“The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.” – Jim Rohn
Leaders believe in karma.
Followers believe in lawsuits.
Leaders have the ability to lead and follow.
Followers can only follow.
Leaders embrace their passions.
Followers embrace their paychecks.
Leaders create for other people, and if they make money from it, that’s fine too.
Followers create because that’s what they’re told to do.
Leaders understand that knowledge is power.
Followers understand that power is everything.
Leaders feel fear and do it anyway.
Followers feel fear and do nothing.
Leaders are learners.
Followers are ignorant.
Leaders live only by the rules that align with their morals.
Followers live by most of the rules, but break the wrong ones.
Leaders are weird.
Followers are not.
Leaders lie to protect others.
Followers lie to protect themselves.
Leaders challenge their beliefs.
Followers believe everything.
Leaders can choose the lives they want.
Followers accept the lives they have.
Leaders want change.
Followers want someone else to do the changing for them.
Leaders are flawed – and they know it.
Followers are flawed – and they don’t.
What do you think about this? Is this the right way to view leading and following? Share your thoughts.
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photo credit: Hamed Saber
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14 comments to “Are You a Leader or a Follower?”
Leadership is a quality all people posses but are to afraid to tap into their inner potential. Here a few tips on what a leader consist of
1.Leader must have a dream larger than those he/she leads
2. The Leader must have an attitude superior to those he/she leads
3. The Leader is responsible and admits when he/she has made a mistake
4. The leader is a decision maker
5.The Leader puts those he/she leads first
6. The Leader sets the example by being in the front of the peak
7. The Leader displays a commitment to integrity and character
8. he Leader strives for excellence on all things
9. The Leader displays a commitment to personal growth
10. The Leader has the Highest level of Persistence and determination
Take these tips and become a leader! Begin to walk your own path or blaze your own trail.
Great post! I love the comparison of the two!. Very interesting!
@Jonathan I agree with most of those. Especially #10. That will always be true in my book. Thanks for the info.
@Dani Thanks. I wanted to do something different for this post
I have been a follower for a long time, even if my goal was always to reach the level of the master. Recently I discovered that I can (and we all can) be a leader for a group of people, especially for the skills we are good at. I think it’s right to have a mix of the twos. Great post John
You’re right Oscar. I wrote this post mostly because I wanted to view everyone’s opinion on leading and following. It’s not bad to follow, because if we all are leaders who will we follow? If we all are followers, who will lead us? I deliberately made it a bit one sided. Just glad you understood the point. Thanks for you’re brilliant insights.
“Leaders understand that knowledge is power.” – I believe that knowledge is not power – action is power.
I know all kinds of information. The internet is the quintessential example of knowledge overload. What are we going to do with it? This is the key.
We all know what to do. In fact we are all, as Americans, just regurgitating the same life lessons and no one is acting upon it. ACTION is the key that unlocks the door of opportunity.
Nice thoughts, Matt. Honestly, I agree with you one hundred percent. Knowledge is only the half of it. Finally someone realizes the problem. If we would only just pull the trigger on our dreams, pull the trigger on our goals, pull the triggers on our beliefs… I truly hope one day the rest of the world will have the courage to do that.
ACTION IS THE KEY. Thanks Matt, for your inspiring comment.
I feel that a balance is definitely the best. Leadership and action are only valuable when they’re taken from a state of being informed.
Excellent list. I especially like the “Leaders challenge their beliefs” line. We can’t grow unless we open our minds to ideas different from our own.
@Nazim Very true. Thanks for the input, Nazim. Hope to see you around soon.
@Tim I’m glad you enjoyed it Tim. Challenging your beliefs is difficult for many of us to do, but once we do challenge them, we begin to believe a lot of other possibilities exist as well.
The only good thing about being a “follower” is that you can change that. It will take work and determination, but it doesnt have to be the be all end all of your life.
@Carla And once you take the steps to cease your existence as a follower, you become a leader.