The news of Fidel Castro's retirement comes as a shock to some, not to others today. Shifts in leadership almost always bring changes that are felt sometimes significantly and sometimes even on smaller scales. The changes in ideologies, beliefs, personal convictions and personalities all play a part in leadership styles and management of people. For some, detecting the difference when there is a leadership change is the easy part.
Adapting to the new leadership style is the hard part. With the news of Fidel Castro's retirement, Cubans are now faced with having to adapt to a new leadership style - - or are they? Will Fidel’s brother, Raul, have the same management and leadership style as he? Will the people of Cuba respond to his charisma and aggression the same as they did to Fidel’s? How will Raul respond to the challenges he faces in his brother’s shadow, even with the advent of newer technologies and different mindsets than people had over 50 year’s ago when Fidel took office? If it's the end of an era of Communism is too early to tell. The news of Fidel Castro retiring came early this morning, even before most of Cuban's citizens had awakened or made it to work. Since Cuban's residents are not allowed to have Internet connection in their homes, the news of Fidel stepping down from office was made available through a statement given to a state-run newspaper that Fidel contributes to called the Granma Newspaper. The 81-year old dictator says succinctly:
“It would be a betrayal to my conscience to accept a responsibility requiring more mobility and dedication than I am physically able to offer.”
Fidel acknowledges that it takes sharp mental alertness and physical energy to successfully perform his duties, so he relinquishes control to (possibly) his brother. Fidel has been in leadership of the country of Cuba since 1959, over 47 years. Although he has formally retired today, this does not mean that his leadership still will not help shape the country‘s future and direct its destiny. In the wake of the news, Raul has a lot to consider as he takes hold of Cuban’s reins and prepares to enter it into a new wave of new leadership. Or will it be?
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