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Westside Toastmasters is located in Los Angeles and Santa Monica, California

DISCUSSION ISSUES AND QUESTIONS

Issues

  1. "The other half of leadership" is followership. Successful leadership requires leaders to sometimes be followers of the lead of members of their work community.

  2. Good leaders—great leaders—recognize the importance of subordinating themselves to the expertise of others. That kind of followership is also good leadership.

  3. By helping their followers gain experience in leading, inner leaders can produce profound and immediate results in their workers' efforts.

  4. Because the conventional wisdom is that followership is not as desirable as leadership, some leaders ignore this vital role—to their detriment.

  5. Followers often have a strong desire to lead and do so whenever the situation warrants.

  6. Skill in followership requires active participation, including a willingness to offer advice, assistance, input, support, and opposition when appropriate.

  7. Every worker is both a leader and a follower.

Questions

  1. Am I consistent in all my actions to implement plans in which followers participated in developing?

  2. Do I show respect and caring for each follower? Do I take the time to voice my interest in them?

  3. Do I engage with my followers in all the techniques of leadership described in this resource?

  4. Do I form a unified, cohesive work community where the followers are interdependent?

  5. Do I foster an attitude of continuous improvement, encourage member motivation, foster initiative, and accept feelings and attitudes as legitimate?

  6. Do I communicate the meaning of the ideas I share with followers as well as just the facts?

Westside Toastmasters on Meetup

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