Some people believe that in order to be effective political leaders must yield to public opinion and abandon principle for the sake of compromise Others believe that the most essential quality of an effective leader is the ability to remain consistently c

Political leaders are those who lead the society. They must have well-defined principles and objectives in order to support their stand. Their objectives must be concerned towards the welfare of the people. If they happen to compromise on their belief based on public opinion, then it will only lead to confusion on the part of their credibility. There are many examples in realtime to illustrate that political leaders who have been stubborn in their opinion are remembered for a long time in the history.

First of all, political leaders who adhere to a cause are venerated by the people and they become the cynosure. They are deemed as heroes by the people who in many ways try to emulate their behavior and consider them as their role models. Therefore, stricking to a particular cause often gains acclaim for the political leaders and they become icons in due course of time. For example, Mahatma Gandhi who vouched for independence through non-violence, amidst lot of protests, is remembered even today by millions of Indians. This is solely because, Mahatma Gandhi has sticked to his belief throughout his lifetime and has achieved success too.

Secondly, political leaders who never comprise on the principles are considered to be credible and they can be trusted to eradicate the miseries of the people. Whereas if a political leader happens to heed to the desires of the people, then he will least likely be considered as an exemplary person; his morality will be doubted and ultimately he will turn out to be the most hated person in the society. Hence trust can be established in a leader, only when he moves according to the established principles and rarely does change them. For instance, Abraham Lincoln is considered to be an Africans because he struggled a lot in rescuing the Africans from the clutches of slavery. Had he compromised and discontinued his struggle, neither would Africans have achieved independence nor would Abraham Lincoln have created a mark in the history.

Finally, a leader is shaped up by his principles and objectives. At any point of time, if he changes his beliefs, then it will mar his position in the society and create chaos because people will not be able to discern his real character. For instance, Mahatma Gandhi can be rendered as the "Symbol of Peace" - because in no case, did he resort to violence; Hilter who promoted Nazism and Mussolini who promoted Fascism can be regarded as the great leaders who "achieved success by struggling through violence"; the current President of India - Dr.Manmohan Singh can be regarded as the "best economist cum politician" because he is always punctilious in making economic decisions in Political matters. Thus each and every leader is identified uniquely by their opinions and the principles that they adhere to. Consequently, a political leader creates an 'idiosyncracy' for himself and marches towards the path of success.

Though consistency in sticking to principles and objectives is required, some may argue that, in exigent cases where no other alternatives exist, we may have to change the principles so as to suit the needs of the current population. It is true to a certain extent that, there is absolutely no use of keeping a principle which no longer does hold valid. As times are changing, the principles need to be changed. But they must not occur at the expense of people's suggestions. An effective leader is one who considers multiple points of view regarding a politcy change, analyses their pros and cons, and finally arrives at a decision on whether to really manipulate the existing laws. For instance, an Indian rule states that "Child labor is defined as employing the children whose age is below 14 years"; But now, the trends have changed and everyone need to have education atleast until 16 to 18 years of age. Hence, the political leader can take steps to accurately set the standards for the new definition of child labor.

All in all, an effective leader in any society is identified by his commitments towards principles and objectives; it creates a clear picture of the leader and engenders trust on him in the minds of the people. He who stubbornly adheres to his belief is sure to create indelible impressions in the annals of the nation's history. Though, the leaders can afford to change the principles sometimes, it must never go against his established motives that defines his character. Therefore, great political leaders are always those who have established set of opinions.