Everyone wants to be a leader. After all, most people want to enjoy the perks of leadership. However, you simply cannot have leaders without followers. Followers are vital to the success of any team or organization. But if you can’t be in charge, what are the benefits of being a good follower?
Mark Divine is a New York Times best-selling author, leadership expert, entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and retired U.S. Navy SEAL Commander. He is also the founder and CEO of SEALFIT and Unbeatable Mind and hosts the highly-rated weekly podcast, The Unbeatable Mind with Mark Divine.
In his book Staring Down The Wolf: 7 Leadership Commitments That Forge Elite Teams, Mark makes a compelling argument that leaders should actively seek out situations where they are not in charge. They should become followers. This has incredible value for a leader.
The following are 9 Benefits To Being A Good Follower I gleaned from Mark’s book. All quotes are from page 132:
- Being A Good Follower Gives You The Opportunity To Be Part Of An Elite Team – “In elite teams, everyone is both a leader and a follower”
- Being A Good Follower Forces You To Be More Flexible And Adaptable – “the roles shift frequently and seamlessly.”
- Being A Good Follower Eradicates Entitlement – “Endeavor to be led as often as you lead.”
- Being A Good Follower Cultivates Humility – “Being a good follower means constantly setting your ego aside”
- Being A Good Follower Teaches You To Give Up Your Rights – “and letting go of the need to be right or in charge.”
- Being A Good Follower Makes You Less Judgmental – “You will stop judging the effectiveness of the leadership of others, because yo don’t want them to do that to you.”
- Being A Good Follower Improves The Entire Team – “Instead, every instance of leadership, regardless of who is in charge, becomes and opportunity to improve the entire team’s effectiveness.”
- Being A Good Follower Makes You A Better Leader – “Being a good teammate will improve your coaching and mentoring skills as well.”
- Being A Good Follower Provides Perspective – “The dual leader-follower approach to roles helps you see all perspectives.”
You can purchase Mark’s book by clicking HERE.
What is one thing you can do to become a better leader? Perhaps it is as easy as taking a role in an organization where you are not in-charge.
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