Do you dream of unlimited power, immense wealth, and crowds of enthusiastic admirers? Become a dictator! Absolute power. Come on, you really want it. You just don’t know how to get it. But I do! There’s a manual – about the tactics used by the most infamous dictators in history to rise to power. And each of them is unique in their own way. Are you worried about the constitution? The opposition is unpunished, opposing your decisions and criticizing you in the media? Tired of seeing marches and protests directed against you? The solution is within easy reach – change the system to something more convenient. Contrary to popular belief, becoming a dictator is not that hard. Centuries before the infamous rulers of Lydia, Sicily, or Magadha proved this, the orchestration of leadership by countries in Latin America, Africa, and even European nations followed.
Not everyone has the ambition to become a ruler, so in order to become one, you first need to be prepared. Most future dictators came from families already in power, so they absorbed the feeling that they were destined to rule with their mother’s milk. For example, Babur was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan, and Somoza was the son of wealthy and influential landowners. Their ambitions were inherited. But don’t worry! You can also become a dictator without having any blue blood. Samuel Doe, who came to power in Liberia by gutting and dismembering President William Richard Tolbert in 1980, was just a simple sergeant. François Duvalier terrorized Haiti for nearly two decades with a private militia – he was a doctor and a journalist from a relatively poor middle class. And Idi Amin, the “Butcher” of Uganda, was the son of a witch from the Kakwa tribe.
But there’s one small catch: on this path, you often have to make unpleasant decisions. Though no one said ruling was easy. Want to prove it? When I say the word “tyrant,” what comes to mind? A cruel and despotic ruler? No, that’s too simple. Tyranny is a form of rule for people who want results. Look at history: freedom is not the norm. We like it when we are ruled. When you live in difficult times, you want someone to come and say, “I alone can fix everything.” The most successful dictators in history do exactly that – they transform their societies from top to bottom. Follow them step by step, and you too can do it.
There’s a dictator’s manual. If you want to become a dictator, you just need to do a few things. That’s it. But before you do anything, you need to rise above the crowd and take control into your hands. This is where our story begins. About a loser, a landscape painter, who became the most powerful, bloodthirsty villain on earth.
LESSON 1. BREAK OUT OF THE CROWD
By the age of twenty, Hitler was a failure, nearly penniless, without friends, and an unsuccessful artist. How did it happen that this man came to hold such power – in this vast country, in the heart of Europe, in the 20th century? The truth is simple: if you want to rule, you must first believe that you can do it. So how did Adolf Hitler become the Adolf Hitler we know? And what lessons can you learn when you come to power?
“Break out of the crowd” – this phrase embodies the desire for individuality, independence, and liberation from social constraints. It emphasizes the wish to stand out, to be yourself, and not to conform to the standards or expectations of the majority. When a person decides to “break out of the crowd,” it may mean the desire to reject conformity and find their own unique path. It is a call for independent thinking, making your own decisions, and having the courage to follow your beliefs. This is where every dictator begins.
LESSON 2. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
Dictators tend to have a kind of obsessive confidence in their abilities – without it, they cannot succeed. Often, they see themselves as liberators, convinced that only they can save the world and make it better. In other words, they are blinded, and as you will soon see, Hitler was not the only one who thought this way.
According to North Korean legend, at the moment of Kim Jong Il’s birth, the sky was illuminated by a new shining star. A double rainbow appeared, and winter turned into spring. Saddam Hussein claimed that he was anointed by Allah to rule Iraq eternally and spoke about how he avoided death – as proof of divine favor. Dictator François Duvalier claimed that he was eternal and that the forces of voodoo had awakened within him. Who can say this isn’t true? But where does the belief in one’s own supernatural power come from? In 1918 – sixteen years before Hitler became a dictator – Hitler claimed that he found it in the most unexpected place: in the blood-soaked trenches of World War I.
One day, while on guard duty, he heard a strange voice. The voice said: “Go.” Several of his comrades died on the spot, but Hitler emerged unscathed. Later, near the end of the war, Hitler and his regiment were caught in clouds of mustard gas. When Hitler regained consciousness in the hospital, the pastor delivered the bad news: World War I was over, and Germany had surrendered. The shock caused him to lose his sight entirely – a case of hysterical blindness. And suddenly, in the midst of despair, it seemed to him that he could clearly see the future of his nation. From that moment, Hitler no longer doubted his destiny. Hitler once said: “I walk with the certainty of a lunatic towards my fate.” Once he realized his mission, he was like on autopilot. Nothing could distract him from this goal. This is the kind of confidence any future dictator needs to move forward. Though some use other methods.
