FOLLOW WELL!!

I was a little nervous.  It was, after all, my first periodic evaluation as a new officer.  I knew that I had been working hard, taking care of my people and working to move the mission forward but, in the back of my head, questioned if I had done enough.  I walked into my Commanding Officer’s office, shook his hand, and sat down to get his take on my performance.

He gave me a full rundown on my year in review but, what I remember most was him saying, “Chip…what I really like about what you do is that you attack every thing I give you like a bull dog and don’t let go of it until it’s done!”  There was much more to the debrief but, after all these years, that’s all I remember (and, quite frankly, all I cared about at the time).  Above all else, he knew that he could count on me as a follower.

Within our society, we celebrate the leader; the person that moves the mission forward through insurmountable odds.  We focus our attention on how to be better leaders and develop better leaders but leaders can’t lead without great followers.  Without great followers, you’re not a leader (you’re just another crazy person standing in a courtyard with a fruit basket on his head).  From my perspective, I was a great leader because I knew how to follow.   If you are looking to develop your own leadership skills, consider focusing on how you follow in these five ways:

1.  Great followers know how to serve.  They align themselves with the mission and don’t wait for someone to tell them how they fit in.  A great follower figures out how he fits in and gives his talents, unsparingly, to help move the cause forward.  They give until it hurts and then they give a little more.  For the great follower, it’s always about we and never about me.

2.  Great followers are loyal. They have their leaders back, their teammates backs, and don’t violate the trust of the team.  This isn’t always easy, it takes great personal discipline to be obedient and that goes against human nature.  Great followers know the power of the pack and stick around through the toughest times.

3.  Great followers have integrity. They know where they stand on issues, what they value and have the “intestinal fortitude” to stand up for what is right in the face of adversity.  They are not “yes” men (or women).   If a leader or teammate goes against what is morally (or ethically) right, great followers go to that person first to resolve the issue.  Moral rightness is the compass that directs the decisions of the great follower.

4.  Great followers concern themselves with equity; they give a full day’s work for a full day’s pay. Rewards are nice but not paramount to the great follower; they take their reward from a job well done and moving the mission forward for the team.

5.  Great followers show their humanity. For the great follower, everything is second to the relationships forged within the team.  Great followers share themselves willingly with others and maintain a good attitude for others to be inspired by.  This is the one tenet that separates a good follower from a great follower for nothing is more important than how we get along and how we get things done.

Does it seem like the tenets for great following are parallel to what you’d want from a great leader?  Sure it does!  The starting points are the same but the focus is, strategically, a little bit different.  For me, after two assignments as a Commanding Officer and multiple other leadership jobs, what helped me the most in connecting with my people, understanding the mission, and moving it forward were the lessons I learned in how to follow.  The world is predominately made up of followers, as we can’t all be in charge all of the time.  With that being the case, don’t you want to follow the best you can?  Focusing in on these five areas will lay the groundwork for you to move from great follower to great leader and then back again (if needed).  Grab it like a bulldog and don’t let go!

I will leave you with this final thought:
“When in command, be in command!  When not, be the best DAMN follower you can be!”

R U ANGRY!?

I stood there in complete amazement as the man yelled, “Hey!!  You can’t cut!!  There’s a line here!  What are you doing!?”   No, he wasn’t yelling at me…he was yelling at a another man who was trying to board our 5 hour flight to San Francisco ahead of him.  It was like, somehow, we had been catapulted back into the second grade and a fight was going to ensue that the teachers would have to break up.  At first, the man tried to ignore what was being said but, after noticing that EVERYONE was looking, he sheepishly moved backward into obscurity and boarded the plane when no one would object.  Like I stated, I was amazed at what had just happened but not surprised.   Everywhere I go seems to have an abundance of people that are stewing in a cesspool of negativity and anger.  Granted, in the world, we will always encounter angry people but, lately, I seem to be noticing it much more.  This may sound elementary, but I really think the world is getting to us.  The economy, downsizing, rightsizing, and the constant onslaught of peril we see on the news are definitely taking their toll.

We can’t run optimally or reach our true potential when we are running on negative emotion and anger.  Doing this is like putting bad gas into our tanks - it’s going to cause some performance problems!  Leading others starts with leading yourself.  When you feel the weight of life bearing down on you and negativity starting to swell, try one of these strategies.

Talk It Out
When I bottle my anger up, it’s going to come out some time and when it does, it is usually MUCH WORSE than if I had addressed it head on in the first place.  If I have something that is bothering me, I’ll talk about it with a trusted friend or someone that can help me with the situation.  This can help me not only get it out there but also get another perspective on the issue.  No two people looking at the same thing will perceive it the same way.  Get a second opinion and get it out there.  If it involves a person, open up lines of communication and let them know.  From my end, there’s nothing worse than someone being angry and me not knowing why.  If I know, I can do something about it.

Find The Humor
I found the humor in the second grade antics of the man at the airport even if he didn’t.  If I were he, would I have found it as funny?  Maybe not but I certainly could’ve found something funny to think about to get my mind out of the spiral of negativity.  That’s all we need sometimes is one thing to help us get over the hump and get back to business.  I have several “fail safes” for bringing a smile to my face (most of them involve my wife and kids - they continually make me laugh).  Take a mental break by finding the funny, smiling, and moving on.

Divert Your Attention
The single best application I purchased for my iPhone this year is Scrabble!  Traveling can have its stressful moments.  Being delayed, diverted or cancelled can be enough to drive one crazy!  Why?  Because I’m not in control!  Many times with anger what we’re dealing with is control and predictability.  If we lose control or can’t predict what’s going happen, anger can be a result.  What can I control?  Myself!  I can control where my attention goes and what I cam going to pay attention to.  I can’t control the airline but I CAN control what letters make a fabulous word in scrabble.  Pick something that works for you.  It could be exercise, reading, watching a fun video - anything that diverts your attention for that moment where you might do or say something destructive that is going to be regretted.

These are just three practical strategies I use for leading myself when the world is trying to lead me astray.   Deciding to use one of them comes at a moment of choice.  But when I choose to use a strategy I have control of the situation and it doesn’t have control over me.  It allows me to be at my best, give my best, and help others do the same.  Make a choice to enjoy more and stress less.  I think you’ll like the results!

The Cement of Good Relationships