Do Leaders need to Follow?

[dan 10]

Evmori

I really believe that saying following the methods or rules is completely different that saying a good leader also has to be a good follower. Unless everyone here is saying A good leader has to follow the Aims and Rules of the BSA.

And not A good leader has to follow his leadies to make sure the assessment is done to his standard.

A good leader will give the assessment and step back and let the job get done.

 

Rooster

In your context I agree. But what about the leader that expects the follower to follow his every move? Do everything just as I do it.

 

A good leader could be one that follows the Aims but a bad leader could also follow the Aims. The bad leader may not know how to mentor youths.

 

[Eagledad 2779]

>>The bad leader may not know how to mentor youths.

[evmori 11]

dan,

They are one in the same. Following is following.

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[evmori 11]

"In the scouting society we have rules that you as a leader are required to follow."

 

This was posted in another thread. So it seems you DO have to be able to follow to lead!

 

Ed Mori

A blessed Christmas to all!

1 Peter 4:10

[Hunt 11]

As I read back over parts of this thread, I think a lot of the problem is semantics, and perhaps particularly the feeling that some may have that "follower" has the shade of meaning of "blind follower." In Lake Woebegon, all the children are above average, and in America, everybody is a leader, not a follower.

 

But maybe a sports analogy can help. A sports team has a coach, and maybe a team captain. Certainly, the coach and the captain are leaders, and they expect the other members of the team to follow their instructions and respond to their guidance. What makes a good team member? It's the willingness to subsume his own desires to the good of the team (ie, passing the ball rather than taking the shot), the willingness to obey instructions even if he thinks a different approach might be better, the desire to cooperate with the leaders and the other team members to bring about the collective result. A really good team member will also try to help the leaders lead, by making suggestions, asking questions, challenging assumptions--but without disrupting the authority of the leaders. A person who does this really well will be a better team captain, and a better coach. Really good leaders need some additional traits--like innovative thinking, the ability to inspire others, etc.--but the ability to think of the needs of the team before personal needs is something a leader should have, and a good way to learn it is by being a member of the team.