Leadership Trait 6: Have Followers
In this series of blog posts titled, “They Don’t Build Monuments Honoring Managers,” I will be documenting and sharing my thoughts about the eight traits found in GREAT LEADERS. While understanding that leadership styles may vary, the successful, truly transformational leaders I have encountered in my 30+ years in business exhibit these eight traits.
Trait 6: A Great Leaders Have Followers
There are some interesting facts about great leaders. Some are simply born with it. Yes, they likely honed some of the skills that made them great leaders but occasionally there are naturally gifted leaders whom people like to follow. On the other hand, some leaders worked for years to hone their skills and develop the knowledge and skills that would inspire others to follow them.
Either way, to be a leader, one must have followers. Just standing on a platform and shouting “Follow me for we shall slay dragons!” doesn’t encourage many people to follow - unless the shouter has a certain set of traits.
Great leaders are decisive and ready to act. People generally do not follow people who are wishy-washy. They want leaders who make up their mind about a goal or task, have a plan to reach that goal or complete that task, and execute the steps needed to be successful. This is not to say that they never change their mind if new information becomes available, but in general leaders have the pertinent information ahead of time and their followers know they will not be wasting time constantly changing directions throughout the process.
One of the reasons followers trust their leaders into action is that they acknowledge and trust the leader’s expertise and competence. It would be very hard for the average language teacher to recruit followers to install an electrical substation, just as it would be hard for an electrical engineer to recruit followers for a foray into French poetry. Having expertise and competence in your subject always increases the likelihood people will choose to follow you.
People like to follow people who make them feel good about themselves, so great leaders are always supportive of those who follow them. Followers want to be accepted as a part of the group, and great leaders create an environment that is supporting, welcoming, and encouraging.
Followers also feel the need to trust, and they must view their leader as trustworthy and ethical, or they will not follow. The words “trust me” come across as somewhat “shady” unless there is a history that supports that trust. In short. leaders are trusted and followed more because of their actions than their words.
Finally, people follow people who are inspiring and charismatic. Of the traits that generate followers, this is likely the hardest to learn and develop. Charisma, in this case, isn’t rah-rah-big-smile speeches. Charisma is that intangible that gives them the ability to clearly communicate a vision and motivate people to reach to obtain that vision along with them.
Social media has somewhat co-opted the term follower. On social media we sometimes “follow” someone because of their fame, or possibly their wisdom or insight. Some report the news long before the traditional outlets. Those people gain followers because we want to hear what they have to say, even if it is not valuable or viable information. Then there are those we follow just because we want to watch the train wreck that is their life. We want to know what stupid – by our own standards – thing they are going to say or do next. Either way, people choose to follow these accounts. No matter how many times they ask, people choose to follow them or not.
It is the same way with leadership. Leaders are not followed because they just asked. Leaders are followed because they first delivered on the traits discussed above and proved that they are worthy to be followed.
Great Leaders Have Followers is the sixth of eight traits in the series and over the next several weeks, I will touch on each of those eight traits. As a preview, “A Great Leader Exhibits Integrity” will be the seventh trait in the series. Please follow RWSmith Education, Training, and Consulting on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/company/87207378/) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/rwsmithetc) for a link to each post. Or one may visit www.rwsmithetc.com/blog to catch up on past posts. Appropriate comments are encouraged and please follow us, comment on, and “like” these social media posts if you find them valuable. Finally, forward this to your friends… or maybe your manager.