Last week we talked about characteristics that make a leader worth following.
Something I didn’t mention is that great leaders are great leaders because they learned to be great followers.
The best thing you can do for your own leadership is learn to follow well – submit to authority.
As young leaders, often what we need most is the thing we resist. We have dreams. We have zeal. We have that “cutting edge” perspective, right? We know where things are headed. The “old guys” are a bit outdated in more ways than just their Christianese and Christmas ties. We are the future.
Settle down, young one.
If you want to be a leader worth following, you need to invest your energy in being the best follower you can be…right now. You’ve got to lose yourself and learn to submit.
My Story
Coming out of college, I was ready. Or so I thought. I was “called”. I was “anointed”. I was “looked up to”. I was a leader.
Then I was thrown in situations and given tasks that were “below” what I was capable of. Answering phone calls. Printing bulletins. Punching holes in walls and banging my head on my desk. You know, that kind of stuff.
After a couple years of going through the motions, I decided to submit – to pour my heart into what I was doing. In the process, I noticed I was becoming a stronger leader.
So how in the world do we follow well? Along with owning the vision of your leader, learning what he values, and clarifying expectations, here are 5 ways you can be the best follower you can be:
5 Ways To Be The Best Follower You Can Be
1. Do whatever it takes – No tasks are “below” you. If there is a need, go meet it. If you are asked to do something, do it with excellence and do it with passion.
2. Get stuff done – work in such a way that your every move doesn’t have to be “managed”. Don’t allow your leader to wonder if you’re getting your work done. Be trustworthy. Go the extra mile. Get a good task manager and be self motivated. Your leader will love you for this.
3. Support spiritually – bring a strong work ethic, yes, but also serve your leader spiritually. Support him in prayer behind the scenes and when he’s going to battle for the church through preaching or teaching. Pray and lift him up. Go to war on behalf of those who need a breakthrough.
4. Own the vision – I don’t want to sound like a broken record on this, but it’s so important. Before you’ll be able to lead with your own vision, adopt your leader’s and make it happen as if its your own. The lessons learned will enable you to handle the pressure of leading your vision.
5. Be teachable – if you’re a young leader, learn whatever and wherever you can. Learn things you don’t think you need. See every conversation, interaction, and ministry opportunity as a lesson in leadership. Take notes, read books, ask great questions. If you adopt a “learning” mindset, you’ll grow faster than you thought you could.
I understand you might not always see eye to eye with your leader. You may be doing tasks that you feel should be outsourced to a kennel. Even so, before you think about quitting, nothing is better for you than to learn submission and make them as successful as they can be.
Question: Have you learned to be a good follower? What lessons have you learned? You can leave a comment by clicking here.
David,
Letter to submit to authority is a powerful step in the life of a leader. I totally agree that the best leaders know how to be great followers. I believe this idea rolls into the idea of servant-leadership.
In his book “Good to Great,” Jim Collins defines a Level 5 Leader. It’s a great summary of what our calling should be. If you’ve not read that book, you should.
Thanks for the thoughtful post!
Hey Jason, welcome to the comments! Believe it or not, I have not read “Good to Great” yet. I feel a bit ashamed because I’m such an avid reader of a lot of business books but haven’t read one of the best yet. Definitely need to do that 🙂
I left this on the wrong post…not sure how…
Thanks for linking to my post here and for pointing me to your blog by doing so. Good thoughts here. I’ll be back.
BTW, my son wrote about following…you two should connect. http://nateedmondson.com/2011/05/05/followership-development/
Thanks Ron. Really appreciate it. Your blog is a tremendous resource. Look forward to connecting with your son!
Great Points David!!
Reminds of the Joshua…and him having to fill Moses’Shoes…
And how Joshua was able to be a great leader, leading God’s people to the promised land.
He learned to be a great follower first.
Great example. I should have included that. That’s why I love comments!
Right on, Arny. Or even David (being annointed at such a young age) and waiting for the right time to ‘carrier the annointing’ of king.
Nice list, David! As always, much appreciated thoughts from you.
There was a post you had a while back “7 Questions Worship Leaders Should Ask Their Senior Pastor” that was pivotal in my recent understanding of “Leadership” and it has changed my terminology of “Leadership” to “Servantship” – I think they [those words] are very closely interchangeable.
Here is the link – https://www.davidsantistevan.com/2011/03/7-worship-leader-senior-pastor-questions/
Thanks Jason. Glad that post could help. “Servantship” – I like it!
Sometimes as young leaders we forget that we have to be faithful with little before we can be faithful with much. Being “forced” into humility by doing things we may consider “below” ourselves can be our greatest teaching moment. Great post, friend.
Truth has been spoken, Mr. Gordon. Thanks man.
Great points!
One of the biggest things for me is just showing up. Being there is huge. I have found that showing up has allowed some pretty cool moments to happen and I have found great stuff by just being there and willing to serve.
Great point Kyle. Showing up, being consistent is key. This seems like an elementary, basic idea, but young adults have a difficult time showing up these days 🙂 My Dad taught me this from a young age and I hope it stuck. Thanks bro.
Great post!
I think if we are good followers and support our leaders, it will result in respect and acceptance, therefore creating an environment where your leader will most likely start to support you and let you develop your own leading.
Otherwise they might soon develop the feeling, we’re after their position…
Absolutely, Markus. I’ve seen this happen for sure. The more you serve, the more you’ll be trusted to be creative and lead in the future.
Great post David.
Great post David.
I am challenged by your point: “Own the vision.” This is definitely not easy to do!
It looks like we’ve been learning some of the same lessons.
Just three days after you had posted this, I posted this:
http://edwardpaz.com/the-unconventional-way-to-becoming-a-better-leader/
hmmmmm…