Society & Politics - Dr Robert N. Winter

Preserving a Little Magic in a Rational World

Margaret Mead argued for keeping Santa as myth, not deception—preserving wonder while nurturing critical thinking. Treating Santa as symbolic and drawing on diverse traditions fosters imagination, honesty, and cultural insight.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 24 Dec 2024

An artistic illustration depicting a magical urban evening scene. The cityscape is illuminated by a warm, golden glow, with s

Authoritarian, Authoritative, and Populist Leadership: A Short Comparative Analysis

Leadership cannot be reduced to neat models. Simple frameworks miss the deeper dynamics between leaders, followers, and purpose. While styles vary by context, effective leaders rely on consultative, supportive behaviours that build psychological safety and sustain long-term growth.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 4 Aug 2024

Authoritarian, Authoritative, and Populist Leadership: A Short Comparative Analysis

Look!, there is a Tiger in that Grass

The first in a series on learning from history and its value for organisational decision-making. Today, those who draw lessons from the past risk being labelled “on the wrong side of history,” much as dissenters in business face exile for challenging dominant narratives.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 12 May 2024

Members Only

Being Right A Lot: An Inputs Approach

When we judge the principle 'be right a lot' on inputs rather than outcomes we can make rational choices about the future, secure in the knowledge that we have positioned rather than predicted our future, that our future is based on skill and not luck, and that we are people worth following.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 31 Mar 2024

Enabling Managers in a GenMe Landscape

Providing more structure, not less, in both the daily tasks of employees and their perceptions about career pathways, offers the strongest viable path to improved staff retention and higher team performance.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 21 May 2023

Illustration of a young man staring at his reflection

Challenges for Leadership when Managing GenMe

By reframing the leadership models presented, propositions for managers can be advanced to enable better leadership of people with GenMe attitudes.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 14 May 2023

Inner Circle Only

Leading GenMe

Given the obvious dichotomy in this approach to work generations, the practical implications for management are that the leadership theories many have encountered will struggle to provide solutions when it comes to developing coherent teams.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 7 May 2023

Inner Circle Only

Defund the Police, Yet Again

No matter which way you look at it, police popularity seems to be at something of a low ebb with even the usually excoriated politicians enjoying something of a bump in the polls when compared to the men and women in blue.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 15 Apr 2023

On Replies and 'Reply Guys'

We do well to live and let live, we also do well to post and let post. Devote what limited energy we are gifted with to thought and the formulation of our views and let the 'reply guys' reply. They are, generally, all sound and fury signifying nothing.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 5 Mar 2023

Our Mind is a Blurry Image of Life

The hope is much, for having gotten this far is to be forewarned and thus forearmed. In that we do well to employ scepticism when listening to a human interlocutor. Because even the best of us are filling in the blanks in our memory.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 18 Feb 2023

Autodeleting the Public Record

Rage if you will and burn screen time if you like—I simply accept if I want my thoughts to be personal and private then I ought not post them online.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 9 Dec 2022

Image of the facade of the National Archives of Finland depicting letters of alphabets and various symbols which are archived

A Warning From Content

You can join me in camp confusion or post using or not using CWs with a certainty that would make a prophet blush.

By Dr Robert N. Winter

/ 15 Nov 2022