—not just the story of one

individual— but the collective voice of a nation during a

turbulent time in American history. This is not a book of

facts and numbers but an attempt to document a move-

ment of empowerment, change and personal accountabili-

ty, the true essence of leadership, as you shall see.

As I spoke with citizens from across the country

and abroad, throughout the presidential campaign of

2008, I was moved to tears by many of the stories of

hardships that people are faced with in these current

times. I heard countless stories of foreclosures, health care

calamities, joblessness and concerns for education and

energy reform. There has been a quiet, hidden despera-

tion in America as citizens without a voice and nowhere

else to turn, retreat in despair. Household budgets have

been stretched beyond the limit. Far too many of us are

denied affordable healthcare. Our schools are under-

funded, overcrowded and understaffed. Jobs are being

lost to an overseas market and the insecurities of the

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Middle East crisis make us wonder if world peace can

ever happen.

And yet as I heard story after story, I also heard the

voice of hope. For the first time many Americans are

hearing—and speaking—hope. For many, hope means

change. Obama has mobilized a grassroots movement

that spans all ages and generations. And from this hope

comes passion—a passion to do more, to have more, to BE

more. It is this passion that drives any organization. It is

this passion that drives any individual. It is this passion

that drives America.

This is the catalyst of both the entrepreneurial spi-

rit and the intrapreneurial1 spirit that is the hallmark of

our success as a nation. In recent years we have seen an

increase of jobs and labor moving to foreign markets. Our

current government continues to feed us a daily diet of

negativity based on any number of fears—terrorism, the

1 Intrapreneur: An individual who works as an entrepreneur within an organization, group or team. The qualities of an intrapreneur include passion, commitment, resourcefulness, creativity and initia-tive. Intrapreneurs are risk-takers who see problems as opportunities and assume direct responsibility for tasks and outcomes. For a more detailed examination of this phenomenon, see “Creating the Intra-preneur: The Search for Leadership Excellence”

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failure of our economy, lack of resources, etc. And yet for

just as many and more, the challenge of the status quo has

begun. Barack Obama is a leader of intrapreneurs. He has

challenged us to BE and FEEL our intrapreneurial spirit.

Intrapreneurship is natural to most people. At

birth, we came packaged with the innate characteristics of

curiosity, ambition, flexibility, creativity and tenacity—all

necessary components of Intrapreneurship. We were born

with passion, commitment, confidence and initiative. It is

this combination of positive human energies that directed

us to take our first step. Now, far from birth, in the intra-

preneurial spirit, Barack Obama calls each of us to reach

deep into ourSelves and call forth our innate positive

energies of enthusiasm, ambition, hope and desire. In his

own words:

…. I stand before you tonight because all across America

something is stirring. What the nay-sayers don't understand is

that this election has never been about me. It's been about

you. For eighteen long months, you have stood up, one by

one, and said enough to the politics of the past. You under-

stand that in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to

try the same old politics with the same old players and expect

a different result. You have shown what history teaches us—

that at defining moments like this one, the change we need

doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washing-

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ton. Change happens because the American people demand

it—because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new

leadership, a new politics for a new time.

Senator Barack Obama • Acceptance Speech at the

Democratic National Convention

August 28, 2008

As you read through these pages, dominant

themes will become apparent. These themes are all an-

swers to the original questions—what makes a superior

leader? What makes Barack Obama a superior leader? The

leadership traits identified by voices from all across

America and shared by leadership and business experts

are:

Understands the Energy of the Human Spirit—

The Entrepreneurial/Intrapreneurial Spirit: Each of us is

an energy system with a level of accountability, integrity,

tenacity, honesty, and creativity. Our results in work,

play, relationships, even our politics, are dependent upon

the extent to which we infuse our spirit, our Selves, our

passion—our Energy into all that we do.

Ingenuity and Innovation: The creative ability to

come up with new and innovative ideas and cherish the

opportunity to implement them.

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Commitment: Once the vision is defined, resiliency

is the necessary ingredient to stay focused on the end

result.

Autonomy: The ability to take a lead on a project,

working independently if necessary, and allowing others

to do the same.

Risk: Is comfortable taking risks and accepts all

possible outcomes understanding that falling down isn’t

failure, but staying down is a show-stopper. Comfortable

with risk, the Intrapreneurial Leader works to create an

environment that is safe for others to take calculated risks

based on analysis and sound judgment. All new thoughts,

growth, and ideas can only originate within the context of

risk.

Situational Analysis: The ability to analyze and

evaluate data independently in order to make effective

and accurate decisions. From analysis comes the know-

ledge and confidence to devise and implement effective

strategies to manage and locate available resources.

Empowerment: The Intrapreneurial Leader has the

ability to instill the vision in all members of the organiza-

tion. Managers prioritize; supervisors direct; Intrapre-

neurial Leaders will call forth the positive internal

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energies/passions to move the organization to the fulfill-

ment of the vision.

Relational/Communication Skills: Intrapreneurial

Leaders have the ability to be effective two-way commu-

nicators of ideas, instructions and enthusiasm. People are

the greatest asset of any organization, group, and team of

any size. People are the source of power of the organiza-

tion. Success depends on a leader’s ability to communi-

cate the vision and move people to act toward achieving

established goals.

Can Embrace Diversity: People are the power of

any organization. Positive results come from the willing-

ness and ability to work together and support each other.

Vision: A vision begins with objectives and a plan

for accomplishing them with discipline, organization and

prioritization.

So as you enter this era of history, pay close atten-

tion to the words of our national and global citizens.

These are the voices of hope, idealism and possibility—

The American Dream. More than the words of experts,

the voices recorded here are of experience—of life expe-

rience—the only experience that really matters. It is the

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chorus of millions of voices who, for two years chanted

“Yes We Can”; In November, 2008 chanted, “Yes We Did”

and now in 2009 loudly proclaims, “Yes We Will”.

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Chapter 1

Intrapreneurial Leadership

Defined

For alongside our famous individualism, there's another ingre-

dient in the American saga, a belief that we are connected as

one people. If there's a child on the south side of Chicago

who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child. If

there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for her pre-

scription and has to choose between medicine and the rent,

that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandmother. If

there's an Arab American family being rounded up without

benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil

liberties. It's that fundamental belief—I am my brother's kee-

per, I am my sister's keeper—that makes this country work.

It's what allows us to pursue our individual dreams, yet still

come together as a single American family. “E pluribus Un-

um.” Out of many, one.

Senator Barack Obama

Boston, MA • July 27, 2008

SO HOW DID A SKINNY BOY with large ears and a funny

name find himself at this place, at this time? How did a

boy who defines cultural, racial, religious and interna-

tional diversity find himself poised to become leader of

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the most powerful country on the planet? He did it by

following the principles of Intrapreneurial Leadership. To

begin to understand Intrapreneurial Leadership re-read

the quote at the top of this page.

Intrapreneurial Leadership begins with the power

that exists within each of us. It continues within the

‘synergy’ created when people are able to work together

to achieve a common

goal. Synergy is the

alignment and collabora-

tion of individuals to

increase power and

effectiveness to produce

results that would other-

wise be improbable.

Intrapreneurial Leader-

ship creates an environ-

ment that results in the synergy of human energies.

Intrapreneurial Leadership does not just happen by

chance or the positive intent to do so. It is the result of the

application of specific universal principles of human

energies.

Barack Obama knows this energy— this power—

well. He understands how these universal principles are

The reason I think Obama is such a great leader is because of his ability to command an audience with such an air of respect and grandeur but at the same time he has such a sense of humbleness. That is a quality you don't see a lot of in politicians—if at all—these days. [It] is the act of being humble yet still having respect for yourself and others.

Kathy Wilson

Bowie, MD

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at work, not only within him, but within others as well.

To become an Intrapreneurial Leader you need not read

another word here. You can simply observe Barack

Obama in action. I have nothing new to offer. All I can

promise you is documentation on what has unfolded

right in front of us. Here you are presented the universal

principles of human energy systems that I also have used

with enormous success. Often I am asked, “But do these

principles really work?” To which I can now reply, “Don’t

take my word for it. Just observe what Barack Obama has

accomplished.”

To further define Intrapreneurial Leadership, let’s

begin with leadership. Leadership is the activity or inten-

tion of directing or influencing the behaviors and though-

ts of people in order to attain a goal. It is the deliberate

use of power to achieve the desired results. It is critical to

your success that you understand that it is not power over

people that allows you to achieve your goals; it is power

with people that you achieve positive results. In order to

accomplish this you must understand the concept of

energy.

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WHAT MAKES A LEADER? Is it the amount of time they have

spent in positions of power? No, it isn't. Is it that they never

change their original strategy, for fear of “losing face”? No, it

isn't. Are you automatically a leader because you've been in a

war? No, you aren't. What makes a leader is a true understand-

ing of the issues at hand, not only how they affect people right

now and right here, but their long-term ramifications and their

affect on the world, as well as the affect of any solution for

these issues. What makes a leader is bringing people together is

moments of crisis and uniting them for the better good. What

makes a leader is having passion for always doing the right

thing, regardless of the pressures to take an easier road. What

makes a leader is inspiring that same passion in others.... Ba-

rack Obama is a true leader. History will find him to be one of

the greatest leaders ever known. With all the hard times, hypo-

crites, and skepticism in the world today, the fact that Obama

can still infuse that kind of faith and hope in me, and countless

others, and where he can take this country—now that is a true

leader.

Jessica Smith

Amesbury, MA

Let’s be clear. Here energy describes that inner,

nonphysical source of ‘power’ that drives all of us. We

consist of two distinct energy systems. Each of us is an

energy system made up of two sub-energy systems, the

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first of the body, the second, of mind and spirit. The first,

the physical energy system, includes the five senses.

While the physical energy system of the body is impor-

tant, it is the second, nonphysical human energy system

that is the primary power of each individual and of each

group or organization.

Life is about energy. Your results, your power, in

life are dependent on how you use and control energy. As

a leader, you must understand that your results are

dependent upon your use and control of organizational

energy. While energy exists in many different forms, your

primary concern as a leader, is the energy of the individu-

al, the nonphysical, human energy that exists within each

of us, within the people that

make up your teams. These are

the energies that fuel our

thoughts, passions, emotions,

ideas, motivations, and self-

esteem.

“Energy” is classified as life energy when it cannot

be produced by physical means or measured by scientific

instruments. Such energies are life energies; they are

produced, perceived, and used by people—life entities.

You can’t go down to the local hardware store and say,

If you have the heart and the determination to inspire and moti-vate others into action only then can you call yourself a leader.

Jeremy Everett

Tripoli, IA

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“Give me a pound of love, a quart of intelligence, and a

bag of happiness.”

The forms of human energy, life energy, include

will, consciousness, mental energy, emotional energy,

human communications, and relationships. The sounds or

the words on paper that we make to communicate are

physical energies; but what we communicate—

information, ideas, feelings, beliefs, values, desires, and

needs, are nonphysical, human energies. Likewise, infor-

mation, knowledge, intelligence, creativity, and intuition

are also human energies. Information may be represented

physically with letters on this page, or 1 and 0’s in a

computer memory, but the information itself is mental

energy.

You operate on energy. At the end of the day you

are usually tired, of low-energy, and sleep to recharge

your life energy. You awaken in the morning full of

energy for a new day, or charged with negative energy if

you are unhappy with your life situation. You may think

that is a purely physical, biological recharge, but sleeping

is much more than that. It also recharges your life ener-

gies. Your mind operates with energy. Every thought,

idea, datum, memory, image, or vision is an energy form,

molded by your energy.

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Your emotions are energies. Joy, passion, love, en-

thusiasm, satisfaction, monotony, indifference, anger,

fear, anxiety, rage, worry, guilt, resentment, hate, sorrow,

loneliness, sadness, grief, desperation, and depression—

all of these are energies. Pain and suffering; love and

happiness are all energies. Understanding that the most

important energies of all are the human life energies

within the individual—mind, feelings, and your interac-

tions with others—is critical to your power in life. These

are the energies that most affect and control the individu-

al, family, groups, and organizations.

The human energies are the most powerful ener-

gies that exist. Power is the ability to produce the desired

results in any area of life, and for any person or any

group. As human energy is the most powerful of all

energies, power in life depends on the ability to control

human energies. Understanding this fundamental prin-

ciple of human behavior and motivation is what allows

the Intrapreneurial Leader to experience astounding

personal and organizational results.

Everything powerful that exists is an energy sys-

tem. An energy system is any structure, physical or

human, that combines and concentrates energies to create

the power to produce the desired objectives. All groups

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and organizations are human energy systems. You,

others, your family, your teams, and your business are all

energy systems. Your understanding of life and energy

systems and your understanding and application of the

principles of human energy will create the power neces-

sary to achieve your desired goals.

Consider any organization or human energy sys-

tem. Take a look at your family. Is there much negative

energy in the form of sadness, fear, anxiety, blame, re-

sentment or depression? If so, than more than likely you

have kids in rebellion, arguments, reduced financial flow

or strained relation-

ships. It is the negative

human, nonphysical

energies “inside” of

people that cause

negative energies and

poor results in life.

Now, let’s go further,

take a look at the

national situation. Is there much negative energy happen-

ing here? How much negative energy, in the form of

sadness, fear, anxiety, or blame can you find? You do not

have to operate with negative energy within you, your

On August 4th, 2008 I had the privilege of going to a Barack Obama Speech in Lansing. I have to say, as an 18 year old college student, and in the words of an ole song: 'from a state that gets pneumonia, when America gets a cold', Barack Obama inspired me that things can get done here in Michigan and America, and that the American Dream, can be renewed once again.

Derrick Chamberlain

Midland, MI

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family, your community, or your organizations. By

understanding how it is generated, as part of the human

energies of the human being, negative energy can be

eliminated.

Intrapreneurial Leadership begins here: under-

standing that positive results depend on the ability to

understand the human energies of people within organi-

zations. The results of any organization (human energy

system) depend on whether people and teams are operat-

ing on positive or negative human energy. A human

energy system can be a family, a neighborhood, a city, or

a nation. The end results produced by any human energy

system depend upon the collective energies of the people

that make up the energy system.

In short, the nonphysical, spiritual Self, includes

three major areas of energies:

1. Mental phenomena: Your level of cause and re-

sponsibility, ideas and intuition, intelligence and

creativity, beliefs and values, knowledge and

memories.

2. Emotional energies: Includes all emotions and

feelings, both positive and negative: joy, enthu-

siasm, like and dislike, interest, happiness, anger,

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20

worry, fear, hate, resentment, guilt, sadness, grief,

depression, etc.

3. Motivations and behaviors: Includes your rela-

tionships with others; these are always energies

and include such factors as principles and integri-

ty, communication and affinity, negotiations and

agreements, service and love.

All of the important experiences of life—

intelligence, creativity, personal power, good relation-

ships, joy, love and happiness, etc.—are your nonphysi-

cal, spiritual expression of Self. Your ability to lead, to

direct change, begins with

this experience of Self and

your relationship and ability

to understand and control

these nonphysical energies.

Barack Obama, in a

full embrace of Intrapre-

neurial Leadership, has

initiated and demonstrates a

powerful strategy of leadership for the third millennium.

While his opponents would diminish his success by

explaining that it’s all ‘talk’, he’s just delivers a good

A leader is someone who helps others to be better leaders at what they do through mutual learning. Barack Obama often talks of a bottom-up approach in problem solving and getting the nation back on track. It means empowering every-one to be a leader.

Ted Tata

Stoughton, MA

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21

speech—there is far more to it than that. Yes, Obama is

motivational with a powerful ability to inspire, but as any

supervisor, manager, or parent knows, motivation and

inspiration do not last for long.

And yet, Obama successfully moved and grew a

grassroots movement for over two years with no signs of

slowing down, even as he has moved into the presidency.

Enthusiasm, passion, and commitment remain high

among supporters. Each month, more and more people

added their support to his grassroots campaign move-

ment—individuals ready to provide whatever resources

they could. Some of his most ardent supporters are un-

employed, have lost homes, have out-of-control health-

care costs, are living paycheck to paycheck—and still,

they squirreled away their dollars to donate to his cam-

paign, many continuing to provide financial support even

after the election has been won.

Barack Obama has catapulted himself to a place in

history by his ability to first harness, and then unleash,

the positive human life energies of millions, worldwide.

He has transformed the internal energy systems of indi-

viduals from negative energy to positive energy. In turn,

that individual energy, in synergy with others, has

created a whole that is more significant, more powerful

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than any force on earth. This is the energy that fuels the

nonphysical self. It is this collective energy that binds us

together as a nation and as a global community. In many

of his speeches, Barack Obama makes reference to the

biblical dilemma, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Ultimately

we will all rise together or we will all fall together. Once

we understand that, the answer to this timeless question

becomes clear. History will note that the hallmark of

Barack Obama’s grassroots campaign was the high level

of personal empowerment that participants enjoyed.

This increase in personal power resulted in a high

level of creativity, enthusiasm, resourcefulness and

initiative. People were encouraged and invited to partici-

pate at whatever level they could. As we move through-

out 2009, Barack Obama continues to provide citizens the

opportunity to experience themselves as creative and

empowered participants of government. In December,

2008, citizens were asked to host house parties to assist in

determining which issues warrant immediate priority.

Over 4,000 people hosted “Change is Coming” house

parties in all 50 states.

In a state of personal empowerment, individuals

enjoy the experience of positive energy. From this state of

empowerment, individuals become innovative thinkers.

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23

Innovation is the fundamental ingredient of intrapre-

neurial and entrepreneurial enterprise. Innovation is the

foundation of our culture, the hallmark of the American

Dream as further explained in the next chapter.

JOHN MCCAIN RECENTLY ridiculed Barack Obama for telling

“Joe the Plumber”(in reality “Sam the contractor behind on

paying his taxes”) that he wanted to “spread the wealth.”

McCain said he wanted “Joe” to keep his wealth—actually

much less than reported—to himself. McCain insisted that

Obama’s tax plan would hurt Joe’s plan of buying his employ-

er’s plumbing business when all indications are that Sam would

actually benefit from Obama’s plan. Such is the continued

misrepresentation that has become a hallmark of the McCain

campaign. Obama’s desire to “spread the wealth” deserves

more consideration.

Spreading the wealth is actually what we should be doing

individually and as a society, rather than hoarding wealth as

John McCain and the Republicans suggest. Those who suggest

McCain is uncomfortable with his own message may have

merit to their position, judging by his campaign demeanor. The

accuracy of this observation will become obvious following the

election. Our best response now, however, is to treat the Arizo-

na senator with compassion for the entrapped position he may

have provided for himself and to address the overriding morali-

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Intrapreneurial Leadership Defined

24

ty of the issue he now presents as an attack on the Obama

campaign.

Hoarding wealth simply flies in the face of all accepted

human wisdom, no matter what the culture may be. Some

strands of Jewish teaching value wealth as a sign of divine

favor, but good stewardship and generosity are required of the

worthy recipient. Some aspects of modern Buddhist teaching

seem to reflect wealth possession and creation as a value, but

classic Buddhist teaching seems to focus more on avoiding

material wealth as a spiritual distraction. Still, as with Jewish

teaching, stewardship and generosity are valued qualities.

Personal blessings are to be shared with others in the community.

Christians specifically are urged not to hoard up treasure on

earth but rather to gather spiritual treasure. While Christian

teaching and its Jewish antecedents may provide the most

cogent admonition against John McCain's campaign position, it

is certain that his call for individuals to hoard wealth contra-

dicts the deepest strands of world moral teaching. No spiritual

teaching views wealth hoarding as a value.

The dragon in western culture hoards wealth but has no

idea what to do with it. He imprisons the virgin but has no idea

what to do but frighten her. His obsession with the goal of

possession inhibits knowledge. He can only learn by releasing

his self absorbed concentration on the tantalizing beauty he

hoards to become a part of the larger community, no longer

threatening civilization by fiery annihilation. He then becomes

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25

the oriental dragon, a source of communal wisdom and an

expression of communal wealth. The oriental dragon brings

blessing, in essence spreading the wealth.

The responsibility of tithing is the principle behind com-

munal contribution through taxation. The object is to show

concern for and stewardship of the community by giving back

a portion of personal income to support community needs. This

commitment acknowledges that religious and also civil com-

munities sustain personal activity and well being. Contributions

to supporting communities are therefore as much acts of self

interest as they are of generosity.

Personal philanthropy is quite a different thing. Here gene-

rosity is shown to chosen people, organizations or communities

by generous benefactors. Philanthropy is implicit in Republican

ideas that high financial achievers should keep their wealth to

dole out to worthy causes as they choose. This is the principal

of “trickle down” economics. While this attitude values per-

sonal generosity, it provides little sustenance for the larger

community.

Philanthropy is selective and limited in its scope by the

awareness and generosity of contributors. Philanthropic indi-

viduals and organizations tend to address immediate rather

than chronic conditions and overall maintenance concerns.

Through the shared tithe—like contribution of general taxation

governments are able to distribute resources over the broad

range of concerns affecting civil and social wellbeing.

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26

Shared representation in governing bodies, such as con-

gress, state legislatures, county and municipal councils provide

the broad consensus needed to identify shared concerns. While

no individual citizen may agree with all areas of social concern,

each individual has power to express opinion through persua-

sion and ultimately through the ballot. This is in essence the

social contract underlying our democracy. The “bottom up”

economics reflected in responsible taxation reflects the idea

that we will all contribute most effectively from positions of

wellbeing as opposed to neediness.

Starving animals or people may eat any proffered morsel

but they will still die of starvation unless the overall lack of

resources is addressed. While we may each offer food to an

individual through personal generosity, world hunger can only

be effectively addressed by our concerted action as individuals

within a world community. This example simple demonstrates

the difference between philanthropic contribution, no matter

how laudable, and united social action.

The past eight years have provided sufficient evidence of

the ineffectiveness of “trickle down” economics in addressing

civil and social issues. Our physical and social structures are

crumbling from fiscal neglect as a result. The “bottom up”

approach of sharing wealth through responsible taxation is the

only means to effectively address these issues. Because hoard-

ing is never a good idea, McCain's idea of reducing taxes and

freezing spending will only cripple our economy. Paul Krug-

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27

man's recent New York Times article encouraging infrastruc-

ture investment as a means of job creation and economic re-

newal in response to the current crisis is an example of creating

and spreading wealth from the bottom up, the only way wealth

creation can effectively work for the good of all.

Positive response to taxation does in fact become an act of

patriotism as Joe Biden recently suggested. While qualifications

may be applied to provide overall fairness in tax assessment,

depending upon individual circumstances, tax loopholes allow-

ing those with means to avoid contribution are harmful to the

social structure. Anyone choosing to use such loopholes to

avoid the shared civic duty of contributing through tax assess-

ment are as unpatriotic as religious observers refusing to pay

for the upkeep of religious institutions are unfaithful.

We all benefit from the society in which we live. In Ameri-

ca we pride ourselves on living in the greatest nation on earth.

But we will only be great as long as we unite. It is simply a

matter of giving back to the society that sustains us, so that we

all experience wealth together without deprivation.

Douglas Robinson

Great Falls, MT

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Chapter 4

Autonomy

AUTONOMY: The ability to take a lead on a project,

working independently if necessary, and allowing others

to do the same.

In the end, that’s all most Americans are asking for. It’s not a

lot. The people I’ve met during this campaign in town halls

and living rooms; on farms and front porches—they know

that government can’t solve all their problems, and they don’t

expect it to. They’re willing to do their part—to work harder

and study more and replace the remote controls and video

games with books and homework. They believe in personal

responsibility and self-reliance. They don’t like seeing their

tax dollars wasted.

Senator Barack Obama

Springfield, MO • July 20, 2008

YOU NOW KNOW THAT as an Intrapreneurial Leader, any

organization is an energy system. Understanding it from

this perspective will unlock for you new levels of power

and control. Energies rarely work alone. A single kind of

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30

energy working alone can produce only very limited

results. Energies combine and synergize to work together

in energy systems, which in turn are composed of sub-

systems. “Synergize” means to create synergy. Synergy is

the alignment, cooperation, and synchronization of

different energies to increase power, to produce results

that would otherwise be impossible. Power is the result of

the synergy of energies.

FOR TOO LONG, our country has been seized by fear and division

which has polarized our electorate, has threatened civil dis-

course and discouraged constructive dialogue. I believe that

Barack has a unique ability to inspire, to help us to find the best

in ourselves and to begin to bridge the divide created by cur-

rent destructive, self-serving partisan politics. Such integrity

and leadership will be crucial as we collectively face the shared

challenges and sacrifices that ill be necessary to support our

beloved country, our world and the future of our children.

David Loewenstein PhD

Miami, Florida

Every human energy system, including a couple, a

family, a work group or team, a small business, a huge

corporation, a nonprofit organization, a church, a political

party, a government, a society, or a nation operates on

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31

synergy. Human energy systems intake, transport, use,

transform, and output energies of many kinds and forms.

Every such group is an alignment of individual energies

working toward common goals and purposes. Group or

organizational energy systems synergize and concentrate

energies of all kinds, human and physical, to create

enough power to achieve things far beyond the power of

lesser energy systems or the individual.

Now consider Barack Obama’s grassroots cam-

paign organization. Is it not the perfect example of the

alignment of individual energies working toward com-

mon goals and purposes? Did it not use energies of all

kinds—human, technological, and financial, for example?

While some of these energies are of the physical universe

(technology, money, tools, etc.), the most powerful of

these are the nonphysical human energies such as com-

mitment; decision-making; persistence; ability to plan,

design, communication, analysis; and the human emo-

tional energies.

All of these energies work together to create the

human energy system that is who we are. The individual

then, is a subsystem of a larger, more complex human

energy system. Any organization then, is the collective

result of the individual human energy subsets.

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32

While there are physical actions that take place

within any campaign such as phone banking, hanging

posters, or canvassing—the meanings, impulses, and

motivations behind them originate in the internal, non-

physical human energies. For those who question if these

energies exist, note your own energy level when you have

participated in a cause that you were committed to. What

energies were going on inside of you? Do you see these in

action in your spouse, your children, your family, and

relatives? Are any of these energies affecting the team-

work and performance of groups you participate in at

work? Are any of these energies affecting, positively or

negatively, the performance, power, and production of

organizations of which you

are a part? Absolutely.

You can see that all

of these energies occur not

only in you, but also in

others, in all groups, and in

all organizations. You

experience, you perceive

and feel, and you live daily

with all of these energies.

I feel very strongly that our country needs a sharp and decisive change in our government. It must represent who we are and what Ameri-ca is. We are diverse in our beliefs. I see in Barack a chance to have a leader who is honest, who believes in himself and this country. He is a leader who sees possibilities and has thought of solutions.

Maggie Walton

Houston, TX

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33

We all do, and so does every group and organization

comprised of people.

Are these energies important in life? Obviously,

they are. They control us, and we control most of the

other energy systems. Are they complex? What happens

to the complexity of the organizational energy system

when you have many people involved?

If you consider the quantity and complexity of

your own human energies (mind, thoughts, emotions,

feelings, motivations, behaviors, likes, and dislikes), and

that every person has more or less the same quantity and

complexity, then add into the equation all the possible

interactions of all the energies of all people in the organi-

zation, the overall complexity is vast. Understanding the

importance of energy systems, and of understanding life

and organizations in terms of energy and energy systems

is critical to your success in life. The human being—the

being or spirit part, not the body—is an energy system.

You now know that this system is not physical energy; it

is nonphysical or human energy, but no less important or

any less powerful—quite the contrary.

The human energy system, the individual person,

is the most powerful energy system that exists. It creates

all other man-made energy systems, and is the basic

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34

“chip” or “circuit” that comprises and operates all other

man-made energy systems, including organizations such

as the grassroots campaign movement that delivered

Barack Obama to the Oval Office. Each individual in-

volved in that campaign is recognized as the basic power

that moved that organization. Understanding that the

human energy system (mind, emotions, and behaviors) is

a coherent system is important. It is not just a collection of

unrelated or randomly occurring energies. It is a con-

nected group of human energy systems working toward a

common purpose.

America is the sum of our dreams. And what binds us togeth-

er, what makes us one American family, is that we stand up

and fight for each other's dreams, that we reaffirm that fun-

damental belief—I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's

keeper—through our politics, our policies, and in our daily

lives. It's time to do that once more. It's time to reclaim the

American dream.

Senator Barack Obama

Bettendorf, IA • November 7, 2007

With the understanding of how human energy sys-

tems operate you can now see that in an environment of

negativity, the organizational climate is degraded. Amidst

the negative climate you will observe an erosion of trust,

performance, commitment and motivation. Leaders who

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35

possess an intrapreneurial mindset are resilient and free

of emotional reactivity.

Recall the first presidential debate of the 2008 elec-

tion season. Obama remained poised and confident

throughout the event. His responses were direct and

deliberate. He main-

tained eye contact and

addressed his opponent

directly, in stark contrast

to Senator McCain’s

demeanor. The leader

who can maintain and

increase positive energy

can maintain a state of

personal power, regard-

less of the circumstances.

Your experience of positive or negative internal

energy is what determines your positive or negative

thoughts and actions. Your negative energy (emotional)

state, determines at what level ego is operating in your

life. Ego is all efforts and behaviors that try to raise you

up by putting others down and to create the illusion of

superiority by making others inferior. Ego sees life as a

teeter totter: I go up by putting you down.

I had the amazing joy of working a Town Hall meeting, as a volunteer at the Duns-more Community Center near Scranton on April 1, 2008. This was a lead-up to the PA primaries. Besides canvassing and phone-banking I drove voters to the polls…we were a gloriously representative gang. Black, white, Hispanic, old, and young. All this in Millford, PA!

Catherine Sebastian

Millford, PA

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Ego is the intent to compensate one’s negative self

belief by projecting them onto and invalidating others

(make them less); thus trying to assume a positive state of

self—a state or experience of more knowledge, power or

esteem. All ego is projection and polarization, a faulty

attempt to compensate for low self-esteem. Obviously,

ego is a negative energy behavior. It will always provoke

resistance, ego, and sabotage in others as they will often

react to negative energy with negative energy.

WHAT GOT ME MOTIVATED ENOUGH to donate money is Barack

Obama's confidence in ordinary people. He sent a message

telling us that we do matter, that our lives matter, that we're

capable of determining what the government should be doing.

It's not something we hear from government very often if at all.

He's the first truly inclusive politician I can recall ever. When I

read his website I was convinced to vote for him. Why? Be-

cause for the first time in my life a leader asked for my opinion.

I believe Senator Obama to be the last hope for middle and

lower economic class citizens.

Deborah Noah

Carmichael, CA

What we observe in Barack Obama is a man able to

maintain and create a positive state of Self from within.

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37

Out of this elevated internal experience of Self, repeated

character assassinations of his opponents were unneces-

sary. Leaders operating in negative energies such as fear,

anger, anxiety or sadness will often choose to invalidate

the state of Self of others in a false attempt to elevate their

own lack of self-worth. Ego is always negative energy

toward others, the end result being resistance, whether

overt (rebellion) or covert (sabotage). This resistance

makes it difficult to achieve personal and organizational

goals and objectives.

Ego can show itself in many situations—within the

family, in the workplace, within any human energy

system. Ostentation to show one’s power, wealth, or

success is also a form of ego. In our society at large, many

will pretend to be better than others as they show off

designer clothes and accessories. Much of the advertising

industry lives by selling people expensive things they

don’t need so that they can try to compensate for their

negative state of Self as smart, successful, and worthy as

others. We even have names for it: “conspicuous con-

sumption” and “keeping up with the Joneses.” Ego

demands respect that it has not earned and so will often

interpret others’ behavior as impertinence or insolence.

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38

Ego spells the death of autonomy. First of all, in a

state of negative energy you are not operating in wisdom,

power or high esteem. Secondly, as a leader, if you are

operating in a dictator mentality you will destroy good

relations, cooperation, and support. Because of the innate

desire to experience happiness, people will seek to pre-

serve and expand their inner state of Self. Therefore, they

will resist the leader’s ego, which tries to reduce their

experience of the life energies of wisdom and power.

They will resist openly if they can, and covertly through

sabotage if they can’t.

Since ego activates

ego, people often get into

ego struggles, which often

show up as a power struggle.

Ego then, is all forms of

intent to elevate a dimi-

nished state of Self, not by

‘polishing’ your inner Self,

increasing your personal excellence or achievement, but

by invalidating others. Ego is all efforts to increase ‘who

you are’, not be expressing more wisdom, power or

esteem, but by trying to ‘steal’ these from others.

For the first time in my life I feel inspired to become involved in the political process. This is due to the honesty, integrity, judg-ment, intelligence, and leadership abilities of the most inspiring political leader of our time, Barack Obama.

Roberta Kelinson

Rock Island, IL

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39

Your creations of Self are subtle energies, but they

are the most powerful things in your life. They begin with

and determine your thoughts, beliefs, actions, and there-

fore all other aspects of your life. Intrapreneurial leaders,

such as Barack Obama, understand that to the degree that

people are in positive energy, they will happily contribute

their time, energy and other resources to achieve the end

result. To the degree that people are unhappy, they will

express that unhappiness in the form of negative energy,

injecting it into the energy system, in this case our politi-

cal process.

Intrapreneurial leaders are those that know that if

high levels of people in your teams are expressing emo-

tions such as hostility, anger, resentment, spite, jealousy,

fear, indifference, apathy, frustration, impatience, and

depression, you cannot achieve the results you desire. In

other words the need to experience happiness, satisfaction

and enthusiasm is the controlling energy in every person.

Every thought, action and behavior, has as its intent a

desire to create the internal experience of wisdom and

power. This creates an experience of high self-esteem

which naturally leads to happiness and satisfaction. How

a person feels will determine whether they generate

positive or negative energy. To eliminate negative energy,

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Autonomy

40

conflicts and problems, and increase the productivity of

your organization, you must understand how people

feel…. and… you must be secure enough within your own

energies to let them BE and fully express themselves as

the creative spirits that they are. This is the hallmark of

Barack Obama. He speaks to our inner Self; he speaks to

our creative spirit. He calls forth the leader that resides

within all of us.

A TRUE LEADER NEEDS to posses the quality to inspire the

masses. Barack Obama has what it takes to do this. This is the

first time in my life that I have been inspired by a politician,

and given hope that things can change. I live in West Virginia; I

was so ashamed of the racism here during the primary, but I

kept working by talking to people and educating my neighbors.

Change truly can happen. I know this because I am finally

hearing people that said “no way will I vote for him” telling me

yes he has my vote. I have seen my dedication to Senator Ob-

ama pay off, and I know he is change we can believe in.

I have been so inspired by what Barack Obama has accom-

plished, sometimes moved to tears. It is a truly great day in this

nation, for today Senator Obama will accept the nomination for

President of The United States of America. What a glorious

day, and on the forty fifth anniversary of Martin Luther King's

deliverance of his I Have A Dream speech. On this night I re-

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41

flect on the many people with whom I have spoken with in

West Virginia. I reflect on how all some knew in March was

that Obama was a man of color, and that some of these people

could not understand the campaign materials.

I reflect on the time I have spent explaining what Obama

stands for and that change can happen. I reflect on the people

whom after listening to me have decided to vote for Obama,

including the ninety year old man who stated he never thought

he would vote for a black man, but for the good of his country

he will. For Barack Obama has given him hope that things can

be better in this country with the right leadership. The United

States Of America needs a leader who can inspire the people,

give us hope, and make each and every one of us understand

our duty to our country and what it means to be an American.

We have that in Senator Obama.

I am confident that not only will he bring hopes of a better

America to the people; he will lead us into a new generation of

politics that will not be run by special interest groups or lob-

byists. I know so many are tired of this. Last but not least, you

need to trust a leader and Obama is honest. I believe that he is

able to reverse peoples’ distrust of government that has come

about during the Bush era. Hope, change, honesty—three great

traits of a leader and three great things about Barack Obama. I

feel so blessed to be able for once, to vote for someone so

worthy, and someone who is not named Bush or Clinton. Ba-

rack Obama is the leadership and the change we need! I am

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42

thankful I have had the opportunity to work on the biggest

grass roots effort since JFK.

I am truly inspired. Hope is still in my heart, as I see people

in West Virginia change their minds, getting over their racial

issues for the good of their country. It takes a strong honest

leader to reach and change the minds of as many of these

people that I have been talking to. That is proof enough for me

that he is what we need. It is wonderful to be inspired by a

politician that I can vote for. Before this the only two I found

that were special were JFK and RFK. This is truly a great time

in the history of this great nation.

Stephanie Shank

Elkins, WV

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Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Situational Analysis

SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: The ability to analyze and

evaluate data independently in order to make effective

and accurate decisions.

I know you didn't do this just to win an election and I know

you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the

enormity of the task that lies ahead….We know the chal-

lenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our life-

time—two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in

a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are

brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the

mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are

mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children

fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay

their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new

energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to

build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

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44

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We

may not get there in one year or even one term, but Ameri-

ca—I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that

we will get there. I promise you—we as a people will get

there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many

who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as Pres-

ident, and we know that government can't solve every prob-

lem. But I will always be honest with you about the

challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we

disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of

remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America

for two-hundred and twenty-one years—block by block, brick

by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of win-

ter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is

not the change we seek—it is only the chance for us to make

that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the

way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service

and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and

work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other.

Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us any-

thing, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while

Main Street suffers—in this country, we rise or fall as one

nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same parti-

sanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our

politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from

this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party

to the White House—a party founded on the values of self-

reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are val-

ues we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a

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45

great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility

and determination to heal the divides that have held back our

progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than

ours, “We are not enemies, but friends... though passion may

have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.” And

to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn—I may

not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your

help, and I will be your President too.

President Elect Barack Hussein Obama

Chicago, IL • November 4, 2008

FROM ANALYSIS COMES THE KNOWLEDGE and confidence to

devise and implement effective strategies to manage and

locate resources of all kinds. Positive emotional energy is

what grows organizations, while negative emotional

energy is what harms the organization. A person’s expe-

rience of positive energy is what motivates them to

perform well and contribute their best. Negative energy

motivates people to resistance, conflicts, and sabotage.

The positive energy of enthusiasm, passion, interest,

commitment, determination, initiative, and resourceful-

ness in your teams is the energy that grows human ener-

gy systems. The negative energies of anger, fear,

resentment, hate, indifference, apathy, etc., do the most

harm to organizations. So what causes and controls these

internal, nonphysical energies? The answer lies in the

Causal Sequence:

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46

Your life functions according to a Causal Sequence

whether you know it or not, and whether you want it to

or not. You cannot escape the Causal Sequence; it controls

your existence. You can only learn how the sequence

works and harness it to your benefit. Doing so will give

you great power over life.

The Causal Sequence works like this:

Who I AM, My Energies (BE) determines

What I FEEL (positive or negative emotion) which

determines

How I THINK (my positive/negative thoughts)

then determines

How I RELATE: How I communicate & treat oth-

ers and

How I ACT, BEHAVE. My ACTIONS determine

My Results = My HAVE in life.

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47

Leaders are always working to achieve goals and

objectives. Doing so successfully depends on positive

actions, habits and behaviors. Your positive actions

include how you perform your work or business activi-

ties. It includes your driving ability, your ability to use a

computer, your hobbies, and anything else you do in life.

Your actions in life are either positive or negative. Positive

actions that leaders can take include keeping your word,

being on time, listening attentively, working with quality

and diligence, acting with response-ability and accounta-

bility. Negative actions include behaviors such as criticiz-

ing, belittling, arguing, blaming, laziness, ineffective

communications, and complaining.

As positive actions always originate in positive

thoughts, your positive thoughts originate from your

positive internal energies. If you wish to prove it for

yourself, look at anything you do, or have ever done,

from your point of view of what you were thinking at the

moment of action. Compare who you thought you would

be and feel if you did not do that action with who you

wanted to be and how you thought you would feel by

doing that action. You will find that you always acted

according to what you thought would best define who

you are— at that present moment.

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48

As you can see, the state of your mind, positive or

negative, is the seat of your actions, and therefore your

results in life. You use your mind to create thoughts,

ideas, hypotheses, solutions to problems, art, designs,

planes, machines, etc. When these are accurate reflections

of reality, of events, our mind creations are useful to

create and control resources. That creation and control is

power. Thus, the mind is our source of power over both

the external and our internal world. But the mind creates.

And, if you don’t understand it and control it, it will

control you as it haphazardly creates false realities.

Most people think that what is in their mind, what

they think is the truth. This is very seldom true. Often,

much of what we think is a distortion of reality. Many

people live far too much in their head, in a world of their

own making. The failure to understand the difference

between facts, and these created distortions causes an

infinity of problems and conflicts.

An example: Barack Obama makes a statement—

”You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig”, making

a reference that his opponent is trying to camouflage

something. His opponent creates an interpretation and

assigns a meaning to this event to others. He demands an

apology based on his interpretation, his created meaning,

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49

to the event without consideration of the originator’s

intent. You can see this often in relationships, personally

and professionally, where someone interprets the other’s

behavior, usually negatively.

WHEN I BECAME INTERESTED in the Obama campaign I began by

making phone calls, starting a blog, joining groups, and making

friends, all across this nation. I went to Austin TX to work the

Texas Primary. I helped to open an office in Bozeman for the

primary and then a new office for our general election. I am

grateful that this man, with a much more unlikely journey than

I, came along at this time, with all the right qualities. He has

the vision, the courage, and will turn the nation around, renew

our world-wide respect, heal our economy, and create a fair

healthcare system. He will end our dependency on foreign oil,

and carefully end the war in Iraq.

Nancy McCampbell

Bozeman, MT

For example, when a person is jealous (which is

always caused by negative energy such as low self-esteem

or fear of loss) interpretations of even minuscule events

can serve as triggers for the jealousy and the resulting

fights and conflicts. Your emotions (your energies) show

you—and everybody around you—who you are BEing,

your current experience of Self.

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50

Intrapreneurial Leaders, such as President Obama,

know that the only reason anyone takes anything perso-

nally is because of their own diminished sense of Self.

Here is a secret: Nothing other people do or say is ever

about you. Nothing. Even when others attack with anger

and venom, they are acting at the effect of their negative

energy, projecting their negative Self on you (to try to

escape them) and venting their own negative energy.

External events never cause your experience. Nothing that

anybody ever says or how they treat you has any effect on

you unless you give it that power, unless you import it

into your world and believe in it.

I WANT A LEADER WHO is straightforward with the American

people. Barack Obama is forthcoming with us. For example,

McCain was willing to impose a short term plan to ease gas

prices, but his plan barely made a difference. He was willing to

say whatever he thought Americans wanted to hear. Obama

was very direct with everyone by informing us that it would not

help anyone in the long run. It was just a quick fix for Memori-

al Day. I do not care for quick fixes, so I was glad when Obama

spoke out. I respect the fact that Obama refuses to engage in

negative campaigning. He has a message for the American

people. I do not care for the “kitchen sink” type of politics.

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51

Adrianna Riley-Roach

Wheatley Heights, NY

That is what we see in Barack Obama. In his ele-

vated sense of Self. He does not import into his world the

low self-esteem and emotional garbage of others. He does

not need assurance of self-worth from outside sources

and can remain impervious to the detractions of others.

Barack Obama is at Cause in generating positive energy,

and is able to hold his experience of Self in the face of all

counter-opinions. A key component of Intrapreneurial

Leadership includes the ability to vary actions and res-

ponses until you achieve the desired result, as opposed to

repeating over and over an ingrained habit of behavioral

rut.

Intrapreneurial Leaders such as Barack Obama un-

derstand that sometimes you will take a hit. Tough deci-

sions have to be made that will bring out both the positive

and negative energies of people. Superior leadership

understands how to deal with both. Intrapreneurial

leaders will learn and evaluate the current environment

and will act accordingly (with deliberation and immedia-

cy) in response to the new situation.

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52

Often that change in direction will result in an ap-

parent contradiction of a prior course of action. In many

instances Obama has been accused of ‘flip-flops’, an

apparent reversal of opinion or action to a previous

stance. What we are really observing is a leader who is

able to analyze and work with a new set of conditions and

has the confidence and wisdom to react proactively to the

new situation. In the absence of wisdom and the expe-

rience of positive internal energies, people will often

strike out at what they perceive to be the obstacle that

prevents them from obtaining the desired results.

Consider the proliferation of negative campaign ac-

tivity that happens during political seasons. Just think

what our political campaigns would be like if political

television advertising was banned! The majority of ‘attack

ads’ are termed negative because, instead of offering

proactive strategies and solutions, the focus is on usually

distorted information meant to ‘smear’ the opponent. The

tone and frequency of these ads generally increase in

intensity as Election Day approaches. Why do some

candidates resort so readily to this type of campaigning?

For these reasons:

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• A candidate has no viable platform or offers noth-

ing substantially different from another candidate

and therefore seeks distraction from his or her own

weakness.

• A candidate, operating in the negative energy of

low Cause, feels his or her candidacy is threatened.

Nothing like a nice drop in the polls to see the at-

tack ads jump right to the networks—through tele-

vision certainly isn’t the only medium used for

such tactics.

• It works. Simply put, Like Energy attracts Like

Energy. When a segment of the population is en-

trenched in negative energy, they will resonate to a

negative energy message.

One of the most blatant examples of negative cam-

paigning was Senator McCain’s and Governor Sarah

Palin’s distortion on Barack Obama’s plans to increase

taxes. For weeks, the Republican Party bombarded the

airwaves with the claim that Obama will raise taxes,

carefully neglecting that only 5% will be affected. This

deliberate distortion created fear, anxiety and mistrust.

(Sarah Palin continues her divisive tactics to create and

generate negative energy with her inflammatory interjec-

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54

tion of “death panels” into the healthcare reform debate.

While the actual wording concerns end-of-life counseling,

Palin deliberately equates this counseling with euthanasia

and infanticide.)

While the media asked surrogates of the McCain

campaign to explain the deliberate distortion, even those

responses were distorted and vague. The danger of this

strategy is that when people learn the reality of the situa-

tion, the tides of mistrust and fear often change, creating a

backlash. Take a look at these two simplified examples of

how the Causal Sequence works:

Negative Causal Sequence:

BE: I am not strong enough to beat my opponent.

FEEL: I feel worried and fearful.

THINK: I could lose. I must do anything possible to

beat my opponent.

DO: Negative attack ads, distort the truth, rash

decisions, character attacks on the opponent, erratic

behavior.

HAVE: Minimal success based on negative energy,

mistrust, internal conflicts. Campaign loss.

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55

Positive Causal Sequence:

BE: I can win.

FEEL: I feel confident, in-charge, passionate, enthu-

siastic.

THINK: Change is needed for the 21st century.

DO: Build a strategy based on facts and important is-

sues; consistent and reliable temperament.

HAVE: Strong, proactive, empowered and passionate

supporter base. Campaign success.

In April 2008, in response to a negative ad in sup-

port of his campaign John McCain stated, “…I'm making

it very clear, as I have a couple of times in the past, that

there's no place for that kind of campaigning, and the

American people don't want it.” By October 2008 he had

either forgotten the claim or abandoned this tactic. What

happened in a just a few months to create this change?

You are looking at the impact of a negative Causal Se-

quence.

Negative campaigning will have a greater impact

on persons of low self-esteem, low levels of response-

ability and low power. Negative campaigning feeds the

negative energies of people by arousing the negative

energy of fear—fear that the opponent is different than

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56

you, fear that the opponent will somehow bring you

harm, fear that you will not be safe, fear that the opponent

cannot be trusted and the list goes on. It is especially

effective with populations that have lowered educational

levels, which isn’t all that surprising. Higher education

generally indicates a higher level of wisdom, accountabili-

ty and power. This demographic can analyze data, make

informed decisions and is capable of seeing through

smear tactics.

A FEW YEARS AGO I was getting ready for work and I happened

to turn the TV on. I saw a young senator from Illinois speak. He

was speaking about the war in Iraq …What he was saying is

what I had been saying for some time. I am a veteran and sup-

port my fellow service men and women, but this war is a no go.

To my surprise, someone in government agreed and was trying

to do something about it. This past year I saw that same senator

announce he was running for president. I didn't know if he was

ready for such a task until I began watching the debates and

reading his plans. He isn't saying “his goals” but instead “our

goals.” This is our country and Obama is fine being our voice.

That is what a president is. He is our voice. We want someone

in office who will stand up for the working people of the coun-

try, not just the elite and the rich. Change is a gift and a free-

dom that we have in this beautiful country. We must change as

a society, but changing doesn't mean you throw away the true

meaning of what this country was founded on. Change is not

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57

something to be feared. Change is to be embraced and Obama

has shown me that he is indeed the right person to help lead us

in the right direction. John W. King

Buckeye, AZ

In the same way that negative energy attracts nega-

tive energy, the same holds true for positive energy. Both

energies are operating within us. We all operate at some

chronic energy level and that can be either positive or

negative. Some may label these as the pessimists and the

optimists—some will see that the glass as half full, some

will see that it as half empty. Your long-term effectiveness

as a leader depends on which type of energy you attract—

and that attraction depends on whether or not your own

chronic energy state is positive or negative. When human

negative energies are activated, people will be in rebel-

lion, have negative attitudes, experience anxiety and

conflicts will be plentiful.

Barack Obama attracted millions of grassroots

supporters before and after the election, because of his

message of positive change. As a leader, Barack Obama

speaks to the positive energies that drive us. These are the

energies of enthusiasm, collaboration, satisfaction, hope,

self-motivation, resilience, flexibility and passion. That

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58

does not mean that you will never see negative campaign-

ing from both sides of a campaign. There are times when

leaders must absolutely correct misinformation, distor-

tions and untruths. By creating mistrust and confusion in

the minds of people, negative campaigning will produce

results, however there are other distortions of the mind

that produce negative effects as well.

Intrapreneurial Leaders understand the mind crea-

tions of stories and histories. These mind creations work

like this: An event occurs. The facts are usually simple

and direct. However, some people take the event and spin

a long story around it. Usually they are both the innocent

victim and the hero/heroine, making the other person the

bad guy, the wrong or stupid one. You will find the best

examples of “Stories and Histories” in your own life. Who

delights in telling you long stories about something that

happened in the past—sometimes years ago? They will

also tell the story in present tense, present verb time, and

blow-by-blow.

Furthermore, they will tell you the same story over

and over again, at intervals of days or weeks or months,

as if you had never heard it before. The same thing hap-

pens in organizations. Turn on the TV and you will see it

in many of our political leaders. Many enterprises go out

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59

of business as they glorify days gone by when they were

“the best game in town.” While the leadership and ranks

basks in the stories of days long gone, the rest of the

world moves on. Some people become adept at basing

their entire reputation and career on a single event. If the

event had a particular emotional aspect it can become a

crutch that can always be dragged out of the closet to

parade in front of the world in the absence of a present

positive experience of Self.

To all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from

parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around

radios in the forgotten corners of our world—our stories are

singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of Ameri-

can leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world

down—we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and

security—we support you. And to all those who have won-

dered if America's beacon still burns as bright—tonight we

proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes

not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth,

but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liber-

ty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America—that America can

change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have al-

ready achieved gives us hope for what we can and must

achieve tomorrow. This election had many firsts and many

stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my

mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta.

She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to

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60

make their voice heard in this election except for one thing—

Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when

there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when

someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons—because she

was a woman and because of the color of her skin. Tonight, I

think about all that she's seen throughout her century in

America—the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the

progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the

people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we

can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their

hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak

out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can. When there was

despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she

saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs

and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threat-

ened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to

greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in

Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta

who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in

Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagi-

nation. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger

to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in

America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours,

she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

We have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is

so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves—if our

children should live to see the next century… what change

will they see? ….This is our chance to answer that call. This is

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61

our moment. This is our time—to put our people back to

work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore

prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the

American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth—that

out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope,

and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those

who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless

creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can.

President Elect Barack Hussein Obama

Chicago, Il • November 4, 2008

As you can now see, production and profit are not

the prime purpose of any human energy system, business

or individual. Not only are they secondary purposes but

they are the by-products of how well you fulfill the

primary purpose of increasing the positive human energy

of people in your organizations, families and communi-

ties. The ultimate motivation of every person is the expe-

rience to fully express themselves in positive energy as

creator and contributor. This is the only way to achieve

real and lasting happiness.

Many people have money and material things such

as success and power as their highest goals only because

they do not understand the nature of Life, the nature of

themselves as non-physical, spiritual beings. As organiza-

tions begin to understand and implement Intrapreneurial

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62

Leadership principles, energy levels in teams and

workplaces will increase resulting in the successful at-

tainment of organizational objectives.

To Senator Obama:

I watched that first debate from the University of Missis-

sippi. I want you to know that I was enormously proud of you

no matter what the pundits or spin doctors may say. I want to

explain why I was proud:

• You refrained from any personal attacks.

• You acknowledged when Senator McCain was right.

• You clearly stated when he was wrong, and why he was

wrong.

• You set forth your own views with clarity.

• You refused to talk down to the American people.

Whatever happens on Nov. 4, I will never regret having

worked hard for you as a grassroots volunteer. You have al-

ways conducted yourself with the utmost dignity and grace.

You have displayed integrity and authenticity. You have run a

positive campaign. And I know you are committed to bringing

the political parties together in Washington and people from all

walks of life around the country.

If you win, you will help to transform this nation at home,

and will restore our standing among nations. I say help, be-

cause you have always stressed that change comes from the

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63

bottom up, and that the campaign is not, ultimately, about you;

rather, it is about the American people.

Contrary to the lie that has been promulgated, to the effect

that you are presumptuous, I feel that you have your ego under

control. You have always made clear that you are not a perfect

person or candidate. I appreciate that enormously.

I feel confident that you will win the presidency.

I have been happy to spend hundreds of hours as a gras-

sroots volunteer. Through this effort, I have met many wonder-

ful people of all races and from all walks of life. Participation in

this campaign has re-energized me. I know you will be OK,

should you win or should you lose. So will I. One of the great

things you have imparted to me is the desire to remain engaged

in the effort to change this country for the better—for the rest

of my life. What we see here is more than a campaign; it is a

movement for fundamental change in the way we treat one

another in this society, whether we act out of greed and malice

or demonstrate real concern for our fellow citizens, including

the poor, the disabled and the disempowered—and forcefully

act on that concern.

I have seen many candidates come and go. You are the

most impressive one since JFK, by far. I participated in the civil

rights movement in the South during the 1960s. You have

helped to make the spirit of that movement live again. I have

worked with the poor and disabled for many years as a teacher,

counselor and advocate. You have helped to restore my sense

of commitment to such work. Finally, your example of hard

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64

work, dedication to the task and commitment to your role as

father and husband has inspired me to persevere in my own

attempt to manifest those character traits. Thank you, Barack

Obama, for the person you are. Your personal traits are as

important as the contribution you make as a politician.

Patrick Frank

Grassroots Volunteer

Kingstree, SC

BARACK OBAMA HAS THE JUDGMENT and temperament of a

leader. He will bring about the change we so desperately need.

I like his decision making process; he surrounds himself with

people who will challenge him (both democrats and republi-

cans), carefully listens to their viewpoints, and weighs all sides

before making a decision. As president, Barack Obama will

reach across party lines and bring sound solutions to the prob-

lems of the economy, the war, health care and education

reform. He will restore America's standing in the world com-

munity. I have watched Obama for many months now. I am

impressed by his honesty, intellect, integrity and calm yet

strong demeanor. That is the kind of person I want as my pres-

ident. Whatever your party affiliation, a vote for Obama is a

vote for change.

Chris Campbell

San Diego, CA

I HAVE BEEN WAITING TO SEE who Senator Obama would choose

as Vice President and was not disappointed. I don't have much

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to add to Senator Biden's speech today; he basically said it all:

courage, wisdom and pragmatism is what a leader needs. The

fact that the Senator chooses his team so wisely is tantamount

to a leader. The responsibility of power which the position of

President entails should not go into frivolous hands. Ultimately,

the defining and ultimate decisions will be the leader's. I have

nothing but good feelings about Senator Obama's sound judg-

ment, open mind and willingness to question himself.

Simone Suter

Geneva, Switzerland

WHAT MAKES OBAMA a strong leader? I would have to point to

the way he ran his campaign. Obama put together a true team

that worked together to get him elected. Although his senior

team members have been around longer than he has, none has

shown themselves to be ego driven, or in need of the spotlight.

They have worked together to build a movement from the

bottom up, and it has worked. Unlike Senator Obama's compet-

itor Senator McCain, the Obama campaign has never gone

broke or even come close to it. If Obama runs our country half

as well as he is running his campaign, then we have eight his-

toric years to look forward to that we can all be proud of!!!

Karen Whittle

Kirkland, WA

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Chapter 7

Empowerment

EMPOWERMENT: As leader, the ability to instill the

vision in all members of the organization. Managers

prioritize; supervisors direct; successful leaders will call

forth the positive internal energies/passions to move the

organization to the fulfillment of the vision.

We meet at a time when much of Wall Street is holding its

collective breath. Here at the NASDAQ and all across Ameri-

ca, the tickers are being watched with heightened anxiety and

considerable uncertainty. There is much anticipation about

tomorrow's meeting of the Fed, and with each new day, there

is hope that the headlines will bring better news than the last.

It is a hope shared by millions of Americans, men and wom-

en, who have experienced this kind of anxiety and uncertainty

long before it arrived on Wall Street…. Americans and many

others were already struggling before the problems on Wall

Street arose. Now they are looking at their homes and won-

dering if their greatest source of wealth will still have the

same value in another year, or even another month. So we

know there is a need right now to restore confidence in our

markets. We know there is a need to renew public trust in our

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68

markets… But…..this is another moment that requires, in

FDR's words, a re-appraisal of our values as a nation. I believe

that America's free market has been the engine of America's

great progress. It's created a prosperity that is the envy of the

world. It's led to a standard of living unmatched in history.

And it has provided great rewards to the innovators and risk-

takers who have made America a beacon for science, and

technology, and discovery. But I also know that in this coun-

try, our grand experiment has only worked because we have

guided the market's invisible hand with a higher principle.

It's the idea that we are all in this together. From CEOs to

shareholders, from financiers to factory workers, we all have

a stake in each other's success because the more Americans

prosper, the more America prospers.. ….We have not come

this far because we practice survival of the fittest. America is

America because we believe in creating a framework in which

all can succeed. Our free market was never meant to be a free

license to take whatever you can get, however you can get it.

And so from time to time, we have put in place certain rules

of the road to make competition fair, and open, and honest.

We have done this not to stifle prosperity or liberty, but to

foster those things and ensure that they are shared

and spread as widely as possible. In recent years, we have

seen a dangerous erosion of the rules and principles that have

allowed our market to work and our economy to thrive. In-

stead of thinking about what's good for America or what's

good for business, a mentality has crept into certain corners

of Washington and the business world that says, “what's

good for me is good enough.” In our government, we see

campaign contributions and lobbyists used to cut corners and

win favors that stack the deck against businesses and con-

sumers who play by the rules. Massive tax cuts are shoved

outside the budget window and accounting shenanigans are

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69

used to hide the full cost of this war. In the business world,

it's a mentality that sees conflicts of interest as opportunities

for profit. The quick kill is prized without regard to long-term

consequences for the financial system and the economy. And

while this may benefit the few who push the envelope as far

as it will go, it's doesn't benefit America and it doesn't benefit

the market. Just because it makes money doesn't mean it's

good for business. It's bad for business when boards allow

their executives to set the price of their stock options to guar-

antee that they'll get rich regardless of how they perform. It's

bad for the bottom line when CEOs receive massive sever-

ance packages after letting down shareholders, firing workers

and dumping their pensions….It's bad for competition when

you have an Administration that's willing to approve merger

after merger with barely any scrutiny. Such an approach

stifles innovation….Americans or most businesses. And we

will not tolerate “what's good for me is good enough” any

longer—because the only thing that's good enough is what's

best for America.

I am also asking you to join me in doing something else

today. I am asking you to remind yourselves that in this coun-

try, we rise or fall as one people. And I am asking you to join

me in ushering in a new era of mutual responsibility in Amer-

ica.

Senator Barack Obama

September, 17, 2007 • New York, NY

EVERY ONE OF US is the creator of our experience—all of it.

Whether we believe that or not, whether we accept it or

not is irrelevant. We are at Cause for everything that

shows up in life, even our emotions. We may or may not

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70

be responsible for the events and situations that we

encounter, but we are always at Cause for how we re-

spond. In any situation, you are either Cause (creator) or

Effect (victim).Cause is the ability to produce the desired

results. It is your ability to manifest and create what you

want in life—your vision, and the vision of the organiza-

tion. Leaders who act at Cause, are those who take re-

sponse-ability for their internal experience of Self.

Response-ability, you will recall, is your ability to respond

to any given situation.

This is the origin of

personal power. As

creator of your expe-

rience, you are no longer

the victim of events as

you move to ever increas-

ing Cause in life.

The basic problem

of negative energy in life,

whether internally, within the family, or the nation, is that

most people think that they are Effect. They believe that

external events cause their experience, including their

emotions. When operating in a condition of no power, no

control, of being affected by some external cause or agent,

It is time that we elect some-one who is intelligent and dedicated to the people of this country instead of special interests. Barack Obama is the right person at this critical time to lead a new generation of Americans into a better future. We cannot allow our fears and prejudices to detract us from working for the change this country sorely needs.

Joe Smith

Lowell, MA

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individuals descend into a state of “victim.” Clearly we

see in Barack Obama from his personal story, that he is

not a victim of life's circumstances or the expectations of

others.

Many leaders stand in the way of their own success

in this regard. Intrapreneurship is natural to most people.

Intrapreneurs (the entrepreneurs at work within any

organization) are born with the innate characteristics of

sovereignty, curiosity, ambition and creativity. These are

the organizations that are led by persons who are ahead

of events, who can foresee consequences and events and

take action in time to prevent undesired outcomes to

create the ones they want. Failure to understand the

impact of human negative energy assures a cycle of

inefficiency, lack of cooperation and reduced response-

ability. Intrapreneurial leaders and organizations are

defined by high levels of proactivity, creativity, dynamic

activity, optimism, initiative, accountability, and empo-

werment.

Leaders and organizations at effect are characte-

rized by procrastination, blame, complaints, conformity,

reactivity, pessimism, irresponsibility, dependence, and

mediocrity. Leaders at effect of circumstances operate

behind events and fail to see things coming or fail to take

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action in time to prevent the undesired outcomes. These

organizations will have low levels of response-ability and

ingenuity and will fall back on past strategies, regardless

of effectiveness. Here you will find frequent distortions,

low morale, high degrees of error, and conflicts at all

levels.

...IT'S ONLY BECAUSE of Senator Obama that my husband has his

VA benefits back, and I'm not even in the same state as him.

He made a phone call on my husband's behalf and a month

later my husband had his NSC benefits back—he's a Vietnam

Veteran. We also lost our house this past year, and didn't get in

on the deal from Congress, but once Obama is our President I

believe I will have a house again and the American Dream . I

have gone from a Precinct Captain in my community to being

City Organizer for Nation for Change for Clearlake, CA to

being elected to District 2, City of Clearlake, Lake County

Democratic Committee. One man has started all this in my

life—that man is Senator Barack Obama, our next President of

the United States.

Michele Hopkins

Clearlake, CA

Leaders at the effect of circumstances will also find

the standard behaviors of the victim mentality. Instead of

taking action, there will be complaints about the 'bad'

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things (and people) that happen to them to anyone who

will listen. Victims will assign cause to others for the

unwanted events of their own life. They will make others

'bad' and wrong for anything that they see as undesirable

in their lives and in their results. The victim, often by his

own actions, will often irritate and provoke others, be that

provocation deliberate or unconscious. Easily and con-

stantly provoked, the victim is emotionally reactive, easily

triggered and activated by others. The victim is an expert

at pointing blame to circumstances and others for their

own failed performance.

Organizations where most of the participants oper-

ate in victim mentality will possess low initiative and

originality. Some strategies for victims include a state of

waiting and hoping that things will get better. A common

technique of victims is to try to get others to take action to

remedy the things they don't like; they will use violations

of integrity such as lying or cheating to manipulate

people and situations to get what they want.

Victims will also wave the flag of incapacity and

helplessness to attract and justify getting energy from

others to help them through. Where they can, victims will

claim duty, obligation, and debt to get energy from

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others. They will make statements such as, “Look at what

I have done for you, how much I sacrificed. You owe me!”

BARACK OBAMA BELIEVES in us (the people) and our ability to

bring about positive change. This is shown in the line, “We are

the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change we seek.”

Obama's background as a community organizer shows us that

we, individually, can lead and organize for positive important

results. Most positive change starts from the bottom and then

flows up. Look at the causes for the American Revolution and

the American civil rights movement, etc.

Thomas Brooks

Houston, TX

As you can see, you will get very low positive

Cause and lots of negative energy or negative Cause from

victims. Victims possess very little power, except in

generating negative energy that not only damages group

energy systems but ruins their personal lives as well.

Look around at the groups of which you are a

member. Look at your spouse, family, departments,

community, your business—are there any victims run-

ning around? Now pick up a newspaper, turn on the

radio, tune in to the TV news. Are there any victims

running around Washington?

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OUR COUNTRY HAS FALLEN into the pitfall of dualism: “Us ver-

sus Them,” “My Way or No Way.” Or, as Prez Dubya Bush has

said over and over again, in trying to browbeat sovereign na-

tions and peoples worldwide, “You're either with us or against

us.” This 'logic' leads toward brinksmanship—saber-rattling—

and the threat of worldwide conflagration. Barack Obama has

been sent to us to heal that dualistic divide. He embodies with-

in himself the unity of “opposites”: he is black AND white; he

is national and international—USA citizen, and the son of an

African immigrant father…. he is father and husband—and

fighter for responsible fatherhood. He is a tough-childhood

pragmatist, a fighter for lofty ideals, and for the environment.

We must not squander this incarnate and precious gift of a

Healer, a Teacher, and Leader—all in ONE. Here in Minnesota,

the indigenous/Native people from the Lakota/Dakota and

related tribal communities have a prayerful saying in their own

language which I believe expresses this UNITY best: “Mitakuye

Oyasin”—All My Relatives—meaning what the Obama's stand

for—“WE ARE ALL RELATED. UNITY IS OUR SPIRITUAL

DESTINY.” Alice Winfree Bowron

St. Louis Park, MN

Intrapreneurial Leadership demands accountabili-

ty. Response-ability, therefore, is the ability and the duty

to respond for our actions, including the restoration of

any damage that we cause. Accountability is justice; it is

the equalization of energy, the restoration of energy loss

due to failed actions and behaviors. Accountability has

two sides. The first is the positive side: positive results are

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rewarded. The second side is the negative side: whoever

produces negative results is response-able (at Cause) for

restoring the energy lost or damaged. Without such

accountability, without the restoration of energy, re-

sponse-ability does not exist. The violation of this funda-

mental principle of accountability destroys any system,

organization or government.

However, accountability is not punishment; and

the restoration of energy should not be confused with

punishment. Punishment is negative energy designed to

make bad-and-wrong-to hurt, to Cause pain to the per-

ceived offender, either as vengeance or so that the beha-

vior is not repeated.

BARACK OBAMA EMBODIES the spirit of positive and productive

compromise; he has an understanding, rare among politicians,

that we must truly work together as a nation to accomplish our

shared goals in the new millennium. Obama understands that

the more that we—the people—do for our nation and our

communities, the better our nation will be and the stronger our

communities will become. Senator Obama inspires us to stand

up and take steps to improve our world for ourselves, our child-

ren, and all future generations.

Matt Murchison

Tampa, FL

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Restoration is the production of positive energy by

the response-able subject to restore or correct damage

done. In this instance we have accountability, a key

ingredient in empowerment. The current economic crisis

in the United States is an example of an energy system

doomed to collapse as a result of a lack of accountability.

Wisdom and accountability are reciprocal factors.

Wisdom is the ability to predict the consequences of your

actions. To be response-able, to operate in positive Cause,

requires the ability to foresee the consequences of ac-

tions—which is wisdom. On the other side, accountability

develops wisdom. When you must respond for the conse-

quences of your actions, you are maximally motivated to

learn to predict and control those results in order to

maximize positive results and the rewards, and to reduce

damages. To do so makes you a wiser and therefore more

powerful person.

To the degree that leaders ignore response-ability

and accountability, their teams, acting in negative energy,

will lack wisdom (the ability to foresee the consequences

of actions), discipline and personal power. Accountability

is a great teacher of wisdom and a great trainer and

motivator of discipline. Without accountability, response-

ability does not exist. Without response-ability, any

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energy system will collapse. Where there is no response-

ability there is no Cause or personal power. Below, Ob-

ama's speech to NASDAQ in September 2007 continues.

Make careful note of the verbiage. You will find numer-

ous examples of accountability, innovation and the need

for a 21st century mindset in our economy, foreign rela-

tionships, technology and education.

Right now there are millions of hardworking Americans who

have been struggling to get by for quite some time. They have

watched their wages stagnate and their health costs rise and

their pensions disappear. Some have seen jobs shipped over-

seas and others have found new ones that pay much less.

Some tell their children they won't be able to afford college

this year, others send their youngest to a school that is crum-

bling around them. I meet these Americans every single day

… They understand that revolutions in technology and com-

munication have torn borders and opened up new markets

and new opportunities. They know we can't go back to yes-

terday or wall off our economy from everyone else. Their

problem is not that our world is flat. It's that our playing field

isn't level. It's that opportunity is no longer equal. And that's

something we cannot accept anymore…..And if we are hon-

est, I think we must admit that those who have benefited

from the new global marketplace … have not always con-

cerned themselves with the losers in this new economy. There

has been a tendency, during the boom times, to consider the

casualties of a changing economy to be inevitable, and to

justify outsized paydays or lower tax rates on Wall Street

earnings as part of the natural order of things. …..It may be

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true, as some have argued, that larger forces are at work

here—that technological advance and globalization have trig-

gered a fundamental change in the economy. It is true as well

that we cannot simply look backwards for solutions—to try to

fence off the world beyond our borders…… we are going to

have to adapt our institutions to a new world as we always

have. And in doing so, we have to remind ourselves that we

rise and fall as one nation that a country in which only a few

prosper is antithetical to our ideals and our democracy…..

And so, in the coming weeks, I will be laying out a 21st

century economic agenda for America. It's an agenda that will

level the playing field for more Americans to ensure that

America can compete and thrive in a global economy. It will

focus on three broad areas.

First part of my agenda—a plan to modernize and simpli-

fy our tax code so that it provides greater opportunity and

more relief to more Americans. For far too long, our tax code

has been so riddled with special-interest loopholes and gi-

veaways that it's shifted the tax burden to small businesses

and middle-class Americans. At a time when most Americans

are facing stagnant wages and rising costs, that's not fair and

it doesn't benefit our economy. My plan will give a break to

middle-class Americans, seniors, and the homeowners who

are feeling today's anxiety and uncertainty, because I believe

that we all have a stake in restoring their confidence and in-

vesting in their prosperity.

The second part of my agenda will be to ensure America's

competitive edge in the 21st century. This starts with provid-

ing every American with a world-class education from cradle

to adulthood. We know that in this economy, countries that

out-educate us today will out-compete us tomorrow. …We

can't allow ourselves to fall behind. That means investing in

early child education…… Tony Blair once said that “Talent is

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the 21st century wealth,” and I believe we all have a stake in

nurturing that talent if we hope to prosper in this century.

Ensuring our competitive edge also means investing more in

the science and technology that has fueled so much of our

nation's economic growth. And one place where that invest-

ment would make an enormous difference to the future of

this country is in a renewable energy policy that ends our

addiction

on foreign oil. We know this addiction isn't sustainable

for our security.

Finally, the third part of my agenda will be to modernize

and strengthen America's safety net for working Americans.

…..I also realize that there are some who will say that achiev-

ing all of this is far too difficult. That it is too hard to build

consensus. That we are too divided and self-interested to

think about the responsibilities we have to each other and to

our country. That the times are simply too tough. But then I

am reminded that we have been in tougher times and we

have faced far more difficult challenges. And each time we

have emerged stronger, more united, and more prosperous

than the last. It is faith in the American ideal that carries us

through, as well as the belief that was voiced by Franklin

Roosevelt all those years ago this week: “Failure is not an

American habit; and in the strength of great hope we must all

shoulder our common load.” That is the strength and the

hope we seek both today—and in all the days and months to

come.”

Senator Barack Obama

New York, NY • September 17, 2007

Intrapreneurial Leadership recognizes that intra-

preneurship is a counterpart of ingenuity. Creativity is

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81

limited when organizational control impinges on anoth-

er's ability to act. The success of Obama's grassroots

campaign is its ability to pass the baton to the state, local

and individual levels. The 2008 Obama campaign invited

individuals to take response-ability for the outcome of the

election and therefore their future. How to do that lay

within each individual.

OBAMA'S ENERGY, PROFESSIONALISM, insight and in-depth view

of the United States and the world is inspiring. I have 3 bi-racial

grandchildren who live with us ages 13, 9 and 7. They are the

light of our lives. Obama, just by his running for president, has

inspired these children to walk taller, study harder, speak clear-

er and be more thoughtful. My 13 year-old granddaughter said,

“By the Grace of God goes Obama, by the Grace of God goes

America.” Amen.

Julie Paulsen

Iowa

The result—millions of people of all backgrounds,

with a variety of talents have emerged—all working

toward the same end. This massive grassroots organiza-

tion included musicians, artists, politicians, teachers,

retirees, students, union workers and far too many to list

here. Everyone understood that by their individual

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contribution, whether it was time, finances or other

resources, they were empowered to use their talents and

creativity to get the job done.

Self-esteem is your subconscious evaluation, your

estimation, and your good opinion of yourself. Your self-

esteem depends on whether that evaluation is positive or

negative. The most powerful factor in your evaluation of

Self is your perception of

your personal power.

Your personal power is

your ability to act as

Cause; it is your percep-

tion of yourSelf as able

and competent to handle

life, as capable of reaching

your goals. As response-

ability is Cause, the ability

to respond, to be powerful, is an essential factor in self-

esteem. An intrapreneurial mind-set cannot exist in the

absence of response-ability. Denial of response-ability

creates a person as victim; victim is a position of low

power and therefore of very poor self-esteem.

Leaders, such as Obama, who understand the dy-

namics of human energy systems, will see morale, moti-

My observation is that Barack Obama is a leader who empowers people. He encourages them to take action and bring the change they want. He invited people to get involved—and they did in record numbers—even my “apolitical” son volun-teered for the campaign and registered and voted for the first time!

Nancy Eaton

Tampa, FL

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83

vation, commitment, accountability and personal satisfac-

tion soar. Obama has succeeded in establishing a culture

of ingenuity, unlocking new levels of power and control,

of ultimately increasing individual participation and

productivity. These are the ingredients of any successful

and powerful grassroots organization. These are the

critical success factors for our country. This is the frame-

work for successful and powerful leadership for the third

millennium.

Barack Obama understands that personal empo-

werment originates and thrives in positive energy. He

understands that there is a difference between inspiration

and motivation. Inspiration awakens people. Motivation

moves people. Barack Ob-

ama knows that personal

empowerment (necessary for

happiness) is the ultimate

motivation of all our efforts

and behaviors. Understand-

ing this difference is what

moves ordinary people from complacency to positive

action. In accord with the Causal Sequence of Life, posi-

tive action, originating in positive energy, is what yields

positive results. This was the key to the Obama grassroots

When Obama said “Turn off the TV and the video games and read to your kids”, I knew that Barack Obama gets it. That's when I decided to get involved in his campaign.

Pamela Smith

Thornton, CO

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campaign movement. This is how his campaign was able

to amass millions of financial donors, raising unprece-

dented campaign donations, in just months.

What is it that Barack Obama knows, that has es-

caped other political and business leaders? Simple. Nega-

tive energy in any organization will eventually sabotage

your success. Negative energy will destroy the vital,

intrapreneurial spirit of the people you seek to lead.

Barack Obama doesn't call forth volunteers. He calls forth

the leader that resides in all of us. He demands personal

accountability—and gets it.

IT WAS THE 31ST OF AUGUST in 1962 that 18 of us traveled 26

miles to the country courthouse in Indianola to try to register to

try to become first-class citizens.

We was met in Indianola by Mississippi men, Highway Pa-

trolmen and they only allowed two of us in to take the literacy

test at the time. After we had taken this test and started back to

Ruleville, we was held up by the City Police and the State

Highway Patrolmen and carried back to Indianola where the

bus driver …..On the 10th of September 1962, 16 bullets was

fired into the home of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Tucker for me. That

same night two girls were shot in Ruleville, Mississippi. Also

Mr. Joe McDonald's house was shot in. And in June the 9th,

1963, I had attended a voter registration workshop, was return-

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85

ing back to Mississippi. Ten of us was traveling by the Conti-

nental Trailways bus. When we got to Winona, Mississippi,

which is in Montgomery County, four of the people got off to

use the washroom, and two of the people—to use the restau-

rant—two of the people wanted to use the washroom.

The four people that had gone in to use the restaurant was

ordered out. During this time I was on the bus. But when I

looked through the window and saw they had rushed out I got

off of the bus to see what had happened, and one of the ladies

said, “It was a State Highway Patrolman and a Chief of Police

ordered us out.” I got back on the bus and one of the persons

had used the washroom got back on the bus, too.

As soon as I was seated on the bus, I saw when they began

to get the four people in a highway patrolman's car, I stepped

off of the bus to see what was happening and somebody

screamed from the car that the four workers was in and said,

“Get that one there,” and when I went to get in the car, when

the man told me I was under arrest, he kicked me.

I was carried to the county jail, and put in the booking

room. They left some of the people in the booking room and

began to place us in cells. ..And it wasn't too long before three

white men came to my cell.. .and he said, “We are going to

make you wish you was dead.”

I was carried out of that cell into another cell where they

had two Negro prisoners. The State Highway Patrolmen or-

dered the first Negro to take the blackjack. The first Negro

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prisoner ordered me, by orders from the State Highway Patrol-

man for me, to lay down on a bunk bed on my face, and I laid

on my face. The first Negro began to beat, and I was beat

by the first Negro until he was exhausted, and I was holding

my hands behind me at that time on my left side because I

suffered from polio when I was six years old….. The second

Negro began to beat and I began to work my feet, and the

State Highway Patrolman ordered the first Negro who had beat

me to sit upon my feet to keep me from working my feet. I

began to scream and one white man got up and began to beat

me my head and told me to hush…… I was in jail when Med-

gar Evers was murdered.

All of this is on account of us wanting to register, to be-

come first-class citizens, and if the freedom Democratic Party is

not seated now, I question America, is this America, the land of

the free and the home of the brave where we have to sleep

with our telephones off of the hooks because our lives be

threatened daily because we want to live as decent human

beings, in America?

Thank you.

Fannie Lou Hamer

Democratic National Convention • July 1964

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SENATOR OBAMA HAS A TREMENDOUS amount of innate leader-

ship talent and charisma. He is a brilliant and well-educated

man. The trait I would single out as key is his determination to

empower the electorate. He challenges us to become more and

through the campaign has provided an education and the tools

for all of us to become community organizers. The past years

have been demoralizing. We've watched our country be stolen

from us by the powerful; election fraud, the Bush Administra-

tion, corporate media, and special interests. They have sold us

out and left us believing that nothing we can do makes a dif-

ference. We've seen our moral standing and leadership role in

the world diminish. Our country is in debt to China and tied to

the Middle East because we won't put the money into develop-

ing alternative energies. Senator Obama has reminded us that

we make up this nation and that yes, we can challenge our

government. We can become our government. This is excep-

tional leadership in action.

Jessica Meltzer

Berlin, MA

THERE ARE MANY REASONS why I believe Barack Obama is a

great leader. His honesty, tenacity and hopeful nature are but a

few... However the most compelling reason for me is his desire

to empower others. I have been working on political campaigns

since I was 12 and I haven't seen the like. Obama's campaign

setup a community organizer training program during the pri-

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88

maries. I took part in this program. I have never felt more effec-

tive politically. As a GenX cynic, I never thought I would have

“hope” for a politician. He has already left a great legacy—

regardless of the results of this election—with the army of

politically aware people he has left behind. He has reawakened

something in me and many others. I feel proud of my country,

for the first time in a long time. Go Obama!

Sarah L. Gerhardt

Portland, OR

I FIRST KNEW OF BARACK Obama when he gave the keynote

address at the 2004 Convention. He appealed to both parties

with his message of universal themes. We are not just the

groups that define us, we are definitively Americans first. This

was the message that cut across all of the divisions…. We all

have had a sense of being beat down, betrayed, and of wishing

that a person like us could rise above it all and become Presi-

dent. For African Americans, perhaps it was only Dr. Martin

Luther King that last brought that authenticity and hope that

the world could really change. For most of us, there have been

so few politicians that could both stir us and communicate the

American dream. Barack has come further than many politi-

cians because of this coming part way to the ideal.

Glenn Williams

Lincoln, NE

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I WAS A REPUBLICAN my entire adult life until I was visiting my

father in Nebraska during the caucus. What I saw there told me

that I had not only made the right decision to support Sen.

Obama but to totally change my party affiliation. Most Ne-

braskans don't really come out in the primaries. The state is

what they call a “fly over” as most candidates just fly over on

their way somewhere else. The Obamas came; they talked, they

listened, and they responded. What I saw was this—major

roads that had to shut down because of people trying to get to

caucus locations. I saw people OUTSIDE in freezing tempera-

tures in February because there was no room indoors. I saw

news coverage all day long just astounded with the number of

people that were trying to make their voices heard. The reasons

I'm voting for Senator Obama are numerous but “Change” in

my life right now—that is a powerful word.

Deb Montanez

Jacksonville, FL

I BELIEVE IN BARACK OBAMA'S leadership style and methods of

delivery because of the HOPE he generates with a very positive

and inclusive message. Obama challenges people to be better

and do more as citizens of America, to do more for each other

and our communities and to get involved and stay engaged

with our government. Instead of sitting on the sidelines, he

DARES “We the People” to unite and work together in order to

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affect change. The Obama campaign is proof of what a unify-

ing leadership style can create. For me, Barack Obama's most

powerful and inspiring statement has been—“We are the

ONES we've been waiting for!” This short statement was

enough to get me up on my feet and involved in a historical

journey for positive change to my country's way of governing.

Barack Obama and the campaign have already created this list

of positive changes in America: Grass roots participation bring-

ing in over 1 million new voters; One of the many things I like

about Barack Obama is that he pushes us out of our comfort

zones. All of my life I have sat on the sidelines waiting for

someone else to do it. But, one day earlier this year that

changed. As I watched his speech in which he said, “We are

the change we seek”, words can not express how much that

moved me. After that I got on the Obama website and found a

group in my area. I sent a mass email telling everybody that “I

am fired up and ready to go!” We had a meeting a week later

at Starbuck's. At that moment I realized that I could make a

difference and ever since that day I have worked to merge the

local groups together, worked on numerous voter registration

drives, along with other activities. This was never me, this has

never been me—to be the catalyst for something. I owe it all to

Barack Obama's ability to inspire me to believe I could. I did

make a difference. We all can make a difference. We just need

the leadership that will tell us “Yes We Can!”

LaShawn Pant

Pensacola, FL

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AFTER HEARING SENATOR OBAMA speak at the Town Hall Meet-

ing, everyone walked away with the sense that here was a once

in a lifetime leader. His confidence, dignity and charm won the

audience from the start. I had the honor of introducing him that

day. He met with me for a few minutes just before we started. I

almost fainted, but he immediately put me at ease. He spoke as

if we were old friends. I have every confidence that here is the

next great leader of America! And, I will do what I can to see

that he is elected. I am Lutheran and believe that God wants us

to help our fellow man and all creatures great and small. I

firmly believe that this is the year for change for our country.

We must change the way our government works and become a

good neighbor to the world community again. The person to

bring that about is Senator Obama. I am proud to have had a

small part in his campaign!

Denise Cyr

Medford, OR

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Chapter 9

Diversity

ABLE TO EMBRACE DIVERSITY: The Intrapreneurial

Leader understands that diversity is not to be feared but

to be celebrated. While our common purposes far out-

number our differences, it is through those differences

that we can expand our consciousness and celebrate our

common humanity.

In many ways, Miami stands as a symbol of hope for what's

possible in the Americas. Miami's promise of liberty and op-

portunity has drawn generations of immigrants to these

shores, sometimes with nothing more than the clothes on

their back. It was a similar hope that drew my own father

across an ocean, in search of the same promise that our

dreams need not be deferred because of who we are, what we

look like, or where we come from.

Here, in Miami, that promise can join people together.

We take common pride in a vibrant and diverse democracy,

and a hard-earned prosperity. We find common pleasure in

the crack of the bat, in the rhythms of our music, and the ease

of voices shifting from Spanish or Creole or Portuguese to

English. These bonds are built on a foundation of shared his-

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94

tory in our hemisphere. Colonized by empires, we share sto-

ries of liberation. Confronted by our own imperfections, we

are joined in a desire to build a more perfect union.

Senator Barack Obama

Miami, FL • May 23, 2008

So, let us not be blind to our differences—But let us also di-

rect attention to our common interests and to the means by

which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot

end now our differences, at least we can help make the world

safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic

common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all

breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And

we are all mortal.

John F. Kennedy

ACCORDING TO THE UNITED STATES Census Bureau, Latino,

Asian and African-American populations will more than

triple by the middle of this century. Combined, ‘persons

of color’ will then outnumber whites. We are a diverse

nation. We are a diverse global community. And yet, the

2008 presidential election showed us that racial prejudice

remains a critical issue throughout the United States as

the question had been raised—is the United States ready

for a black president? Prejudice is the attempt to escape

the feeling of inferiority (negative energy) by projecting

and polarizing others to the inferior position so that Self

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will assume the superior position. Prejudice occurs when

ego is projected to an entire group or class of persons.

Polarization, a creation of the mind, is the division

of anything into two groups, one of which is the in-crowd,

the “good” guys, and the other is the out-crowd, the

“bad” guys. According to the good guys, the bad guys

should not Be or Think as they are or Do. Polarization is a

unique human creation, one of the delusions of the un-

controlled mind. Polarization occurs when a person

creates (thereby interpreting and distorting reality) that

other people are inferior, less-than, bad, or wrong.

Globally this separation is usually based on super-

ficial and insignificant differences such as race, ethnicity,

nationality, sexual orientation, economic status, gender,

politics, or religion. By polarizing people on such insigni-

ficant things, and often on things over which the out-

crowd has no control (such as gender, nationality, sexual

orientation, or race), the in-crowd gets to declare itself

superior and more deserving, without having to compete

on ability and merit.

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BARACK OBAMA REMINDS US that we are citizens first of this

great United States of America. His motto “I'm asking you to

believe not just in my ability to bring about real change in

Washington, I'm asking you to believe in yours.” is a reminder

of what this nation was founded on—that We The People have

basic rights and we have generated a social contract between

our people and our government, not just in 2008, but in 1787

when the United States Constitution was adopted. What seems

to be revolutionary in political mottoes is in fact a return to the

best of the past, but with a diversity of the present and future

added to it. The draw of Barack Obama is his sense of decency,

that there are certain areas that we will not go in opposition of

the other party. It is this appeal to our better angels that helps

us to see Obama in the role of every person. What surprises me

is when I write something in a weblog matches what Obama

believes in. We come from different backgrounds and life

experiences. To the extent that Obama matches my own expe-

rience, only aids my idealism that we are as one. What Barack

Obama has provided me in this election is the ability to no

longer hide my political views. When you are born and raised

in a region where being a Democrat is not necessarily a reason

to go shout from the hilltops, you try to see other political

views and find common ground . What Barack Obama promis-

es is a day where party labels may not be as important. In the

meantime, it has become cool to be a Democrat as the party as

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a whole has experienced a resurgence across the nation be-

cause of and also apart from Barack Obama.

Glenn Williams

Lincoln, NE

Prejudice and bigotry are just another of the many

forms of projection, polarization, and ego. A person of

lowered self-esteem, a negative energy state, will try to

compensate for his decreased sense of Self by invalidating,

polarizing and treating others with negative energy.

Intolerance is based in the delusional justification to

invalidate another for inconsequential or uncontrollable

characteristics. Organizations that embrace diversity are

those that strive to reduce and eliminate the use of such

negative energy by exposing ego as the effort to compen-

sate feelings of inferiority.

Polarization even occurs within families. Examine

feuds within families and more often than not you will

find family members “taking sides,” often on issues of

little significance. Polarization is sadly prevalent through-

out the history of humankind. Look at our nation and

look at the world. Polarization particularly ignores that

we are all nonphysical, spiritual life entities, with the

same desires, needs and ambitions. We can see that

polarization exists in every corner of the world.

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Humanity is polarized in nations, races, politics, re-

ligions, cultures—name a difference and you can find

polarization. Recall that people are the basic chip, the

basic generator of energy and therefore the power of any

organization. The Intrapreneurial Leader understands

that polarization, prejudice, bigotry, and all forms of

harassment only serve to denigrate the integrity, and

therefore the power of the organization.

I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage,

aware that my parents' dreams live on in my precious daugh-

ters. I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger

American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came

before me, and that, in no other country on earth, is my story

even possible. Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of

our nation….Our pride is based on a very simple premise,

summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years

ago, “We hold these truths to he self-evident, that all men are

created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with

certain inalienable rights. That among these are life, liberty

and the pursuit of happiness.” That is the true genius of

America, a faith in the simple dreams of its people, the insis-

tence on small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at

night and know they are fed and clothed and safe from harm.

That we can say what we think, write what we think, without

hearing a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an

idea and start our own business without paying a bribe or

hiring somebody's son. That we can participate in the political

process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will he

counted—or at least, most of the time. It's not enough for just

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some of us to prosper. For alongside our famous individual-

ism, there's another ingredient in the American saga. A belief

that we are connected as one people.

…There are those who are preparing to divide us, the spin

masters and negative ad peddlers who embrace the politics of

anything goes. Well, I say to them tonight, there's not a liber-

al America and a conservative America—there's the United

States of America. There's not a black America and white

America and Latino America and Asian America; there's the

United States of America. The pundits like to slice-and-dice

our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for

Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I've got news for

them, too. We worship an awesome God in the Blue States,

and we don't like federal agents poking around our libraries

in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States

and have gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who

opposed the war in Iraq and patriots who supported it. We are

one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and

stripes, all of us defending the United States of America. In

the end, that's what this election is about. Do we participate

in a politics of cynicism or a politics of hope? ….. I'm not

talking about blind optimism here No, I'm talking about

something more substantial.

It's the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing free-

dom songs; the hope of immigrants setting out for distant

shores; the hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely patrol-

ling the Mekong Delta; the hope of a millworker's son who

dares to defy the odds; the hope of a skinny kid with a funny

name who believes that America has a place for him, too. The

audacity of hope! In the end, that is God's greatest gift to us,

the bedrock of this nation; the belief in things not seen; the

belief that there are better days ahead. I believe we can give

our middle class relief and provide working families with a

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road to opportunity. I believe we can provide jobs to the job-

less, homes to the homeless, and reclaim young people in

cities across America from violence and despair. I believe that

as we stand on the crossroads of history, we can make the

right choices, and meet the challenges that face us.

America! Tonight, if you feel the same energy I do, the

same urgency I do, the same passion I do, the same hopeful-

ness I do—if we do what we must do, then I have no doubt

that all across the country, from Florida to Oregon, from

Washington to Maine, the people will rise up in November….

and this country will reclaim its promise, and out of this long

political darkness a brighter day will come. Thank you and

God bless you.”

Senator Barack Obama

Boston, MA • July 27, 2008

By now you understand that life is about how we

express ourselves as nonphysical, human energy—as

spirit. These nonphysical energies are not independent,

and are in fact, interdependent. To be powerful, to pro-

duce successful results, many forms of energies must

align and cooperate in an energy system. As each of us is

an individual energy system, consisting of positive and

negative human energies, we combine to form larger and

more complex energy systems such as families, businesses

or communities.

A nation is an energy system, as is the entire pla-

net. Working in synergy, the synchronization of human

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energies creates an energy system where the power of the

entire system is far beyond that of any individual ele-

ment. Any system operating in negative energy or lacking

critical elements cannot operate successfully. The energy

climate of any organization is the net combination of all

the human mental, emotional, and behavioral energies,

both positive and negative. The energy climate is felt as

the overall morale, motivation, enthusiasm and individu-

al fulfillment in the organization.

BARACK OBAMA IS A GREAT leader because he can relate to the

American people and their issues. He understands many of the

situations that many people are going through in this rough

economy as he has been here too. Barack Obama's presidency

is not about black and white. It is not about race, color, or

culture. It is about America and its future.

Anita Stroud

San Jose, CA

Intrapreneurial Leaders know that results are the

product of how well you fulfill the primary purpose of

increasing the positive human energies of people in

organizations and communities. Barack Obama stands as

an example of a leader who understands the human life

energies, the energy of the spirit that underlies “Who We

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102

Are.” Obama speaks to our nonphysical, spiritual life

energies of wisdom, power and esteem. He speaks to

people of all ages, professions, ethnicity, sexual orienta-

tion, culture and any other demographic you can name.

Because Obama has embraced these leadership principles

he has experienced a phenomenal leap in motivation and

energy in his grassroots movement and will continue to

do so as he assumes the presidency of the United States.

It is reported that Robert F. Kennedy once pre-

dicted that race relations were progressing so rapidly that

within 40 years the county would see a black president.

While there is some doubt about the actual date of such a

prediction, we do know that in 1968, the statement had

found its way into the press.

Many still question whether or

not the United States is ready

for a black president. Based on

the positive result of the 2008

presidential election, the

majority of Americans have

crossed that threshold. We are

a diverse nation.

We co-exist in a diverse global community of reli-

gions, cultures, nationalities, histories and ethnicities. The

As I canvassed for him in the poor section of our county my school children were running up to me hugging me. Little did they know that I was campaigning for a man that would give hope to their lives!

Lynn Morris

Rivesville, WV

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United States has always been a world leader in freedom

and democracy. To remain so demands a complete and

celebratory embrace of the diversity of our country. This

ideal can only be realized in the application of these

Intrapreneurial Leadership principles.

AS BEING A SWEDISH CITIZEN I support Obama, for the best of

USA but above all for the best of the world. He is a true world-

leader. Not only Americans, but people in Europe, Asia and

Africa are also fascinated by him. He touches the soul of

people, speaks to what is best in us, asks us to look for some-

thing greater in life, to look beyond our personal self. This

message and this leadership is what so many people are so

eagerly waiting for. He unites the world by uniting us around

the values of compassion, truth and justice.

Torgny Jansson

Gothenburg, Sweden

OBAMA: The Triumph of Unity in Diversity

The USA is a country that typifies the world at large, simp-

ly because it is the microcosm of the real world. Obama is the

triumph of the beauty and glory of the term “unity in diversity”

and furthermore, “strength in diversity.” Owing to the honesty,

dexterity, and the absolute desire and commitment to a positive

change in the way politics is being run here in the USA, Sena-

tor Obama has displayed that, he is capable of leading us to the

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Promised Land; one which is flowing with justice and peace,

love and happiness, honesty, and respect for mankind.

Moreover, most frankly and on a very positive note, Obama

is viewed as a unifier, rather than a divider. He has miniaturized

the existence of discriminatory factors such as racism. Suffice it

to note that many of Senator Obama's supporters are essential-

ly the majority of the American people and minorities too. The

exemplary display of maturity and calmness in the face of

unhealthy and deceptive propaganda by special interests and

lobbyists, has further endeared him to the generality of the

American people.

In Obama, diversity has a new meaning;

Different

Individuals

Values

Each other

Regardless of

Skin,

Intelligence,

Talents and

Years! This is the time for a change that we can believe in. Let us not

allow this unique opportunity to pass us by. Obama's promises

are the peoples gain and honest desire and aspiration.

Peter Odeh

Baltimore City, MD

I WAS TOO YOUNG TO WALK with Martin Luther King in Selma,

Alabama. But while watching the Democratic National Con-

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vention I couldn't help but feel that I had finally joined with

those pioneers of civil rights. I have become one with them. I

think many others feel that way too. Senator's Obama's elec-

tion to office would be, for me, as important as of the fall of

the Soviet Union and something I never thought would happen

in my lifetime.

Gary Gagne

Charlotte, NC

I'M A 25 YEAR OLD VETERAN of Operation Iraqi freedom…... I

am going to college with the help of my Veterans benefits from

the GI bill. I have never had a passion about politics as I have

for the cause of Senator Obama and the vision he has created

here in America and around the world. I am so committed to

ensuring Obama gets elected that I have not even cared about

my local elections in my own hometown. Freedom is not free,

for all that has come before him and now all that will follow.

Obama has opened the gates for all of us to follow.

Preston Bostick

Quincy, FL

SENATOR OBAMA REPRESENTS this country because he can relate

to all races and walks of life. He does not favor rich people or

poor people. He does what is just. Obama is a shining example

of how the system despite its flaws does work if you work

within it. He rose from humble beginnings and did not let race

stop him. He relates well with all Americans and shares our

core spiritual and family values. Obama inspires all to go for

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their highest dream of success. Yet he does so without resort-

ing to negative attacks. We need a leader who is diplomatic

because the world needs more level headed leaders, not ones

who act out of fear. He is strong and brave. Obama does not let

negative attacks deter him. His policies show that he has this

country's best interests in mind and will stand up for what is

right for us all. Karen Walton

Fort Lee, NJ

I AM ORIGINALLY FROM MOBILE, AL. I am here in Florida with

my kids and grands to help as much as possible because the

economy is too much for my kids to maintain with school age

kids and all the expenses. I am attending Troy State University

to gain a Bachelor Degree in Criminal Justice/Business Adm. I

am proof that you are never too old to get an education. The

country needs a change with family values, and family struc-

tures reiterated. The Barack/Biden families can bring this. Ob-

ama has inspired many young people to become a part of the

voting arena. He has caused some of the elderly to want to

return and vote again, feeling that they are blessed to witness

such an event. The night that Barack gave his acceptance

speech on the 40th anniversary of the never to be forgotten “I

Have A Dream” speech by Dr. MLK, that night, it was the

Dream. He brought people from all over the United States, no

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matter the age, color, religion, gender, financial status—they

were there—all 85,000 of them . As they looked on, some with

watery eyes, holding on to those beside them and became one,

I know Dr. King looked down and smiled! That was the

Dream!

Darlene Gay-Allen

Fort Walton Beach, FL

IT IS MY BELIEF THAT one of the greatest strengths America has

going for it is ethnic and cultural diversity. I believe this be-

cause I believe that with time and exposure to the way different

cultures live their lives and strive for freedom, our universals,

the way we are the same, are more widely recognized. This

gives us more tolerance for those who are at first seen as dif-

ferent from us allowing our various strengths to be put to work

in society. Long lasting peace comes to people who feel in-

cluded in society. As societies grow and merge, it is important

that we find ways to agree rather than try to exclude fringe

groups. One reason I am supporting Obama is because I believe

he can help bridge the racial divide in our country. Beyond that

I believe he can help restore confidence among Americans that

will be necessary to re-ignite our market and help us compete

better globally.

But more than that, he understands that competing glo-

bally does not mean pushing other countries around or down.

Obama will have a robust foreign policy that recognizes

the legitimacy of our world neighbors. It is not us against them.

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We are in it together. I believe in education—what our young

are taught is of utmost importance. To get back on track, edu-

cation in America should teach skills and knowledge that help

us compete in a global marketplace. Among these principle

skills are theoretical and applied Sciences, Mathematics, Eng-

lish, Languages, Music and Arts. We should be flexible and

seek out the best methods to help our children learn. Public

education should be available equally to ALL children and

young people! There is no excuse for inferior schools! Diversity

is strength. Education is necessary for a viable future.

Jeff Powell

Kent, WA

I AM A MULTIRACIAL AMERICAN woman (First Nations, Irish, and

Italian) married to a Nigerian-born man, with four beautiful,

spirited children. I work in hospital administrative management

in the area of trauma. I am currently in the process of complet-

ing my Masters in Healthcare Administration. I do not follow

any particular faith or church, but believe in a higher power, as

well as participate in occasional traditional indigenous religious

ceremonies. I believe a true leader trusts those he or she leads

to be the best that they can be, without the need for an auto-

cratic micromanaging authority style….. A true leader under-

stands he or she cannot succeed alone. My family and I look

forward to the possibility of Senator Obama leading us into a

better way of life. What inspires me so much about him is the

fact that he knows he cannot do it alone, and that he has asked

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us to step up and be the change we want to see. His message

of change and hope resonates with me in a time where we

have moved away from such ideals in the past eight years. He

truly represents inclusiveness of all Americans regardless of

race, gender, socio-economic status, religion, etc. and as such

in my mind represents a true leader for all American citizens.

Tetana Oguara

Seattle, WA

I long for a president who will inspire, uplift, excite and moti-

vate me; with a fresh perceptive, intellectual curiosity, unwa-

vering integrity, a sense of humor, kind heart, spiritual soul and

peaceful nature; an orator and a leader; a humanitarian and a

philosopher; a poet and a teacher; a sage man and healer; a

person who has strength of character and the passions of his

convictions; a person of principle, veracity and courage; some-

one who makes me believe again - actually believe for the

FIRST TIME IN MY ADULT life - in the promise, dignity and

spirit of America. That man is Barack Obama.

Saudia Lawrence

San Francisco, CA

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Epilogue

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a

place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the

dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions

the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools

and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by

people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the

very first time in their lives, because they believed that this

time must be different; that their voice could be that differ-

ence.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor,

Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native

American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled—

Americans who sent a message to the world that we have

never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are,

and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so

long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of

what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history

and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of

what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining mo-

ment, change has come to America.

President-Elect Barack Hussein Obama

Chicago, IL • November 4, 2008

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THE LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLES OF “WE ARE ONE”, docu-

mented in this book are not new. As you move back into

history you will find many leaders who employed these

very same leadership strategies. One such leader who

personified these leadership characteristics emerged from

our own political landscape. You can see these very

principles at work in the administration of John F. Ken-

nedy. Since his noted arrival on the Washington scene at

the Democratic National Convention in 2004, Barack

Obama has been likened to John F. Kennedy, Robert

Kennedy and Martin Luther King.

There are those who will dismiss this comparison,

noting that the likeness comes from the fact that all of

these men knew how to deliver a great inspirational

speech. Those of us fortunate enough to have been alive

to witness the power of these men, however, know that

there is something more. Many are unable to describe it,

but understand it nonetheless. While inspiration can

provide an emotional lift, it never lasts longs. No, there is

something more.

What these men did was to provide a framework

of personal accountability and empowerment, designed to

make changes in the way we feel, think, treat and react

towards each other, our government, and our world.

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Intrapreneurial Leaders understand the true meaning

behind, “Am I My Brother’s Keeper?” This doesn’t mean

that we take on everyone’s problems but it does mean

that we provide each member of any human energy

system the means to be individually empowered. As a

collective whole, any human organizational system,

operating in positive energy, will show compassion,

empathy, and concern for all its members. Its leaders will

understand that successful outcomes are the results of

people working together toward common goals.

We can see this in action in Barack Obama as he

and his staff struggle to find bipartisan solutions to the

current healthcare crisis. The common objective is health-

care reform⎯ providing quality healthcare for the 50

million Americans without healthcare and also providing

affordable healthcare for all. Clearly, the issue has been

derailed as some politicians and factions have decided to

distort the original objective in an effort to pursue their

own agenda. Observe the intense negative emotion at

many of the town hall meetings across the country in the

summer of 2009. Much of this negative energy is fueled

by distortions and deliberate sabotage⎯ with the end

result of a loss of focus, conflict, and ineffective communi-

cations.

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The Intrapreneurial Leader understands that hu-

man energy systems, in synergy, operate within the

paradigm of “We Are One”. People working in the posi-

tive energies of respect, compassion and decency will

work together to achieve common goals. This leadership

style recognizes that the combined positive energies of

each individual contributes to the success and well-being

of the entire system⎯ which could be your business or

your community. In the following words by Ted Kennedy

in the last days of his life, note the theme of “We Are One”

in his passion to create healthcare reform.

“This is the cause of my life. It is a key reason that I defied

my illness last summer to speak at the Democratic convention

in Denver—to support Barack Obama, but also to make sure,

as I said, "that we will break the old gridlock and guarantee

that every American…will have decent, quality health care as

a fundamental right and not just a privilege." For four

decades I have carried this cause—from the floor of the

United States Senate to every part of this country. It has never

been merely a question of policy; it goes to the heart of my

belief in a just society...it's always been deeply personal,

because the importance of health care has been a recurrent

lesson throughout most of my 77 years.”

Senator Ted Kennedy

Newsweek • July 27, 2009

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It is the understanding of leadership as a model of

“We Are One” that draws the comparison of Barack

Obama to many of the greatest of leaders of the last 40

years. It is a new strategy of leadership—Intrapreneurial

Leadership—the fundamental ability to communicate to

our nonphysical, spiritual, life energies. In doing so,

Obama, as do all effective and powerful leaders, speaks to

the Godness and the goodness that resides in all of us.

These leaders have called forth the leader that resides in

all of us. As a human energy system, as a collective, we

are of one Energy; we are either primarily of positive

energy or we are primarily of negative energy; we either

rise together, or we fall together. We are One.

These leaders have issued both the invitation and

the invocation for all of us to reach to our inner selves,

where our true power in life resides. They have succeeded

in communicating far more than mere words. What we

have heard, and now hear from Barack Obama is an ideal

that we can BE better, that we ARE better, that we can DO

better, that we can HAVE better. It is from these core

ideals that peace and prosperity will come.

As business and political leaders center themselves

on these principles, you will see a quantum leap in moti-

vation and energy of individuals that will result in nota-

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116

ble increases in the quantity and quality of organizational

and national results. In the global market and information

sphere of today, competitive advantages from purely

physical advances are fleeting. Information, technologies,

and products travel too fast. The next frontier of competi-

tion is not physical science and technology; it will be the

harnessing of human energy. The next challenge of

business is human energy development—the only true

power of any organization. Leaders such as Barack Ob-

ama—those who understand Intrapreneurial Leadership

principles will create the desired results. Leaders that

understand and are able to unleash human energy, to

foster intrapreneurship, will ride the wave of the future

into the third millennium.

Ask Not What Your Country Can Do For You

Inauguration Speech Delivered by John F. Kennedy January 20, 1961

VICE PRESIDENT JOHNSON, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, Pres-

ident Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman,

reverend clergy, fellow citizens, we observe today not a victory

of party, but a celebration of freedom—symbolizing an end, as

well as a beginning—signifying renewal, as well as change. For

I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn

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117

oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quar-

ters ago.

The world is very different now. For man holds in his mor-

tal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and

all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs

for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the

globe—the belief that the rights of man come not from the

generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.

We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first

revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to

friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new

generation of Americans—born in this century, tempered by

war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our an-

cient heritage—and unwilling to witness or permit the slow

undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always

been committed, and to which we are committed today at

home and around the world.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that

we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship,

support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the sur-

vival and the success of liberty. This much we pledge—and

more. To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins

we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends. United,

there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures.

Divided, there is little we can do—for we dare not meet a po-

werful challenge at odds and split asunder.

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To those new States whom we welcome to the ranks of the

free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall

not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron

tyranny. We shall not always expect to find them supporting

our view. But we shall always hope to find them strongly sup-

porting their own freedom—and to remember that, in the past,

those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the

tiger ended up inside.

To those peoples in the huts and villages across the globe

struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our

best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period

is required—not because the Communists may be doing it, not

because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free

society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the

few who are rich.

To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a spe-

cial pledge—to convert our good words into good deeds—in a

new alliance for progress—to assist free men and free govern-

ments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful

revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers.

Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to

oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas.

And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends

to remain the master of its own house.

To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Na-

tions, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war

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have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our

pledge of support—to prevent it from becoming merely a

forum for invective—to strengthen its shield of the new

and the weak—and to enlarge the area in which its writ may

run. Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our

adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides

begin anew

the quest for peace, before the dark powers of destruction

unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or acci-

dental self-destruction. We dare not tempt them with weak-

ness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can

we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed.

But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take

comfort from our present course—both sides overburdened by

the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the

steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that

uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind's

final war.

So let us begin anew—remembering on both sides that ci-

vility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject

to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never

fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us

instead of belaboring those problems which divide us. Let both

sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals

for the inspection and control of arms—and bring the absolute

power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all

nations. Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science

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instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer

the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and en-

courage the arts and commerce. Let both sides unite to heed in

all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah—to “undo the

heavy burdens—and to let the oppressed go free.”

And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jun-

gle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor,

not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the

strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved.

All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be

finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this Adminis-

tration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let

us begin. In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine,

will rest the final success or failure of our course. Since this

country was founded, each generation of Americans has been

summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty. The graves

of young Americans who answered the call to service surround

the globe.

Now the trumpet summons us again—not as a call to bear

arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though

embattled we are—but a call to bear the burden of a long twi-

light struggle, year in and year out, “rejoicing in hope, patient

in tribulation”—a struggle against the common enemies of

man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.

Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global al-

liance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more

fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?

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121

In the long history of the world, only a few generations

have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of

maximum danger. I do not shank from this responsibility—I

welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange

places with any other people or any other generation. The

energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor

will light our country and all who serve it—and the glow from

that fire can truly light the world.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country

can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will

do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of

man. Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of

the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and

sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only

sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go

forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help,

but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our

own.

THERE IS A SENSE OF URGENCY in the air within my community

and a marked shift that is taking place within my own spirit.

Raised a conservative evangelical republican, even my parents

have shifted. Almost 70 years old, these two wealthy whites

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living in the suburbs attend an almost all black church in the

city.

I don't consider myself either a democrat or a republican

because the labels simply cannot contain what my heart knows.

This country needs a leader who is larger than him/herself. We

need a leader who is humbled at the chanting of his name,

knowing that of himself, he is not the answer. We need a lead-

er who has questioned himself, his heritage, his spirituality, his

politics, his motives, his family, his existence.

I want a thinker. After his appearance at Rick Warren's

Church the press called him “nuanced—I called him a thinker.

They called his answers the answers of a college professor

while calling John McCain's answers were “definite”, “sure”

and “solid.” I want a thinker for my president—who thinks

about cause and effect, and one who changes his mind given

more information. I want a leader who does not spout off

about the weaknesses, strengths, or latest gossip of his opposi-

tion, but one who forges ahead and focuses on his mission. I

want a leader who will help small business figure out how I can

pay for health insurance for all of my employees. I want more

for them, and I want more for me—and yes, that means prof-

it—it is what we're in business for.

I want a president with a background in working with

communities, one who supports grass roots organizations, even

when they feel like no one is hearing them. Many thought the

world wouldn't hear him. The world is listening to this man

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123

because the world sees itself in this man. I need a leader who

believes in the basic goodness of human beings first. I want a

leader larger than him or herself. I want as a leader a man who

listens, has a diverse team around him, and sometimes screws

up, always feeling humbled after—knowing his humanity, yet

looking to divinity for assistance. I want a leader who is willing

to admit mistakes—his own and a nation's. I want an America

willing to believe that a powerful person is patriotic when he

can see the mistakes his country has made—and care enough

to confront them, and to turn them around. I want an America

that does not demand perfection from its president. We need a

leader who can shed needed light on a path—and then we'll

walk down the path and we'll work together, and we'll give a

little of our own comfort to help a brother—and Mr. President,

we promise not to try and make you into the Messiah. We

commit ourselves to the journey, and we won't sit back and see

what you're going to do. This is our country, and we want it

back. You understand this because you were a part of that in

Chicago. You know the power of church basements, and you

know the danger of lethargy among a people. What I love

about Obama is that he already knows that he cannot change

the state of this economy, war, or health care alone. A leader is

a humble servant. I want a humble servant who believes in

something larger than himself. I want Barack Obama.

Cheryl Saluga

Boardman, OH

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Page 135: Obama ~ The Leadership of "We Are One"

About The Author

VICTORIA C. DEPAUL, M.S., Business Consultant, Life

Coach, Facilitator, Author

http://www.GalileoConsultants.com

Victoria DePaul founded Galileo Business & Learn-

ing Consultants in 2007 after many years in human re-

source management. As a retired corporate executive, Ms.

DePaul has gained extensive experience in the develop-

ment of human potential holding positions as supervisor,

manager, leader and corporate trainer. She has inspired

many with her personal challenge with weight loss,

appearing on the Today Show, CNN, The NBC Nightly

News, 20/20 as well as several national and international

publications. Through seminars, consulting and speaking

engagements she continues to motivate and move people

toward peak-performance in all areas of life.

Her personal development and self-mastery style is

based on her personal, management and business leader-

ship success and is documented in “Creating the Intra-

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About The Author

126

preneur: The Search for Leadership Excellence”. Here

readers learn that organizations are energy systems where

the basic unit of power of any energy system, whether it

be a business, a family, a neighborhood, or a global

community is the individual. The power of this new

business methodology is its recognition that every person

is a Life Energy, Spirit entity, an energy system itself

consisting of Wisdom, Power, and Value. This Life Energy

can manifest itself as either positive or negative. Organi-

zations can control the positive or negative outflow of

energy once they understand how to harness the true

quantum, spiritual energies of its members. When busi-

nesses, organizations and communities begin to under-

stand the ultimate motivation of all persons – the

experience of more and more Life Essence Energy, they

can be the catalyst for positive, permanent change in

people, their families and communities- local, national

and global. At the core of “Creating the Intrapreneur” is

the knowledge that all that exists is Energy – Human

Quantum Energy, the Energy of Life itself.

Based in personal experience and application, the

concepts that Victoria introduces are more than theory—

they are the proven steps to organizational transforma-

tion. For much of her career, Victoria struggled with how

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127

to motivate people to higher levels of performance. What

she found was that the primary motivation of each of us is

the desire to be happy, whether at work or at play. Fur-

ther, she discovered what true happiness is- the full

experience of our creative, spirit Self. In order to achieve

excellent results, all that was necessary was to empower

others to express their unique creativity. In other words,

she learned to provide the vision, guidance and tools and

then got out of the way. The natural result was a moti-

vated and innovative workforce, leading to increased

production results, high levels of morale and accountability.

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Acknowledgements

DR. DAVID G. GLIDDON serves as faculty in the School

of Business at Colorado Technical University and the CTU

Institute for Advanced Studies. He is Subject Matter

Expert for the MBA Leadership program at South Univer-

sity. He is the founder of ISOIL, the International Society

of Innovation Leadership. He received his Ph. D. in

Workforce Education and Development with a specializa-

tion in Training and Human Resources from Penn State

University. He received his MS. in Human Resource

Administration with a specialization in Human Resource

Development from the University of Scranton and his BS.

in Psychology with a specialization in Business and a

Minor in Philosophy from Penn State University.

Dr. Gliddon received the International Society of Perfor-

mance Improvement's 2009 First Place Distinguished

Dissertation Award, a 2008 Obama Organizing Fellow-

ship, the 2005 Colorado Technical University Faculty

Service Award, serves as Chair of the Colorado Technical

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130

University Library Committee, and is an Eagle Scout. He

has provided executive consulting to clients achieving a

multitude of successes in state-wide strategic curriculum

development projects in Pennsylvania; nation-wide

compensation, EEO, and employee relations projects; and

global performance management, staffing, training, and

HRIS project implementations.

Dr. Gliddon is currently authoring the book Innovation

Leadership and has written numerous articles on the

topic. The initial press release on innovation leadership is

listed as suggested reading by the US Department of

Treasury. Dr. Gliddon authored the chapter Leading

Democracy for Letters to President Obama, Performance

Management Systems for the ISPI Handbook for the

Selection and Implementation of Human Performance

Interventions, and two chapters for the Praeger Hand-

book of Human Resource Management and Workplace

Policy.

JOHN R. WILSON earned his M.S. in Technical Communi-

cation at North Carolina State University in Raleigh,

North Carolina. His journey from childhood fundamen-

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131

talism and racism to Unity and the "one nation" of Barack

Obama traveled through the maze of Christianity.

It appears that historical followers of the "Christ" were not

all alike, but differed widely in belief and practice. Ameri-

cans must respect differences and pursue common

dreams and goals in charting a new direction for our

country.

MELISSA DEPUTY is a Public Speaker, Author, and the

founder of Deputy Speaks and A Woman’s Best. Melissa is

available for speaking engagements and consulting

services on time management, customer service, market-

ing and sales, abuse and recovery, living your ideal life,

and self esteem. Visit her website at www.DeputySpeaks.com.

TYLER O’DAY, a resident of West Boylston, MA, is a

ninth grader at the West Boylston Junior – Senior High

School. Even at his young age he is active in school, local,

state, and national politics; he describes his political views

as ranging from liberal to socialist. He enjoys sports,

especially football, and vacationing with family on Cape

Cod.

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Special Thanks…..

IN THESE PAGES YOU HAVE BEEN introduced to a new para-

digm of organizations, how life works, and the internal

mechanisms of human energy. This book is an application

study of my interpretation of the works of Thomas Mi-

chael Powell, a modern-day philosopher. At the heart of

these teachings is the codification of the universal laws of

Wisdom, Power, and Esteem. From my personal mentor-

ship with Thomas I have learned that life is a polarity;

true personal power comes from understanding that all of

experience is both positive and negative. Our inability to

effectively manage our internal negative energies is the

only cause of unhappiness in life. Not only have I learned

how these universal laws work in determining the out-

comes of our individual lives, but they are the determi-

nants for success or failure in all human organizations.

Thomas has given me unlimited access to his books and

course materials to aid in completing this project and so

many others.

Once again, I extend profound gratitude and ap-

preciation to Thomas Michael Powell for his contribution

to this book, my life, and to humanity.

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Contributors

Abarquez-Delacruz, Prosy Los Angeles, CA Abdulraheem, Abubakar Nigeria Beauleri, Rick Indiana, PA Betts, Sheri Beltsville, MD Bostick, Preston Quincy, FL Bowron, Alice Winfree St. Louis Park, MN Brooks, Raymond Birmingham, AL Brooks, Thomas Houston, TX Burwick, Louis Worcester, MA Campbell, Chris San Diego, CA Carter-Brooks, Emma Leeds, AL Chamberlain, Derrick Midland, MI Christiansen, Charles Rockville, MD Claire Paris, France Cronin, Allan Santa Barbara, CA Crowell, Mickie Elk Grove, CA Cyr, Denise Medford, OR Deputy, Melissa Flemington, NJ Dorff, Raissa New York, NY Duncan, Jacob Ocala, FL Eaton, Nancy Tampa, FL Everett, Jeremy Tripoli, IA Fiore, Lee Worcester, MA Fitzharris, Stephanie Austin, TX Frank, Patrick Kingstree, SC Gagne, Gary Charlotte, NC Gay-Allen, Darlene Ft. Walton Beach, FL Gerhardt, Sarah L Portland, OR Giacomuzzi, David J Palm Springs, CA Gliddon PhD, David Colorado Goodwin, Rolanda Lawrenceville, GA Gray, Gloretha Port Saint Lucie, FL Greene, Rene Atlanta, GA

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Hoffine, Dalton Winston-Salem, NC Hopkins, Michele Clearlake, CA Jansson, Torgny Gothenburg, Sweden Jones, Robert Westminster, SC Joslin, Rachel Browns Mills, NJ Keane, Martin Voorhees, NJ Kelinson, Roberta Rock Island, IL King, John W. Buckeye, AZ King, Okela Brooklyn, NY Lanahan, Anthony Park Ridge, IL Lawrence, Saudia San Francisco, CA Lillge, Eugene Appleton, WI Loewenstein PhD, David Miami, FL Manns, Ron Rockford, IL Marlowe, Christina Summerland, CA Martin, George Wilmette, IL McCampbell, Nancy Bozeman, MT McLaughlin Jr., Richard Warrington, PA Meltzer, Jessica Berlin, MA Miller, Mary Beth Northville, MI Montanez, Debra Jacksonville, FL Moore-Bruno, Korkie Courtland Manor, NY Morris, Lynn Rivesville, WV Murchison, Matt Tampa, FL Noah, Deborah Carmichael, CA Norman, Betty Chicago, Il O'Day, Tyler West Boylston, MA Odeh, Peter Baltimore, MD Oguara, Tetana Seattle, WA Orie, Ada Cockeysville, MD Ozanne, John Carmel, CA Pant, LaShawn Pensacola, FL Pao, Al San Francisco, CA Paulsen, Julie Woodbury, IA Powell, Jeff Kent, WA

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Rapalje, Tryntje San Francisco, CA Reid, Tim Hanover, PA Riley-Roach, Andrianna Wheatley Heights,NY Roberts, Lloyd Dexter, ME Robinson, Douglas Great Falls, MT Saluga, Cheryl Boardman, OH Sciscoe, Verna Bellingham, WA Sebastian, Catherine Millford, PA Shank, Stephanie Elkins, WV Smith, Jessica Amesbury, MA Smith, Joe Lowell, MA Smith, Pamela Thornton, CO Spillman, Denise Boardman, OH Steinbach, Bernhard Charlottesville, VA Stroud, Anita San Jose, CA Suter, Simone Geneva, Switzerland Tarpai, William Riverside, CA Tata, Ted Stoughton, MA Timmons, Wynona B. Rio Vista, CA Turner, Marla Las Vegas, NV Wallace, Angelique Haverford, PA Walton, Karen Fort Lee, NJ Walton, Maggie Houston, TX Wenger, Allen Mountain Home, ID White, Bridget Baytown, TX Whittle, Karen Kirkland, WA Williams Esq., Dr. E. Faye Washington, DC Williams, Glenn Lincoln, NE Wilson, John R. Raleigh, NC Wilson, Kathy Bowie, MD

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