How Was Alexander The Great as a Leader Research Paper

How Was Alexander The Great as a Leader - Research Paper Example Having achieved this much with such a relative short life, we cannot help but wonder, â€Å"how was Alexander the Great as a leader?† To better understand how was Alexander the Great as leader, it would be necessary to know the man. Alexander the Great in brief Alexander the Great was born in royalty. He was born of a Macedonian King Philip II and Queen Olympias. He was educated by the best teachers and was taught how to read, ride, play the lyre, fight and hunt. His best education came from Aristotle, one of the greatest philosopher of all time. The training that Alexander the Great received from Aristotle had a tremendous influence in his later conquests and it has been said that it contributed much in the success of his military conquests1 (Foster 2001, 44). Alexander the Great was also exposed early on how to lead troops in combat. At age of 17, Alexander the Great already led troops towards victory against the combined forces of Athens and Thebes. At 20, he was already ki ng when his father Philip II was assasinated by his own men. He began his conquest in 334 B.C. when he commenced a 12 year journey during which he traveled 22,000 miles and conquered modern day Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India to the Indus River2 (Team Trek Series). During this campaign, he defeated armies four to five times his size as he cross deserts and 15,000 foot peaks in freezing weather, facing incredible hardships to unite the known world under one common vision3. During these conquests, he also managed to have himself named the pharaoh of Egypt and conquered all of Asia, calling himself the â€Å"Lord of Asia†4. II. The Leadership of Alexander the Great Alexander was able to achieve this feat as a result of a combination of several characteristics that distinguished him from other leaders. In addition to being trained early to become a leader and a king, Alexander had inherent personal qualities that made him conquer all kn own world during his time. As a leader, Alexander the Great was; a. Self-confident. Perhaps even extremely but it served him well. Alexander the Great truly believed that he was a descendant of the gods (i.e. Hercules) that he thought he was invincible and this was displayed in the battlefield when he led his troops. This confidence was contagious that inspired his men to have faith in themselves which was instrumental in winning battles. This was manifested in Alexander the Great’s second confrontation with the army of Darius at the mountain pass of Issus where Darius outnumbered Alexander’s army. Out of sheer faith of Alexander’s army in him, his soldiers were able to defeat Darius army in a fierce hand to hand combat5 (Cohen 1983, 50). Alexander the Great also did not accept perceptions of his environment as limitations to be accommodated. Perceived problems were reframed into alternative problems, which were then to be solved6 (Kurke 2004, 4). As a concrete example, â€Å"any special defiance, or any reputedly impossible problem, he took as a personal challenge, and fell upon it with especial ardour. The Gordian Knot yielded when he slid the yoke sideways out of it-and revealed many rope-ends, not only two7† (Burns 1965, 140). b. Visionary. According to Kurke, â€Å"truly great leaders change the world around them. They instill in their followers a cohesive identity and clear purpose8† (2004: IX). Alexander the G