Ho Chi Minh made a very clear viewpoint by saying that “Being a communist doesn’t mean you will be absolutely respected by the people”. The people only appreciate virtuous, talented and wholehearted ones. If you give your love and respect to the people, they will give you their love and respect. This is very important for cadres and Party members. How to win people’s love and respect is the matter of the heart.

The relationship between Ho Chi Minh and the people started naturally and simply. To Ho Chi Minh, all rituals of reception seemed to be unnecessary and superfluous because he had quietly visited the place before meeting people in charge. To meet farmers, he took off his sandals, rolled up his pants and waded into the fields to work with them. To visit naval vessels, he walked to the board and helmed like a trained mariner. These images last forever and were a profound impression on everyone.

Ho Chi Minh’s natural and simple public engaging style had a marvelous attraction, making the public unfearfully, naturally close to him. That engaging style created the deepest sympathy between the leader and the public. Thus, people could speak out their thoughts and concerns, and he listened and understood the actual pulse of life.

The public engaging style is necessary for the relationship between cadres and Party members and the public, seniors and subordinates, and leaders and ordinary Party members and cadres. It is especially important for senior leaders to understand the people and their subordinates. The more senior leaders understand their people and subordinates, the more they understand themselves and can find ways to amend the proposed guidelines and policies. Any cadre and Party member could see it when they met Ho Chi Minh.

2. Collective and democratic style

Ho Chi Minh’s style in leading the revolution was always collective and democratic. At the meetings of the Politburo, the Party Central Committee or the Government, he always asked everyone to talk, to express their own ideas, and sometimes he appointed somebody as a speaker. Based on the ideas at the meeting, he gave his own opinions. Ho Chi Minh never imposed his personal opinions on the collective; he always respected the collective and all people.

Moreover, Ho Chi Minh always reminded cadres and Party members of the democratic style. In Party’s activities, it is vital to uphold the principles of democratic centralism, respect the principles of collective leadership, personal responsibility, and fight against individualism and authoritarianism. “To know exactly the strengths and shortcomings, good or bad work, the leaders should encourage the cadres to express their opinions and criticism”, he said. These do not harm the leader’s image but demonstrate the genuine democracy in the Party. It is a bad practice if cadres do not speak out, express their opinions and criticism, or even flatter each other. That people don’t have anything to say means they don’t dare to say, they are afraid. As such, democracy in the Party is lost”.(2)

Deriving from the Party’s principles of democratic centralism, as well as from his own principles, Ho Chi Minh expressed a collective and democratic working style. His thoughts and actions were deeply influenced by the spirit of connecting with and respecting the collective, promoting collective strength. When Ho Chi Minh and some cadres discussed about the publication of the book “Good People, Good Deeds”, he said, “I want to have a democratic discussion. If you have any contrary ideas, you can speak out; we will discuss together to reach an agreement, then we can do it well. It’s not a good way to write all what I say while you do not understand or agree with, then you may not do it, or do it perfunctorily”.(3)His democratic collective style always created an exciting, enthusiastic and creative working environment. Many times, he criticized some cadres for non-democratic leadership that made no one dare to speak out their ideas and criticism, thus separating the superiors from the subordinates, the people from the Party; and caused the lack of initiative and enthusiasm in working. In leading the Party and State, before making a decision, he asked offices and organizations to work out necessary issues carefully and thoughtfully, so that all people assigned the job put all efforts into it.

Additionally, he proposed cadres and Party members, first and foremost, the leaders, to establish a collective, democratic style, not an authoritarian and formal style to hide bad private intentions. Because all pretense and formalism weaken, even break down the collective, eventually erode or destroy democracy.

3. Scientific style

In his work and leadership, Ho Chi Minh required cadres and Party members to promote scientific working styles.

The small-scaled production and backward agriculture left us the unscientific and old-fashioned working style. Some backward habits included arbitrariness, lack of planning, investigation, research, orderliness, laxity, conservatism, stagnation, red tapes, etc. Ho Chi Minh criticized these habits and required everyone to fight against and overcome them resolutely.

Becoming a professional revolutionary activist, Ho Chi Minh established a scientific working and leading style in all positions, reflecting the following main points: Firstly, we must delve into our assigned works, investigate and research, know specific work, people and situations. Secondly, we must have clear and focused objectives, consistent programs and plans. Thirdly, it is necessary to supervise the work of subordinates and the public. Fourthly, the scientific style requires “the specific, timely, practical, focused and typical leadership”,(4) which means we must think, observe, listen, speak and do it. Comprehensive and specific leadership is demanded. Fifthly, we must regularly review from experience after finishing each work. In his leadership, Ho Chi Minh had always focused on learning from experience and practical reflection. By reviewing each development stage of the revolution, Ho Chi Minh made profound reflections and experiences from the Vietnamese revolution and the world. Based on that, he proposed many personal viewpoints in applying and developing Marxist-Leninist theory into the Vietnamese revolution’s reality.

4. Setting examples and linking words to actions

Setting examples means being the first practical pioneer and standard for others to follow in all kinds of work. He said, “In general, Oriental nations are rich in emotions. A real example is more valuable for them than a hundred speeches.”(5) We must be righteous first, and then help others be better because it is unreasonable to require others to be righteous while we are not. He expected each cadre and Party member to be a model in working and lifestyle every time and everywhere, linking words to actions so that the public can follow.

In his works Duong Kach Menh (Revolutionary path) published in 1927 and many later speeches and articles, he pointed out that each cadre and Party member must be aware of and properly deal with three relationships: For ourselves, being not arrogant, but always learning, being progressive, self-criticizing to promote the good and correct the bad, and self-criticism regularly; For other people, always keeping an attitude of sincerity, humility, solidarity, honesty, tolerance and generosity; For work, being dedicated, responsible, exemplary to complete all assigned tasks and keep the principle of “public work first” (putting public work ahead of private affairs) in every circumstance.

Ho Chi Minh stated that “It is easier said than done. We must do it. We must be exemplary in living frugally and hardworking for the resistance and national construction. We must be exemplary in the eyes of colleagues and the people in terms of spiritual, material and cultural aspects. Nothing is difficult. The revolution is the most difficult, but we have successfully managed it. To do this, we need determination, faith and heart. Keep those three words in mind when practicing examples, we certainly succeed.”(6) Those are very specific instructions for cadres and Party members to set examples in their offices and units, in the eyes of the public to persuade others to achieve revolutionary goals.

He advocated, “Taking examples of good people and good deeds to educate each other daily is the best way for the Party and revolutionary organization building, and for personal development.”(7) In the family, parents can set examples for their children, the elderly are examples for the young. In schools, teachers are examples for students. In offices and organizations, leaders are examples for their subordinates. In life, cadres and Party members are responsible for self-education to become a person with a pure-minded, simple and sociable lifestyle, and setting an example for the people to follow and do good things, fighting against bad habits and social evils.

Ho Chi Minh is exemplary in “Linking words to actions”. For him, it expressed his thought, words were said to be done, and the work done exactly the way it was said. He often talked little but did a lot, especially in dealing with ethical problems. That created Ho Chi Minh’s unique style that few politicians in the world have. He taught, “We must carefully think, see, listen, talk and do; we should not just talk and write orders; we must honestly get involved”.(8) According to Ho Chi Minh’s viewpoint, “walk the talk” is a moral principle, a motto of political activities and a specific vivid expression among speaking, writing and acting.

To Ho Chi Minh, the public, collective-democratic and scientific style, setting an example and “walking the talk” closely attached, formed a very modern scientific working style. His style is very necessary for all cadres and Party members, especially leaders and managers in the current renovation to learn.

5. Our country is now in the process of constructing a socialist-oriented market economy.

Besides positive factors, some negative ones have influenced social values in general and moral values in particular. The entire Party and People are implementing the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress and the 4th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (12th tenure) on strengthening Party building and rectification, preventing and curbing the recession in political ideology, morality, lifestyle, and manifestation of “self-evolution” and “self-transformation” within the Party and among the people. It is necessary to mention Directive No. 05-CT/TW on “promoting the study and practice of Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality and style”; and the resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (12th tenure) on “Regulation on the responsibility for setting examples of cadres and Party members, first and foremost, members of the Party’s Politburo, Secretariat, and Central Committee”, under which they are responsible for setting examples in their relationships with the Party, the Fatherland, the people, and their families; taking themselves seriously and resolutely fight against violations. Therefore, in order to understand and follow Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality, and style in general and President Ho Chi Minh’s working style in particular, cadres and Party members need to solve the basic problems as follows:

Firstly, it is imperative to promote the education of Ho Chi Minh’s thought, moral example and style; strictly implement Directive No. 05-CT/TW on “promoting the study and practice of Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality and style”. Each cadre and Party member must determine that learning and following Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality and style is a long-term task every time and anywhere, in dealing with everything, not for specific terms and works. In all units, it is necessary to determine the criteria for studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality and style suitable to the i r specific job positions and real situation, and avoid formalism. It is also necessary to raise awareness of objectively, fairly working for the people, focusing on solving the people’s legitimate interests, carefully listening to the people’s thoughts and aspirations, taking the initiative in making dialogues with the people and subordinates.

Secondly, it is required t o strengthen honesty, objectivity, scientific and intellectual working style of cadres and Party members.

In all work, to find out t he key points, cadres and Party members need to investigate, research, analyze and assess the actual situation with an honest attitude, willingness to “face the truth”, carefully considering specific circumstances, clearly identifying the relationships within the current events and relevant domestic and international factors. “Grasping the big picture, ignoring small detail” will help us to make correct and optimal decisions. At the same time, it is needed to have a strategic vision, scientific solutions between immediate and long-term tasks for work efficiency. The higher position the cadre and Party member hold and the greater the responsibility are, the more important and necessary the objective and scientific working style requires. Reality has shown that we have to pay a price for our over-confidence and impatience when trying to impose subjective evaluation on the objective analysis and evaluation.

Thirdly, it is necessary to combine the collective and democratic working style with the decisiveness and high responsibility of each cadre and Party member.

Cadres and Party members always attach to the organization. Talking about cadres and Party members is talking about people with their responsibilities in a collective group. Cadres and Party members cannot stand outside or above the collective group. Therefore, building a collective and democratic working style is an indispensable requirement for cadres and Party members.

The Party’s power and wisdom, and the implementation of State policies are derived from the collective and all the People. The Party and State’s prestige and power largely depend on the collective, democratic and decisive working style and the individual responsibility of cadres and Party members in the Party and State’s apparatus and unions. The renovation initiated and led by our Party is taking place in all social areas to construct a good socialist society. That task can be accomplished only when our Party brings into full play the self-discipline and creative capacity of the entire Party and people. Therefore, the urgent issues in the current reality are stimulating and renovating a collective and democratic working style, first and foremost, for cadres and Party members.