ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the perils of presentism, especially for policy-makers, and it describes how historical thinking offers a necessary antidote. Historical thinking for government leaders does not involve a return to the archives or even a deep familiarity with historiography. It calls for a focus on historical questions, even in moments of intense crisis. Historically thinking policy-makers should push present-obsessed policy-makers to look back before the current moment and examine the dynamics that linger below the surface. To lead effectively in a contemporary setting, policy-makers need combined present awareness and historical perspective.
