a leader or a follower?

"... the really great can make you feel that you, too, can become great." photo by Gina Matchinsky

January 14, 2014 question is: Are you a leader or a follower?

It is said that you can't be a good leader without being a good follower and a lot of the characteristics of a good leader can be found in a good follower, too. They just have a little difference in approach.

So before answering whether I am one or the other, let me detail how I believe a great leader and a great follower approach the following:

VISION
Great leaders do not only have a good plan and the most effective way to execute them. They must also be creative enough to articulate or express them in ways that would make each and every follower understand.
Great followers are better in interpreting a plan and finding various solutions to execute the vision laid out for them.

PASSION
Great leaders are endowed with great passion and enthusiasm to go for a vision or an ambition. They have that drive and focus to go forward with persistence and determination towards a goal boldly clearing the obstacles along the way and infecting and inspiring others to follow suit.
Great followers boldly follow suit in the path set out for them. They can be driven by personal gain, benefits and opportunities that can be had in realizing a goal.

REMUNERATION
Leaders, in pursuit of a vision, deliver more than they are paid for.
Followers in pursuit of recognition, delivers what is expected of them.

DECISION MAKING
Great leaders are committed people. They decide firmly but not rigidly. They are good in breaking down problems to smaller parts before finding a solution without being stiff about it. They listen to everyone's idea and are flexible while still getting in control of the situation to make a speedy but not hasty decision.
Great followers can articulate well the much needed feedback like what works and what doesn't for the leaders to form better decision and they accept such decisions gracefully.

ACCOUNTABILITY
Great leaders take full responsibility for failures or sub-standard performance of subordinates.
Great followers support other co-workers and accepts liability over their area of responsibility.

TIME MANAGEMENT
Great leaders knows how to use time to his or her advantage and delegate people in the team. They have patience and give importance to long term goals than short ones. They know how to make a balance between being fast and better delivery.
Great followers have the ability to sustain a steady delivery of quality performance and concentrating more on the detail and the methodical way of doing things.

GRATIFICATION
Great leaders are team builders. They glory in the entire team's success and give credit to whom it is due.
Great followers concentrate more on working and following the vision to its completion regardless of where the idea came from or who will get credited for it.

COURAGE
Great leaders have the courage and determination to deal with the unknown and blaze their trails for others to follow.
Great followers supports and follows the leader even to the unknown while still reserving the right to stand up for the values they uphold and stand for.
Critical thinking and being able to stand for what is right are important qualities of both good leader and good follower.

TOLERANCE
Good leaders has sympathy, patience and understanding. They give allowance for people's mistakes. They allow people to grow and develop through their own approach and whatever works best for them.
Good followers accepts that leaders are people, too and not perfect and make allowance for such mistakes and even failure, too.

COMPLIANCE
Great leaders know how to abide by the rules for order, structure and discipline.
Great followers know how to follow rules and be smart enough to work it to their advantage.

HUMOR
Great leaders know enough to be humble and to even laugh at themselves to encourage a pleasant work environment. Humor is sometimes an essential part of driving delicate or critical points tactfully and without being harsh.
Great followers builds camaraderie with team mates through humor to lighten the mood or elevate people's spirits with humor being delivered with a grain of respect.

GRATITUDE
Great leaders know the importance of giving recognition and credit where it is due.
Great followers shows appreciation for the opportunity to learn and be part of a team's success, and acknowledges the risk and sacrifice the leaders took to get there.

DEPENDABILITY
Great leaders are trusted to be able to stir towards the right direction. So part of their being dependable is knowing which way to go. It means having the organizational skills, mastery of details and knowledge, and being able to deliver and reach their goal.
Great followers are counted on to be professional enough to deliver at an appointed date, place and time. They are expected to be cooperative and be able to work well with a team.
Be it a leader or follower, dependability is an essential trait that differentiate excellence from the mediocre.

TRUSTWORTHINESS
Great leaders knows the balance between being honest enough to be trusted and not too candid enough to be tactless. People believe and like working for leaders they can trust. They trust them to be fair and have good judgment.
Great followers practice honesty in all dealings in their area of function. Be it being humble enough to admit that you can't handle some task, or being able to deliver when you say you would or just being honest with the time and effort you give to a particular task.
Trustworthiness is very important criteria whether one is a leader or just a follower.

EMPATHY
Great leaders feel the needs and wants of people. They listen. It is how great leaders win people's trust, too. It requires not just good people skills but justice, genuine empathy and sensitivity to other people. Great leaders don't treat some people one way and some people the other. They have to have an honest-to-goodness concern and have positive feelings for people because their deepest thoughts and feelings radiate so the people around them can readily sense how they truly are. Great leaders express concern without being condescending, too.
Great followers express genuine interest for other people. It is how they build trust and good rapport with them. It is being perceptive enough to know how to listen and feel enough for them to know when to shut up or to talk and knowing the right words to make them feel that they really care.

Leaders do not become leaders overnight. They can't be a leader unless they become a good follower first at any given point in their lives because a lot of the traits that make good followers make for being good leaders, too. And there are even great followers who have the potential to become great leaders who just doesn't want to become one.

Those being outlined and back to the question. Am I a leader or a follower?

Having said that, I know I am capable enough to achieve goals on my own. On the other hand, I can also be in harmony with other people to work with me to pursue a goal if need be. And I have a lot of experiences where I was able to motivate people to make the best out of themselves and stir them in the right direction.

So knowing what I am capable of, how I can be really determined and creative when I want to or how I can be free-spirited and be a lone wolf in my pursuits, or how I can cooperate and be a people person when need be - I can say that I am capable of being a good leader or a follower or a loner depending on my motivation.

For me, neither being a leader or a follower or a loner is the best choice. The world will not be a good place to live in if all people are all leaders or followers or loners. It all depends on where you are most comfortable with and how much you are willing to take without jeopardizing your health, your happiness or your relationship with other people. It is also a matter of finding where you can be great at and being magnanimous in your greatness, too. As a quote from Mark Twain says, "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great." For me, it is not just a matter of being great or being a leader or being a follower or being a loner. What is more important is being satisfied with what you got and you turned into a better person and made you happy.