Following is Leading

Followership is an act of leadership, and as an MSL practicing the art of the role, your colleagues will look to you for your reaction when new goals or directions are shared with the team. How do you show up for this role? What will your colleagues see and hear in your response? Are you able to manage your emotions when you have objections to the direction provided? What is your tone when you ask clarifying questions? What does your non-verbal behavior say?

Aligning with and supporting the strategy and direction provided by your leadership team is an act of leadership. 

·      What emotions do you experience when new is shared? Are they productive or distracting from the mission?

·      How do you manage yourself? Are you more reactive than reflective? How will others interpret your reaction?

·      Do you recognize your patterns and triggers? Once identified, there is an opportunity to plan your response. 

Recognizing and managing your emotions is a critical part of being in a leadership role. Pay attention to your emotions to better understand what triggers them. Plan how you will handle a situation you know may be an emotional trigger, including a response that will help you focus on the goal rather than your emotions. Take a deep breath, hold it, breathe out slowly. It’s necessary to experience emotions but the key is to be mindful of how you react, especially in front of others who look to you as a role model. If you’ve got an eye on a role managing other in the future, this is the time to develop the skills that are required AND people are watching.

No doubt you realize that the goals that are rolled out to MSLs are the result of hours of discussion and negotiation which include many trade-off decisions that will influence how you spend your time. Having this shared purpose brings a team together. Be the person that helps solidify this purpose through leading as a follower.