Emilio Iodice - The Commander in Chief

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Emilio Iodice is an award-winning author, Presidential historian, executive, decorated American diplomat, and professor. He spent over three decades as a senior executive in the public and private sectors, as an educator, and as a university administrator.  He is among the most decorated officers in American history with a gold medal for heroism; a gold medal and silver medal for exemplary service; nominations for the Bronze Medal; and numerous commendations and citations. At age 33, he was named by the President of the United States to the prestigious Senior Executive Service as a Charter Member.  He was the youngest career public official to reach this distinction. After the Foreign Service, he was named Vice President of Lucent Technologies in charge of operations in numerous countries. In 2007, he was named Director and Professor of Leadership of the John Felice Rome Center (JFRC) of Loyola University Chicago.  He served as Director until 2016.

Publications by Professor Iodice

• Website: Emilio Iodice
• Latest Book: The Commander in Chief: The Qualities Needed of Leaders of Freedom-Loving Nations in the 21st Century
• Article: Will the Real Commander in Chief Please Stand Up?
• Book: Reflections, Stories of Love, Leadership, Courage and Passion. 
• Book: When Courage Was the Essence of Leadership: Lessons from History
• Book: Across Time and Space: Chronicles of Courage, Hope, Love, Persistence and Leadership

Quotes From This Episode

• "I write about their shortcomings and weaknesses, as well as their strength and power; their power to persuade, to communicate, and to make critical decisions at difficult times."
• On Character - "Lincoln was the icon...he was humble, he had emotional intelligence, he was honest, he had a high sense of integrity, and also had great difficulty with telling something that wasn't true...These qualities of character are absolutely essential because they set the tone, they set the example with followers"
• On Communication - "I felt John Kennedy had this magnificent quality this, we call it charisma. But it's the ability for the people at all levels from someone who has a hard hat working-class, individual, like some of my relatives and friends who came over from Italy."
• On Decision Making - "Truman made some very, very important decisions. He should really be ranked among the 10 greatest. He created NATO...he was the man who implemented the United Nations...when it came to making decisions, he wasn't afraid... he listened carefully, and made his decisions based on facts... And I felt this was a real commander in chief."
• On Emotional Intelligence - "Emotional intelligence is complex. But our greatest leaders had it...the two Roosevelts - Theodore and Franklin had, in my view, enormous emotional intelligence. They, under very difficult conditions, held on to their faculties."
• Advice for President-Elect Biden - (he should) "sincerely try to reach out to those people who didn't vote for him - at all levels. And to communicate with them and try to understand better what problems they face."