Follow the Leader

The first lesson I can remember learning about leadership was from playing a game.

When you play Follow the Leader, one person is the leader. Everyone else lines up behind the leader, pays attention, and copies what the leader does. The lesson of the game is that leaders get to decide what happens.

Follow the Leader does not bring out the best in all of us. Some people do not take the game very seriously. There are people who do not pay much attention to what the leader does. Some of us are much better at doing what we want to do than what the leader does.

There are people who do not want to be the leader. They may be embarrassed to have everyone else paying attention to them. Some people try to get out as quickly as they can so they can go play another game they enjoy more.

Other people may not trust anyone else to be the leader. They might make it difficult for anyone not to do what they do to prolong their own leadership.

There are people who act as if Follow the Leader still guides their leadership.

It may be skepticism about playing Follow the Leader that keeps me from embracing its lesson. I do not believe leadership is deciding what happens. I do not believe good leadership is making people pay attention and copy what you do.

The leaders who inspire me give us opportunities to decide things for ourselves. They understand leadership is more about finding leaders than finding followers.

The leaders who inspire me know leadership is more than a game.

Whose leadership are you following?

When is the earliest lesson you can remember learning about leadership?

How does your leadership shape the people around you?

[Image by frankieleon]