Many of us consider good mental health to be an important quality for leaders, whether they’re a nation’s president, a military general, or a CEO. However, in A First-Rate Madness, psychiatrist Nassir Ghaemi argues that mental illness can make leaders better fit to lead during crises and that mental illness contributed to the successes of historical leaders such as Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt. According to Ghaemi, if we better understand how conditions like depression and bipolar disorder can enhance leadership, we can lessen the cultural stigma surrounding mental illness.

In this guide, we’ll define mental health and explore how abnormal mental health has influenced successful leadership decisions during critical times of war and conflict. Finally, we’ll uncover the pitfalls of being a mentally well leader and how mental health treatment affects leadership. Along the way, we’ll compare Ghaemi’s arguments to those of other mental health experts and provide additional historical context.