When it comes to creating followership, the solution needs to begin with us.
Often times when a leader has difficulty with his or her employees, the issue is
not the employee, it’s the leader. It is so easy for us to look outside ourselves,
and blame other people for our problems.
“If Bill would only pay more attention to detail, I wouldn’t have to do this report
myself.”
“If Sally was more accountable for her work, I wouldn’t feel like such a
babysitter.”
“If Mark stopped being so negative, I would be able to create a more productive
team.”
Yes, these are legitimate complaints, but often times we don’t start looking for
solutions in the right place. I’m sure you’ve heard of the old saying, “If you always
do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.” When
it comes to creating followership, the solution needs to begin with us. Instead
of trying to “fix” our employees, let us take a hard look at ourselves first. Ask
yourself this difficult but telling question; “what am I doing that contributes to
the problem?” Often times it’s our interaction style, the way we communicate,
our unspoken expectations, or our inability to address difficult behavioral issues
when they arise, that creates the problem to begin with. A leader isn’t a leader
unless they have followers, no matter what their title. So the next time you find
yourself frustrated over what your employee, colleague, child or spouse did this
time, remember to look inside before you spend any time looking outside.