FORBES: THE MAGIC POTION OF HARD POWER MIXED WITH SOFT EMOTION
In his column on Forbes, “The Leading Edge,” Sangeeth Vargese retells the recent story of President Obama waiting in line for a cheeseburger, even after he is offered a place in the front of the line. He turns to the current president and former leaders for anecdotes in commending respect via a nice mix of emotion and power.
Forbes Excerpt:
There is this one image that has stayed with me amid all the cacophony of the last couple of weeks–the image of President Barack Obama waiting patiently in line to order a cheddar cheeseburger with mustard at Ray’s Hell Burger, in Arlington, Va.
The president refused all offers to let him cut the line. When he got his burger, he sat down to lunch with his vice president at a vinyl-tableclothed table near a sign requesting customers not to take a table before getting their food. Here is the man who occupies the most powerful position in the world, queuing up at a burger stand. It puts me in mind of another presidential image that resonated with the nation almost half a century ago–the image of John F. Kennedy sitting at his desk in the Oval Office as his 3-year-old son peeks out from underneath. Both scenes gave us a glimpse of immense power tempered by shades of human softness.
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