Mao Zedong Leadership
Mao Zedong
(1893-1976)
Chinese leader who successfully led the communists in the Chinese Civil War
(1927-50).
A brutal dictator who was responsible for the deaths of many millions of Chinese but still a big influence in
China today.
Why was he so
influential?
1. Fear and violence
Mao (pictured right in 1927) killed anyone who opposed him, as in the Cultural Revolution (1966-9).
“Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun”, he said.
2. Ruthlessness
Mao (pictured right in 1931) was an immoral man who was prepared to do anything (however cruel) to keep
himself in power and turn China into a military superpower.
He caused the greatest famine in Chinese history from 1958 to 1961 (as many as 38 million might have
died), because most of China’s grain was sold to Russia in exchange for weapons and the atomic bomb.
In 1958 he said he was prepared to let half of China die. He was completely selfish.
“People like me only have a duty to ourselves; we have no duty to other people”, he said.
3. Pragmatic action
He believed that principles were worthless, if they could not be successfully applied.
So they had to be adapted to meet the needs of different situations and every opportunity seized.
“Ideas are important but reality is even more important”, he said.
4. Communication
At home and abroad, he was brilliant at:
- promoting his image as the people’s politician (pictured right with the American president, Richard
Nixon in 1972).
- giving the Chinese a sense of unity and national pride to their previously divided country
He controlled the media and suppressed other people’s ideas.
His quotations, known as the Little Red Book, became the national bible.
5. Ideology
He was heavily influenced by the ideas of Karl
Marx (pictured right above) and Lenin (pictured right below), who supported a revolution by
working people to improve their welfare.
Despite his ruthlessness, he greatly improved education, health, the economy and the position of women.
He abolished prostitution, and once said, “Women hold up half the heavens”.
6. Military leadership
Mao was brilliant at guerrilla warfare.
His slogan was:
“The enemy advances, we retreat. The enemy camps, we harass. The enemy tires, we attack. The enemy retreats, we
pursue”.
7. Determination and courage
Pursued by the troops of his enemy, Chiang Kai-shek (pictured right) in the Civil War, he
led his army 7,000 miles to safety in north China in the Long March in 1934.
Only a tenth of his 100,000 troops survived, but Mao managed to get the support of 100 million peasants in the
next four years.
Key quotes on politics and
government
Political power grows out of the barrel of a
gun.
Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed.
We must have faith in the masses and we must have faith in the Party. These
are two cardinal principles.
Key quotes on
leadership and management
Be a pupil before you become a teacher.
Officers teach soldiers, soldiers teach officers and soldiers teach each other.
Key quotes on
education
To read too many books is harmful.
Key quote on
society
The people, and the people alone, are the motive force in the making of world history.
Key quote on
creativity
Ideas are important but reality is even more important
Key quote on time
management
Seize the day - seize the hour
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