Inventing the Job of President: Leadership Style from George Washington to Andrew Jackson

Presidential Difference Project

by Fred I. Greenstein

How the early presidents shaped America's highest office

From George Washington's decision to buy time for the new nation by signing the less-than-ideal Jay Treaty with Great Britain in 1795 to George W. Bush's order of a military intervention in Iraq in 2003, the matter of who is president of the United States is of the utmost importance. In this book, Fred Greenstein examines the leadership styles of the earliest presidents, men who served at a time when it was by no means certain that the American experiment in free government would succeed.

In his groundbreaking book The Presidential Difference , Greenstein evaluated the personal strengths and weaknesses of the modern presidents since Franklin D. Roosevelt. Here, he takes us back to the very founding of the republic to apply the same yardsticks to the first seven presidents from Washington to Andrew Jackson, giving his no-nonsense assessment of the qualities that did and did not serve them well in office. For each president, Greenstein provides a concise history of his life and presidency, and evaluates him in the areas of public communication, organizational capacity, political skill, policy vision, cognitive style, and emotional intelligence. Washington, for example, used his organizational prowess―honed as a military commander and plantation owner―to lead an orderly administration. In contrast, John Adams was erudite but emotionally volatile, and his presidency was an organizational disaster.

Inventing the Job of President explains how these early presidents and their successors shaped the American presidency we know today and helped the new republic prosper despite profound challenges at home and abroad.

Genres: Politics, History, Biography

176 pages, Hardcover

First published August 30, 2009

About the author

An American political scientist, known for his work on political leadership and the US presidency, Fred Irwin Greenstein (September 1, 1930 – December 3, 2018) was an emeritus professor of politics at Princeton University.

Reviews

[Doug Frantz · Rating 2 out of 5]

short bios that dont do a great deal to do with how the first 7 presidents truly shaped the office

[Javier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to read this for class, didn't even realize I had read the whole book because it was so short I was surprised when I realized I finished it. I thought this book was very mundane and pedestrian, although admittedly I'm not much into history books so take this review for what it is. I thought it laid the groundwork for understanding these early presidencies but that's all it did. There was very little detail as it moved from president to president rather rapidly. On a more positive note the writing, I thought, was actually rather good and it was easy to read and comprehend. I thought that some of it was interesting so it wasn't fully boring I just think it was overall probably not the most interesting book on the subject matter. But if you want a light history book on the first seven presidencies that you can read in under 3 hours this is for you.

[Miles Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Serviceable book on presidential leader ship. There’s nothing earth shattering in here but it’s a nice resource to have available for citations, etc..

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remarkably brief, to a fault. But a great overview of the first seven presidents and their leadership traits. JQ Adams increasingly comes across as the most interesting person, if also a horrible president. Right on the issues, so wrong as a leader.

[Ratforce]

This book examines the leadership styles of America’s earliest leaders. Because of your interest in both biographies and leadership, you may enjoy this historical exploration of leadership