Giuliani does not rule out running for White House

FORMER New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday would neither rule in or out his candidacy for the US presidential election in 2008.

Asked if he had thought about the presidency, he said he did, but would not say what that thought was.

He said being president of the United States was an awesome responsibility and much greater than that of being Mayor of New York.

Mr Giuliani, who shot to world prominence as a charismatic leader after the horror of September 11, said he would be supporting President George W Bush in his 2004 re-election campaign.

After the 2004 election Mr Giuliani said he would then decide if he would run for office or go fishing.

Mr Giuliani was the keynote speaker at the MBA Association of Ireland’s annual conference in Cork yesterday, where he received standing ovations at the beginning and end of his address.

He said there were six key steps to successful leadership. He had used these in every aspect of his life from dealing with cancer to the fallout of the terrorist attack on New York.

“If you want to run an organisation or just get through life’s difficulties you need to apply these principles,” he said. “Firstly, you have to know what you believe. You have to figure out what is important to you. If you don’t you can’t motivate and you can’t lead. And if you keep changing your mind you can’t be a leader,” he said.

Mr Giuliani said people should select a role model and copy their characteristics and principles. His role models were former US president Ronald Reagan and human rights campaigner Martin Luther King.

“Ronald Reagan was a man of principles. He knew what he believed in and that appealed to me. Another hero was Dr Martin Luther King Junior who brought about change and did it through non-violence,” he said.

Secondly, he said you have to be optimistic. “Nobody follows a pessimist. People will follow an optimist, a person who can solve problems. These people are successful in personal and business life.”

Number three, he said was courage, something that everybody had. Courageous people are afraid but they overcome that fear or danger and do it anyway.

Relentless preparation was number four. “For every hour in court I needed four hours preparation,” he said. But he pointed out that there would always be the unexpected, but the better prepared you were the better you could cope. This was the case on September 11 when the unexpected happened but the emergency services had prepared for other catastrophes and these went into operation on the day to help save lives.

Team work he said was also very important. “You have to have a good team, know your strengths and weaknesses so that you can tap the resources of the team to find solutions,” he said.

And finally communication. But he said this was more than just communicating ideas. People needed to genuinely care for others, letting them know there were important. If you are there for them in times of trouble they will be there for you,” he said.

Mr Giuliani arrived in Ireland last Sunday for the conference and returned home yesterday. During his stay he also played a number of internationally renowned golf courses.