Being a Strong Follower Doesn’t Mean That You Never Push-Back

Text posted Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Being a strong follower doesn’t mean that you never ask questions, never make requests, never push-back, never disagree, never debate. Being a strong follower often requires that you ask questions. Just make sure they are good penetrating questions that help clarify the mission, strategy, tactics and the plan for execution.

Being a strong follower often requires that you make requests, especially if the requests are for resources necessary to carry out your part of the mission. Just make sure your requests are reasonable, clearly thought out, and in service of the mission. If your requests happen to be self-serving in nature, just make sure that in serving yourself you are also strengthening your ability, skill, or motivation to better serve the mission.

Being a strong follower sometimes requires you to push-back, disagree, and debate with your leader. Just make sure it is productive and helpful debate. Are you bringing relevant information to the table about which the leader and the team were not aware? Or is it a differing interpretation of the same information? Or is it the same information and the same interpretation, but you want to make clear that you would come to a different conclusion? Any way you slice it, make your point, but when the decision is made, it’s time to fall in line - if you want to remain part of the team.

Stay strong,
Bruce