Voluntary Followship

“Talk to people in their own language. If you do it well, they'll say, ‘ . . . he said exactly what I was thinking.' And when they begin to respect you, they'll follow you to the death."

— Lee J. Iacocca

It’s said that some leaders or born, others are made.  But regardless of the cause or path to leadership, a leader is ultimately granted the right to lead by the followers.  The true test of leadership is “voluntary followship.”

The leader-follower relationship is one of mutual respect.  The leader who has earned “voluntary followship” has taken the time to convey a clear sense of purpose to the follower and given the support needed to fulfill that purpose.  A leader who respects the follower understands the needs of the follower.  In turn, the follower willingly and confidently follows the leader giving the leader the full benefit and respect of the position. 

Without mutual respect the leader-follower relationship is nothing more than one of compliance.

When a leader leads in such a way as to earn the respect of the follower, the relationship not only becomes mutually productive, it becomes inspirational; it unites both the leader and the follower in a meaningful relationship and helps both achieve greatness.