Yes, I wrote that correctly. Not only do we need to be leaders worth following, we also need to be followers worth leading.
It takes two to tango, so if there is a leader, there is also a follower. Of course the great majority of what we do is focused around what it takes to be an amazing leader. But I am also really intrigued by great followers. I am intrigued by followership.
Have you ever noticed a book on followership? Me neither. How about books on leadership? Tons.. they seem to be ubiquitous!
I dream about a time when West Michigan is recognized for having the strongest collection of great leaders in the country. I don’t believe this will happen unless we also have the strongest collection of great followers.
A So What Is a Great Follower?
I haven’t read much or talked with experts much about what a great follower would be, but here are a few of my thoughts:
Like a great leader, great followers understand that the main focus isn’t on them, but rather on serving the purpose, the team, and the leaders. Of course followers shouldn’t allow themselves to be misused or abused by their teammates or leaders, but their concern for themselves comes later on the list. If being a servant leader is a good and worthy approach, then I believe being a servant follower is too.
When I refer to being a great follower I am NOT talking about being a yes person. A great follower will not do whatever is asked of them without question. A good follower has a perspective that leaders don’t and, as such, will notice important things that the leaders don’t. They need to share these perspectives and insights with their leaders so their leaders are more equipped to make good decisions.
The Japanese shared with the West the concept of going to the Gemba for insights and answers about things. For those of you who aren’t familiar with this expression, it means going to the place where value is really being created—usually to the person who is closest to the actual work being done and then seeking their insights. A classic example of this would be going to people working on a manufacturing line to learn how the parts are really being produced rather than simply relying on the insights of the engineers that designed the process.
In this same vein, great leaders should seek the advice of great followers. And great followers should find a helpful way to offer their ideas and advice even when they have not been asked.
A great follower understands that his role isn’t to lead, but his role does include feeding helpful information to his leader and then being willing to follow that leader even if her decisions don’t seem to align with what the follower believes would be best.
A great follower is willing to lean into healthy conflict when some issue is standing between her and any of her teammates—or even between her and her leaders. Of course I am assuming that she leans into these difficult conversations with the same truth-and-love approach that is expected of great leaders.
A great follower will never sabotage the leader—either intentionally or unintentionally. If there is a direction or decision that they strongly feel is wrong, then they need to have that difficult conversation with their leader, and then be willing to follow the decision that the leader makes. Not having the difficult conversation, but just quietly (or not so quietly) resisting the direction made is not an option for a great follower. Resistance is a form of sabotage. I’ve seen this happen when companies have decided to make some significant change in how they do business—like becoming more process driven rather than personality driven. This is a classic change that needs to happen when an organization grows into a new category of complexity due to their size. It’s very common for followers to struggle to get on board with this change, mostly because change of any kind can be difficult, not because there are legitimate reasons for their resistance.
So, after exploring the leader’s perspective, and after asking to be heard by the leader (hopefully successfully) a great follower needs to get aligned or make a change to go elsewhere, either within the organization or to another.
We are all followers as well as leaders. I encourage you to consider today not only how to grow as a leader, but also how to grow as a follower. I hope these insights are helpful. I’d love to hear your thoughts, including any push-back you may have.
Thanks for being who you are! Be great this week!
Rodg
Image by mac_filko. Used under CC by 2.0 license.
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