Disciplines > Leadership > Followership

The nature of leadership can perhaps be best understood by turning the coin over and studying follower ship.
Why do people follow leaders? If we can understand this, then we will be a long way down the road to creating those followers and hence becoming an effective leader.

People don't just follow anyone. You can't just say 'follow me' and expect people to follow out of the goodness of their hearts. You have to give them good reason for them to follow.

Key aspect of creating followers:

    * The Leader-Follower loop: Leaders create followers create leaders.
    * Five reasons to follow: From coercive push to the pull of inspirational vision.
    * Followers and Respect: Both leader and solution are important.
    * Followers and Trust: I will follow someone I trust.
    * Followers and Liking: I will follow someone I like.
    * Followers and Support: I will follow someone who supports me.
    * Followers and Ideas: I will follow ideas, not objectives.
    * Non-followership: Why people do not follow.

Also:

    * Zaleznik's follower typology: Based on control and activity.
    * Kelley's follower typology : Five different types.
    * Kellerman's follower typology: Five different types.
    * Chaleff's follower typology: Based on type of support.

The principle of followership was summed  by the 19th century British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who said, 'I must follow the people. Am I not their leader?'

Change Begins With Choice

Change Begins With Choice

The day we wish; we can discipline ourselves to change it all. The day we wish; we can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge. The day we wish; we can start a new activity. The day we wish; we can start the process of life change. We can do it immediately, or next week, or next month, or next year.

We can also do nothing. We can pretend rather than perform. And if the idea of having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable, we can remain as we are. We can choose rest over labor, entertainment over education, delusion over truth, and doubt over confidence. The choices are ours to make. But while we curse the effect, we continue to nourish the cause. As Shakespeare uniquely observed, "The fault is not in the stars, but in ourselves." We created our circumstances by our past choices. We have both the ability and the responsibility to make better choices beginning today. Those who are in search of the good life do not need more answers or more time to think things over to reach better conclusions. They need the truth. They need the whole truth. And they need nothing but the truth.

We cannot allow our errors in judgment, repeated every day, to lead us down the wrong path. We must keep coming back to those basics that make the biggest difference in how our life works out. And then we must make the very choices that will bring life, happiness and joy into our daily lives.

And if I may be so bold to offer my last piece of advice for someone seeking and needing to make changes in their life - If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree. You have the ability to totally transform every area in your life - and it all begins with your very own power of choice.

To Your Success,

Jim Rohn

Top 5 Facts Youths Should Know About HIV and AIDS

Top 5 Facts Youths Should Know About HIV and AIDS

Everybody admits that the youth are most susceptible to contract the HIV virus either because of ignorance or because of recklessness.

Youths often feel like nothing can hurt them. To many, their impression of HIV is nothing more than a disease that doesn't affect them. In actuality, HIV can impact the teenage population. There are so many misconceptions surrounding HIV and AIDS; myth and misunderstanding fueled by the media, by fear, and by ignorance. Let's take a look at the truth; five things every teen should know about HIV and AIDS.

1. HIV Does Not Discriminate

Since the epidemic began over twenty years ago, stereotypes have surfaced as to who are HIV infected people. White gay males, drug users and prostitutes are labeled as the faces of HIV and AIDS. The fact is that anyone can get HIV, from elderly men and women living in a nursing home to teens planning their next prom. Men and women, adults and children, rich and poor, the homeless and the college professor; HIV can infect anyone who doesn't take the proper precautions.

2. Oral Sex Is Not as Safe as You Think

Oral sex is often thought of as the "safer sex". Many adolescents believe that oral sex is a safe way to engage in sex, free from the worry of pregnancy and disease. The truth is that oral sex is not as safe as you think. Studies have shown that infected bodily fluids such as semen and vaginal secretions have high concentrations of HIV that can enter the blood stream through the mucous membranes of the mouth

3. There's More to Worry About than Pregnancy

Many teens still believe that the only risk associated with unprotected sex is pregnancy. So, to prevent pregnancy, teens used birth control techniques such as oral sex or the withdrawal method ("pulling out") prior to ejaculation, in an effort to prevent pregnancy. Unfortunately, there is more to be concerned about. Infection with a STD, including HIV is for life, meaning there is no cure. Herpes, syphilis, and HIV are real concerns that if contracted will be with you a lifetime.

4. Sometimes People Hide the Truth / Sometimes People Don’t Know

Think about it for a moment. How many people will admit they are HIV infected if asked by the new love in their life? How many will admit to their sexual history when they are trying to win the affections of their new love interest? How many people really know their HIV status and the status of the people they have been within the past? A claim of "my past partner was negative" is only acceptable if it is backed by a negative test. Ask the right questions and get the test.

5. HIV Kills and There is No Cure

People are living longer due to the advent of powerful HIV medications that help fight the virus. Unfortunately, the medications are not a cure. Liver disease, pneumonia, and serious infection of the brain and other internal organs are constant concerns for those living with HIV. The medicines are not a "quick fix" to an HIV infection. They are difficult to take and because many side effects such as fat accumulations in the stomach and neck, diarrhea, extreme fatigue, rashes, and vomiting.

Growing Public Service Leaders (The Successes of Leaders)

The problem of Nigeria since independent is leadership; this article is good for those who are aspiring to be on top of the ladder.


"As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence.
The next best, the people honour and praise.
The next, the people fear;
and the next, the people hate ...
When the best leader's work is done the people say, 'We did it ourselves!"
--Lao-Tsu
One of the characteristics of today’s world is that we have no lack of people who are writing books, offering seminars, hawking DVDs, and selling desk calendars and motivational pictures—all with one purpose: Success.
And then there are those pithy quotes like the one above that are ubiquitous now, flying around on the internet. But this is not a recent phenomenon.
From Aristotle to Lao-Tsu; from Jesus to Budder, it seems the ancients also had their say as to what constituted a successful life or career.
The writings on success seemingly respond to a built-in quality of human beings; many of us want our lives to be successful, not just ordinary. For leaders and aspiring leaders this poses a particular challenge because in many organizations, success is defined precisely as rising to a key leadership position. That is the ultimate accomplishment—the crown on the resume.


In most government organizations I would bet that if you asked who were the most successful people, the odds are that the individuals most frequently identified would be those who made the Senior Executive Service or had pinned on General’s stars. Many might mention the top political appointee. In corporations it’s the CEO. So, let’s step back from this for a bit and reflect on what is success—for a leader? How do we deal with it when it comes? Is reaching that pinnacle of positional leadership, itself, a sufficient laurel to rest upon? It is in this quest that I posit are either dragons or golden crowns.
What Lies in Wait for You


"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."
--Albert Schweitzer

When you arrive at the top rung, there are good and bad things that lie in wait and even some of the “good” things can turn bad depending on how they are handled. Think, for example, of how leadership positions are structured to provide things people typically covet to some extent.


• They elicit higher compensation for the greater responsibilities in the job description.


• The office is likely to be not only larger and well appointed, but commands a better view and, best of all, it is private—you can shut the door and do whatever you wish with no one looking over your shoulder in your cubicle.


• You get to arrange other people’s schedules to fit your own rather than the other way around and when you have a meeting, people come to your office, your turf.


• There are people whose job it is to take care of you—keep your schedule, arrange your meetings, cover for you, keep visitors and phone callers screened.


• You have certain perks of office depending on where you are, such as special parking, a reserved dining room, a special seat at the table when there is a meeting, a title used when introducing you, etc.


• You get to work on the “big” policy issues and mix and mingle with the players in Congress and the White House and the big industry organizations.
And, as one colleague explained his view of a successful leader when reflecting on how he had missed the boat—“They get to keep people like me waiting outside their office while they do more important things.”


On the other hand, there are situations that go with leadership positions that people generally find onerous and difficult:


• You are in demand for far more boring meetings than before.


• You are more visible than you have ever been and people notice what you do and even what you wear and how you speak.


• There are expectations placed upon you that you don’t necessarily view as entirely good such as attending official functions in the evening, going to events with industry or trade organization lobbyists, and traveling to far off field offices.


• If your organization makes a mistake, the blame ultimately lies with you.


• You get asked to testify to Congressional committees, to answer constituent complaints, and to endlessly defend your budget to internal staff, OMB, and Appropriations Committee staff and principals.


• You get pressured from your boss to grant political favors.


• You flat out spend more time at the office than ever. Forget about any flextime arrangement for you.


• Your visibility and power are such that you may find far more reason to watch your back from subtle and not so subtle organizational politics and infighting, and that is a source of both consternation and sometimes even disgust.


• You have to supervise people, some of whom do all in their power to make your life difficult.


• You learn that fixing what you had always vowed you would fix when you got “there” is not so easy after all.


In short, one day you may find yourself at the top rung of the ladder you set out to climb many years before and find that maybe you put the ladder up against the wrong wall.
Clearing the Field


Let’s get a few of things out of the way.

First, there is nothing inherently wrong, ethically or morally, in aspiring to lead. That well may be your gift, your calling, the best place for you to contribute. Just don’t make it an obsession or a place of failure if you don’t become a Senior Executive or a General or a CEO.


Second, success is not a position, a title or a rank. We know that, so let’s inscribe it on our foreheads and remember it, because sometimes we lose sight of this truth in the quest. I know.


Third (and this is possibly the hardest part), success looks different at age 30, at 50, and at 70. It just does. Do you believe that? Well you should. Odds are that Lao-Tsu was an old man when he wrote that the best leaders are almost invisible. I’ve been at two out of three of those points in life and am almost to the third milestone. But don’t believe me; ask some other older people what they think. Our problem is we can’t put our 70 year old head on our 30 year old shoulders just yet.


True Success in Perspective
"Try not to become a man of success but rather try to become a man of value."
--Albert Einstein


So how do we think about success in life and work? Let me offer some food for thought that I’ve talked to many people about over the course of the last ten years. Maybe you agree or maybe not, but I hope you will at least give it some thought before you continue on your quest for the brass ring.


The first thing I have concluded is that what you read in newspapers and on the internet about leaders has a lot of distortion in it and can unconsciously lead us astray.
For example, take the political campaigns that are going on during this election year.
Are those that survive the slings and arrows of their fellow candidates and become the President, the Senator, or the Congressman the only ones that can claim success? In the horserace that has become political campaigning, it usually seems so.
Yet, the losing candidate might still introduce key ideas that bring about positive change or inspire others to become active in serving their communities. In short, success is not simply “winning,” even if the media tends to portray it that way.


The second thing I think is important in giving success a right perspective is that your success is not about you. A paradox? Yes, it is.
If you haven’t reached this conclusion yet, hopefully you will. Lao-Tsu is only partly correct in my humble opinion.
I think he should have said, When the best leader's work is done the people say, "We did it together!" There is simply far more satisfaction for leaders and for team members when everyone can celebrate together what they did and know that without each other, it could not have been done.
If you have ever been part of a team that pulled off a great project, you know what I’m saying.
Jim Collins says in Good to Great that their team’s five years worth of research shows the best leaders are the ones that look out the window, not in the mirror when success comes.
All along the way in your career, if you can begin to cultivate this perspective and really enjoy the success that the team secures, you begin to develop habits of the heart that will stand you in good stead when they pin the rank of high office on you.


The End
"I have fought the good fight, I have completed the race, I have kept the faith. "
--The Apostle Paul

Third (and maybe this is just where I sit with a lot more years behind than ahead), what will be you epitaph? What would you want to hear people say about your life if you were present at your wake? No matter where you are in life, you can take a different turn and begin to focus on true success—what you want to endure beyond your life on earth.


I’ve done this exact exercise with a lot of different groups and by far, what people say about their own epitaph is that they want to be known as a good friend, a loving husband, a great dad, someone who cared, someone who served others.
Just the imaginary projection forward in time may help us all to see what we want to endure, what is built to last after we are gone. For each of us, what lasts is what we value most and what true success is deep in our hearts.


For those who aspire to become a truly successful leader, what you may want to consider in this light is building value into the lives of others coming behind you, be they your colleagues at work or your young ones at home—or both.
One of the greatest satisfactions in life is to see someone thrive and love what they are doing when you have had a hand in it as a mentor, a boss, a coach, a teacher, an example--or even as a grandpa or grandma.


Growing the next generation of those who will lead into men and women who will also seek to serve rather than to be served; who look out the window and not in the mirror when success arrives; and who value the reward of being able to say we did it together--that is a place of success that will endure and will be something you will be very thankful for being a part of whether you reached the top rung or not.
Whether you do or you do not, your 70 year old perspective may cause you to wonder what all the fuss was about.


"I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker."
--Helen Keller

This article is written:
By Ray Blunt
GovLeaders.org

Things to consider when it comes to your spiritual growth

When most people think of the notion of ‘spiritual growth’, they have a tendency to confuse the idea of the ‘spirit’ with organised religion.

For many people, however, who have benefitted from spiritual healing and seen the truly transformative effect that it can have on their lives – including their creativity and sense of identity – growing spiritually is not about religion, but instead stands for something more, quite literally, ‘energetic’.

If this misunderstanding arises, it is perhaps because many people simply do not take the time to enhance their awareness and extend their experiences over the course of their lives. If you feel that life is a struggle or think you have certain deep-seated, sub-conscious fears that you feel are holding you back, you may wish to pay more attention to spiritual growth as a way of deeply and profoundly changing your life. The value of the Internet for those with an interest in spiritual growth One of the great news about matters of the spirit is that there is no reason for geography to be a barrier: by searching online for the right people specialising in spirituality and complementary medicine, you can benefit from the right help with your spiritual growth, either over the phone or via email.

The Internet has long been a highly valuable source of a variety of products and services.

Indeed, simply by performing a search for ‘spiritual growth’, you can find the right practitioners in complementary medicine to help you on your spiritual journey.

What else do I need to know about spiritual growth? Unbeknown to so many people, there are different realities that exist, not only here but also extra-terrestrially. As human beings, we appear to have long lost our ability to interact with these planes of reality.

To be able to do so once again, however, one must get their energetic system into the best possible condition and begin to ride the cycle of time.

Taking our process of spiritual growth seriously allows us to resolve our long-held energetic issues, meaning that we can become increasingly in tune with our personal lives in addition to reaching an unprecedented level of personal awareness.

About the Author:

Gareth Hoyle

Offers New and Cutting Edge Techniques for Spiritual Growth during our current times of change and uncertainty. Release your inner fears and anxieties. Simple and effective without either breaking the bank or disrupting your daily life. A guaranteed service.

Do you want more aticles from this author? contact:- kayodefx@gmail.com

A Positive Attitude Towards Life

Wisdom is the sharing of wise experiences and knowledge, but a lot of it is common sense. The difference is how we apply this common sense - we all have the ability to keep going even when we face challenges in our lives - basically it comes down to your attitude. We can have a positive attitude towards life, or a negative attitude. We can focus on the good or we can focus on the bad. Keeping a positive mental attitude is one of the keys to success. The choice is always up to you!

I Shall Be Glad

This is an Inspirational Poem
I Shall Be Glad
Poet: Grace Noll Crowell

If I can put new hope within the heart
Of one who has lost hope,
If I can help a brother up
Some difficult long slope
That seems too steep for tired feet to go,
If I can help him climb
Into the light upon the hill's far crest,
I shall begrudge no time
Or strength that I spend,
For well I know
How great may be his need.
If I can help through any
Darkened hour, I shall be glad indeed.

For I recall how often I have been
Distressed, distraught, dismayed,
And hands have reached to help,
And voices called
That kept me unafraid.
If I can share this help that
I have had, God knows I shall be glad.