Muhammad Ali once said, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth”(USA Today). A true leader considers their service to others as a measurement of success. Ali wanted to serve the world. Ali was a philanthropist, astonishing boxer, and an activist for civil rights. He opened centers for people suffering from Parkinson’s, supported numerous associations like the Make a Wish Foundation, and opened a non-profit museum fostered in the same town where he grew up to promote the well-being and nurturing of children (Hauser). He was a man that was about change and development of social rights. He spoke up for people who could not speak up for themselves. Likewise, he strived for peace, solidarity, and respect for others. Ali showed direct leadership and influence to his followers through his celebrity platform. He wanted to impact the world by sharing his ideas and beliefs, his end goal was to change how the world thinks.
Boxer, social activist, and humanitarian, were the words used to portray Muhammad Ali, yet he was not always described by these words. He worked tirelessly for them throughout his entire life. Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) was born on January 17th, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky amid the Jim Crow era (Hauser). Growing up in times of racial segregation affected Ali for the rest of his life. Ali’s anger and frustration towards the social standards in America caused him to turn to violence. At age 12, Ali found his ability for boxing, through the assistance of a white cop Joe Martin, who revealed to him that if he wanted the chance to seek revenge on someone who stole his bicycle, he would need to figure out how to fight first (Hauser). Ali began working with Martin to figure out how to box, however it was an African American coach named Fred Stoner who showed him the art of boxing (Hauser). Through these trainings, he went on to win gold medals at the U.S Olympics, Golden Gloves Championships, and many more titles (Hauser).
Leadership requires a vision, and vision requires the ability to be able to ignore existing social conditions. Leaders dismiss built up standards and social norms and give an alternate, better, point of view on the real world. Importantly, leaders open themselves up to ridicule by stating their beliefs, regardless of the consequences. Leaders not only speak words, but they commit actions that challenge the status quo. With perseverance, leaders are able to make their ideas and thoughts take precedence over old ones. Undoubtedly, leaders are motivated if their ideas are compatible with their followers, and in doing as such they will likewise encounter individuals who don’t agree with them.
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Be that as it may, one thing is sure: if you don’t stand for anything, or don’t question the status quo, then you are not a leader. This is the reason leaders are uncommon in the realm of pro athletics because athletes fear to lose the adoration of their fans. Muhammed Ali was unique, he refused to fall into societal pressures. In March 1966, Ali refused to be drafted into the Vietnam war (History Staff). Due to Ali’s resistance, he was denied a boxing license in every state and had his passport revoked. From March 1967 to October 1970 he was unable to fight (History Staff). During his time away from the ring, opposition towards the Vietnam War began to grow and Ali’s decision not to fight for the U.S gained sympathy. He spoke at numerous venues across the country, criticizing the Vietnam War and advocating African American rights (History Staff). Ali was the only celebrity who was willing to give up all his professional titles and freedom in order to fight for what he believed in.
Regardless of your ability, the correct mentality, a genuine hard-working attitude, and a longing to make progress towards flawlessness will improve your talent. Usually, people with innate talents of amazing athletic abilities lack perseverance and unwavering determination in order to reach their maximum capacity. Even though Muhammad Ali had an unimaginable athletic ability, he practiced constantly and worked hard as if he had none. From the beginning, Ali was the first one in the gym, and the last one out despite the fact that he loathed training (Hauser). The best leaders are the ones who are always open to learning and having an open mindset — they join and take part in training due to their elevated amounts of interest and willingness to enhance their skills. Usually, training tends to help mostly those individuals who don’t really need it (Hauser).
The individuals who require it the most are stubborn and inept leaders, who oppose training and improvement since they are egotistical, smug, or uninformed of their inadequacy. Although Ali was not modest at all, and had some less than ideal traits, it’s hard to believe that he was as self-absorbed and overly confident as usually described due to his willingness to train constantly. Most of his behavior was to distract his opponents from any of the fear he truly felt during a match. Ali would constantly claim that he was ‘the greatest”, and although this statement may be cocky, he had the facts to back it up. Barack Obama, once said “Muhammad Ali was The Greatest. Period.
If you just asked him, he’d tell you. He’d tell you he was the double greatest; that he’d ‘handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder into jail’. But what made The Champ the greatest — what truly separated him from everyone else — was that everyone else would tell you pretty much the same thing”(New York Times). People often try to bring up negative traits that leaders possess like, for example Steve Jobs was emotionally unstable, Walt Disney was anti-semitic, and Henry Ford was merciless. That may have been true, however, unlike most unstable, mean, and heartless leaders, they had the ability, hard-working attitude, and vision to back their ideas. While he was indisputably cocky, Ali might not have been a superior boxer without excessive pride; furthermore, without his superior athletic ability, he would never have reached the heights of greatness.
Muhammad Ali had the ability to persuade others to follow in his lead by being an “attractive” example rather than through coercion or payments. Through this Ali is viewed as a leader who used soft power, because he used his fame to bring awareness to the civil rights movement and the impracticality of drafting people to help fight in the Vietnam war (History Staff). Ali also displayed an inspirational style of leadership, as he spoke to people’s morals by bolstering the image of a social cause and starting a public discussion, which lead to the eventual wavering support for the Vietnam war, and unwavering support for the civil rights movement.
Celebrities are often seen using soft power due to their influence over the population. What makes celebrities such appealing leaders is the fact that they differ from typical experts — they’re ordinary people who believe in something. America supported an African American man who wasn’t reluctant to stand up, who declined to be what others anticipated that he would be. He didn’t conquer racism. He didn’t defeat bigotry. He exposed it. He stated that prejudice formed our thoughts of race, that it was never the other way around. Muhammad Ali had resilience, and through this, he gained popularity with the public. His perseverance also allowed him to gain national support for the civil rights movement.
In 1984, Muhammad Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which was only 3 years after retiring from his career in boxing (WP Company). Parkinson’s disease quickly takes over someone’s body by affecting their movements and coordination (WP Company). One of the greatest battles that Ali was in was with his disease. Yet in 1996, with trembling hands, Muhammad Ali had the greatest victory of all, when he lit the torch in the Summer Olympics (WP Company), showing that he never let his disease overwhelm him. Being one of the prominent individuals known to battle this disease, he expanded awareness and research (Reilly). Ali helped discover a new way to aid in the treatment regimen of Parkinson’s.
Due to his impact, that treatment regimen is currently generally acknowledged as the standard exercise for people suffering from Parkinson’s disease, because especially when started right after the diagnosis, it can decrease symptoms and significantly increase a patient’s personal satisfaction (Reilly). Numerous centers, including the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center, now incorporate physical and mental exercise into the treatment of patients. Ali’s most admirable trait thus, was how gracefully and bravely he battled his own fight against the disease (Reilly). His strength gave hope to others and spread that message all through the world. He risked his pride and allowed cameras over and over to see him at his most helpless moments in order to provide exposure for others fighting this disease.
Ali’s ability to stand up for others and his selfless intentions show that he is a leader because he stood up for something bigger than himself — a disease that diminishes the quality of life for so many people. Ali once said, “I would like to be remembered as a man who won the heavyweight championship three times, who was humorous, and who treated everyone right. As a man who never looked down on those who looked up to him, and who helped as many people as he could. As a man who stood up for his beliefs no matter what. As a man who tried to unite all humankind through faith and love. And if all that’s too much, then I guess I’d settle for being remembered only as a great boxer who became a leader and champion for his people.
And I wouldn’t even mind if folks forgot how pretty I was” (Reilly). Those words capture Ali’s desire, the manner in which he characterized and described the champion and leader that he was. Showing what Ali valued most in life was to be remembered as a leader, as a champion of all people, someone who fought for human rights and stood up for what he believed in. He told us how he wanted us to remember him, but more than that, he wanted us to remember how he valued leadership and how that was what he really cared about in this world. Throughout Ali’s life, he fought for issues bigger than himself, against racial injustice and Parkinson’s, and for social change.
Muhammad Ali developed his style of leadership through determination, hard work, and through his upbringing. Because of these factors, he decided to stand up for what he believed in, as a way to empower others who were often ignored. Ali was an effective leader because he made legitimate social change, in addition to being a legend in boxing. He was able to gain followers through being a positive example to others. He made his voice heard and his points clear. Ali knew what mattered and wasn’t afraid to stand up for his beliefs and made his beliefs known. Through Muhammad Ali’s leadership, we learn that through obstacles, we must stand up for what we believe in. This is why Muhammad Ali will forever be remembered as a leader, even decades after his passing.
