Tag: leadership

Enhancing Excellent Followership as a Distance Leader: Part 2 (clarity)

by A.H., posted in reflections, study10

We looked previously at how a distance leader can establish trust as a core aspect of encouraging excellent followership. We now turn to the importance of clarity.

Throughout Embracing Followership, the thread of communication is an essential component of the leader-follower dynamic. Certainly if that dynamic is to be maintained across a geographic distance, the investment in communication becomes all the more critical, and the leader must be intentional to address the particular challenges to be found within distance communication. Continue reading “Enhancing Excellent Followership as a Distance Leader: Part 2 (clarity)” →

Enhancing Excellent Followership as a Distance Leader: Part 1 (trust)

by A.H., posted in reflections, study07, study09, study10

I wrote previously about the challenges inherent in the common contemporary dynamic of leaders and their followers often working together without being co-located (see “Does Distance Leadership Beget Virtual Followership?“). How do we follow well amidst the temptations and challenges of laboring out of site of our superior (and our colleagues)?

This question also needs to be examined from the other side of relationship: what can distance leaders do in order to facilitate following with excellence? What are the unique challenges and opportunities that they can address in order to make the most of being remote? Continue reading “Enhancing Excellent Followership as a Distance Leader: Part 1 (trust)” →

Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way

by A.H., posted in reflections, study01, study03, study07

As an American living in the UK for the last 6 years, I have ample opportunity to appreciate that—despite shared history and plentiful similarities—our two cultures are clearly distinct. The truth of us being “two peoples separated by a common language” is readily apparent, but there are many other stereotypes that characterize us as undeniably different in posture and perspective.

The British have an incredible comfort with queueing (waiting in line). It’s said that even if no one else is around, a lone Brit will still manage to form a queue! “Queue jumping” (cutting in line) is a major cultural faux pas, which draws uncharacteristically audible tuts of disapproval from mainstream cultural adherents.

On the other hand, Americans are not generally known as patient people. Instant results and responses, fast-paced lives, demanding words, action-oriented, impulsive, hot-heads…waiting on line is not generally high on any American’s list of preferred ways of handling a situation.

Although I don’t think that the British comfort with queueing is a testimony to some sort of natural virtue of patience, this point of divergence does highlight a perspective that appears across many cultures, encapsulated in the dictum “lead, follow, or get out of the way.” Continue reading “Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way” →

Important Or Accessible? Why Not Both/And

by A.H., posted in excerpt, reflections, study07, study10

I enjoy watching political dramas from time to time (The West Wing, Madam Secretary) and have made an observation: the people that are the most important tend to be the least accessible. Continue reading “Important Or Accessible? Why Not Both/And” →

Discussion Guide Launch & Endorsement

by A.H., posted in endorsements, news

The new volume in the Embracing Followership series is now available! Embracing Followership: A Discussion Guide for Teams & Small Groups is on sale in print and eBook formats (including Kindle, Logos, Faithlife, and others).

Here’s what executive coach, Dr Tom Lambshead, has to say about this new resource: Continue reading “Discussion Guide Launch & Endorsement” →

New Followership Discussion Guide!

by A.H., posted in news

I’m excited to announce the follow-up companion volume for my original book, Embracing Followership: How to Thrive in a Leader-Centric Culture!

Followership Guide coverOn December 19th, 2017, this new resource—Embracing Followership: A Discussion Guide for Teams & Small Groups—will be available for purchase in print and a variety of eBook formats.

Find more details about what you’ll find in this 140-page companion volume here: https://embracingfollowership.com/the-book/discussion-guide/

We celebrated with some pre-release giveaways via Goodreads.com. Stay tuned here and on Facebook for details about future promotions!

Does Distance Leadership Beget Virtual Followership?

by A.H., posted in reflections, study03, study05, study08

I’ve seen a few article headlines recently that some employers are recalling their distance (or stay-at-home) employees and bringing them back into the office space.  Are we finding that separation isn’t so convenient and effective after all? What about when it’s unavoidable? Continue reading “Does Distance Leadership Beget Virtual Followership?” →

Leadership is Relationship

by A.H., posted in reflections, study03, study07

Getting to the essence, the definition of ‘leadership’, is perhaps the Holy Grail of modern business and management literature. Everyone seems interested in what the key is, what the core is, what aspect–when given the right amount of investment and expertise–will unlock leadership success. Continue reading “Leadership is Relationship” →

Leadership: Access, Not Vision

by A.H., posted in reflections, study03, study05

Modern culture has often drawn a direct definition of leadership from the idea of vision, positing that leadership at its heart is the formulation and communication of a compelling vision. And I have often explored this common association between leadership and vision (see these various posts), seeking to establish the sphere of vision as the purview of both leaders and followers. Having, promoting, and fulfilling a vision is not exclusively a leadership function, but belongs to the realm of followership as well.

If vision isn’t one of the distinctives of leadership, then what element separates out the leadership role from followership? Continue reading “Leadership: Access, Not Vision” →

Dishonor Among These

by A.H., posted in reflections, study03, study08

Whenever we pursue a topic that is primarily relational–and the leadership-followership dynamic is one such topic–there are a number of attributes that we must consider. Communication and trust are two central facets of relationship. But another, and more commonly overlooked, aspect that must be explored is honor. Continue reading “Dishonor Among These” →

Who are the Change Agents?

by A.H., posted in reflections, study03, study07

Being a follower must be the easiest role in the world.

By many definitions, it’s leaders who are visionaries, who are burdened with a grand sense of where we need to go and how we need to get there. It’s also leaders who are the agents of change, the ones who bring about progress, improvement, achievement, and revolution.

If that’s true, then as a follower, there’s a fairly simple question: what’s left for me to do? Continue reading “Who are the Change Agents?” →

Leadership, Followership, & Consensus

by A.H., posted in reflections, study10, study12

I was recently presented with these words, reported to be from former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher: “Consensus is the absence of leadership.”

Coming from a perspective of intense interest in the subject of followership and group dynamics, this perspective instantly set off in me varying degrees of umbrage and frustration. Continue reading “Leadership, Followership, & Consensus” →