"Followership, like leadership, is a role not a destination."
Michael McKinney
Commentator
Commentator
A role we all should know when and how to play no matter our position within an organization.
Nowhere is it written that leaders do not also need to be followers.
In fact, knowing when to follow may well be the most important requirement of an effective leader.
Nowhere is it written that leaders do not also need to be followers.
In fact, knowing when to follow may well be the most important requirement of an effective leader.
I had to look "followership" up to make sure it was a real word (it is.)
ReplyDeleteEveryone knows and values leadership ability but when did you last hear anything about the "ability" to follow?
When you become a leader, you are expected to lead but does that mean there are never times you should also follow?
Long ago I concluded that leading is following. You set goals but determining how they are to be reached is largely the responsibility of those will actually do the work
ReplyDeleteThe fact that you and probably most have not heard about "followership", points to how much emphasis we place on leading as opposed to following. Too much.
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying leadership is not a very desirable trait. While we have enough leaders, we don't have enough good ones.
But being able to effectively follow is also a critical skill and I don't believe we're as good at that as we could and should be.