Stephen H Baum Leadership

Barack Obama’s informercial last evening resonated with many people. There is science underlying its effectiveness. Neuroscience.

There is a part of your brain, your amygdala, that makes you uneasy, upset, afraid when you sense that things are out of control. As it gets more active, it sends signals to other parts of your brain, beginning with the Insula which regulates your body and sends it into panic/survival mode (fight or flight). So signaled, it can stop your digestion, make your breathing labored, your heart rate higher, your head hurt. You may even do things out of fear that you later regret.

Research confirms the brain activity in survival mode as blood rushes away from your “thinking brain” to your “emotional brain.” It also confirms that your brain responds to images and sounds and stories that give you a sense of control, calm your brain, return you to a more thoughtful state of mind rather than an emotional one. And, if you have been trained to re-appraise your reaction to the information that upsets you and see it from a different perspective, you can regain your sense of your control. If you haven’t been so trained, you need someone else to help you with that re-appraisal, preferably a parent, a boss or the leader of your organization.

One of the roles of leadership is to provide such sense of control to others. And that is why the Obama infomercial is likely to have been very effective. Viewers experienced calming images (wheat fields and such), calming tone of voice, hopeful messages and a resonating story. A sense of control.

Think about the images and sounds emitted by McCain and Palin the past week or so. Facial expressions, body language, tone of voice, the story — do they give you a sense of control? Unlikely.

Many factors contribute to the outcome of an election. And proving that the infomercial caused the election outcome or the differential in votes will not be possible.

But the leadership instinct shown by Obama in commissioning and executing this infomercial (consistent with much of the imagery and tone of the rest of the campaign) is one we will greatly need in the challenging times of 2009.

See the image today from HuffingtonPost.com for a more recent reminder.

That’s my view. What’s yours?