It's a familiar scene during election campaigns. A candidate pauses to pose for a photograph with a Hamilton resident whom they believe it would be advantageous to be seen beside.Both are smiling—at least on the surface.
Look a little closer and there is often a subtle tell. The candidate appears enthusiastic. The resident smiles politely, but sometimes with the expression of someone who isn't quite sure how they ended up in the photo. Perhaps they are flattered. Perhaps they were caught off guard. Perhaps they simply didn't want to say no.
Will the photograph help the campaign? Maybe. Maybe not. But that isn't really the point. The point is that every campaign does it.
Election after election, social media fills with the same images: candidates shaking hands, candidates standing beside local personalities, candidates smiling with business owners, candidates attending festivals, candidates posing with anyone who might lend a little credibility by association.
The formula has become predictable.Hamilton doesn't need another politician who knows how to stage a photograph. It needs leaders who know how to solve problems.
Leadership isn't measured by the number of selfies on a Facebook page or the length of a campaign photo album. It's measured by judgment, integrity, courage, and the willingness to make difficult decisions when there are no cameras around.
A photograph may capture a moment. Leadership earns respect over time. As voters, perhaps we should spend less time asking who a candidate is standing beside and more time asking what they stand for.
Want to emerge as leader? I have a challenge for you. Schedule a debate with your opponents. Invite all of them. Set up the venue. I'll volunteer to moderate. Email me PublisherTH AT thehamiltonian.info. We'll even publish your debate invite on The Hamiltonian.
Let's see if there is a leader out there. I'm waiting.
