Optimise Your Life

Number 38:  Hamid Karzai

Who:  Afghanistan’s President

Why:  Admitting defeat can be scary 

Do

Do: Network. Karzai’s years abroad meant that he was well known when it was time for the Americans to find a palatable leader after the invasion of Afghanistan following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It also meant he was able to pursuade international donors to pledge billions shortly after the fall of the old Afghan regime.

Do: Adopt the pithy soundbite. Karzai’s familiarised himself with the western political custom of speaking in quotable phrases, a sometimes useful political tool that has turned out such gems as “where liberty dies, evil grows” and “Al Qaeda is no longer in Afghanistan.” You can’t be 100 per cent right all the time.

Do: Dress the part. Karzai’s ceremonious robes give the impression he is in touch with the local heritage, something necessary, given his position as president of the country.

Don’t

Don’t: Ignore the obvious. Election rigging was so blatant in the latest presidential polling that there will be re-elections. Karzai probably would have won anyway, but his reluctance to recognise the problems — bizarrely it took US Senator John Kerry to convince him of a re-election — make him seem more vulnerable.

Don’t: Fake it. Karzai did not return to Afghanistan from his education abroad until he was 30 years old. Coupled with obvious backing from abroad, Karzai sometimes suffers from the perception that he is more of an import than an indigenous leader.

Don’t: Surround yourself with mercenary guards. While they may make him safer, the American soldiers that act as Karzai’s guards only make him seem more out of touch.