Gender & toll of strong, compassionate leadership

Palmerston North: (The Conversation) “Uneasy is the head that wears the crown”, wrote Shakespeare, way back in the 1500s. It’s not a new idea that top-level leadership jobs are intensely stressful and pose a heavy toll. Extended periods of stress are known to put people at risk of burnout.

Yet probably few of us can ever grasp just how unrelentingly demanding and difficult leading a country actually is. Especially in times of crisis and with our modern media and online environment, every statement and every move a leader makes is subject to extensive scrutiny and commentary.

Increasingly, a troubling feature of the commentary about New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been its abusive, violent, sexist and misogynistic tenor.

While she has not focused on this as a reason for her decision to resign yesterday, being targeted in this way, and knowing her partner and even her child were also targeted, must surely have made an already difficult job so much more challenging.

Crises have long been understood as the most intensive tests of a leader’s skill and character. They involve making weighty decisions, at times about matters that quite literally have life and death implications.

Decisions have to be made at speed, but often with insufficient information to confidently predict the consequences of the choices made.

Ardern’s premiership has thrown crisis after crisis her way. And time and time again, she has displayed a strength of character and considerable leadership skills in responding to them.

Her handling of the Christchurch terror attacks won global admiration for her composure, compassion and decisive resolve to ensure such heinous acts could not be repeated here.

Her response to the Whakaari White Island eruption garnered similar praise, showing yet again her intuitive grasp that a leader offering support to those caught up in such a distressing event actually makes a difference. That Ardern has sought to combine compassion and kindness with the courage to make tough decisions is a key feature of her style.

Unrealistic expectations of a leader Throughout the pandemic, Arden has repeatedly proved her willingness to make courageous decisions. Combined with her prowess at mobilising the public’s understanding and support for the government’s COVID response, this was critical to the success of the elimination strategy.