At 30 hours in length, and only covering the first term of his presidency, I was worried Obama’s book, A Promised Land, would be a little slow for my liking. I was wrong. I loved it.
Here are 3 of my takeaways:
1. I was more interested in his ‘normal life’ than his ‘presidential life’. Everyone has seen the suave, eloquent, and charismatic Obama. The speeches, the interviews, and the campaign rallies. But it’s rare to get a peak behind the presidential curtain; only Obama can grant permission to that part of his life. I especially enjoyed reading about his relationship with Michelle, and how she kept him grounded. One morning in 2009, when Obama learned he’d won the Nobel Peace Prize, he woke Michelle to tell her the news. She said, “That’s wonderful, honey,” before rolling over and going back to sleep.
I also loved reading about the games of pool he’d play with White House Assistant Chef, Sam Kass, the cigarettes he’d secretly smoke after a long day, the little league basketball games he coached for daughter, Sasha, and the games of basketball with old friends.
It made the president feel human.
2. There’s never a clean solution. This isn’t unique to Obama or the US Presidency, but Obama’s story helped me better understand the nature of wicked problems—or problems that don’t have any clear solution.
Every foreign or domestic problem that landed on Obama’s desk was riddled with complex trade-offs and risks. The Global Financial Crisis, the Deep Water Horizon oil spill, Obamacare, and the assassination of Osama bin Laden are just a few that come to mind.
If it hits the President’s desk, it’s already almost insolvable. It taught me that these problems come with the territory.
3. His rise was meteoric, and the timing was extremely lucky.
In 2000, Obama couldn’t even get a ticket to the Democratic National Convention. And that same year, he lost the Democratic primary race for Illinois’s 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives by a margin of two to one.
However, 4 years later, he’d be introducing John Kerry at the same event he couldn’t get tickets to just a few years earlier, and a few months he went on to win a seat in the U.S. Senate.
4 years after that, in 2008, he’d be accepting the Democratic Nomination, and would go on to win the Presidency.
His rise was so quick and surprising considering the experience of the candidates he was up against. However, following 8 years of the Bush Administration, Obama’s message of Hope resonated. He was the right person, at the right time, to lead a great country.
I’m looking forward to Part 2!