There is a very simple reason why magician's don't reveal the secrets of their illusions: I you knew how the trick was done, it wouldn't be magic, would it?
Of course, we know that the magician on the stage doesn't really possess magic powers. We're able to enjoy the performance anyway, happily attributing that which we don't understand to some mystical quality possessed by the man in the cape and top hat. Then the lights come on.
In her latest paper, UCLA Anderson Associate Professor Maia Young (and her co-authors Michael Morris of Columbia University and California State University, Long Beach's Vicki Scherwin) examines a type of real-world mystical quality, a perceived charisma imparted by others, including colleagues and subordinates. Inc. recently gave the paper coverage. The UCLA Anderson Blog had the opportunity to sit down with Young to discuss the work.
We wondered if the research suggested that charisma did not exist at all, that it was simply a "mystical" quality. Young assured us that some leaders (and others) do possess charisma; the paper deals more with the way others describe a charismatic leader and what other inputs imform their perceptions.
Through a series of studies, all of which made it clear that the person being discussed was highly successful, Young and company found that the less others knew the details of a leader's/person's success, the more they attributed that success to charisma or some other intangible talent. In other words, lacking knowledge of the hard work, long hours and attention to detail a successful leader applies to a successful project or projects, the more those around them attribute that success to their charisma -- they just get things done.
"The more someone wants to be seen as charismatic, the more they must try to keep their hard work hidden," Young said of the study's most important practical impacts. It's not suggested that those who are charismatic don't work hard, but rather the less that is known about their hard work, the more charisma is assigned a signficant role by those around them. Another take away of the study dealt with how people are described by others, for example, in a job recommendation. The more of the practical details one reveals when describing someone -- the less charismatic they may seem. "When we don't know how someone (achieves their successes)," Yound said, "the more we are likely to perceive them as charismatic."
The paper suggests that there is a value to be seen as charismatic, as those who fit that description are also believed to have "visionary" qualities. The paper's third study revealed that managers described as "visionary," as opposed to "diligent," are judged to be charismatic and ultimately magnetic.
Company's with a charismatic leader or managers do also deal with the downside of the perception. Since the tangible or mechanical details of such leader's success are not well-known, it is more difficult for the company to replicate their success when faced with succession.
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