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My most recent post was on Choosing between being a Follower or a Leader. I’m going to summarize and add to that post; so this one hopefully makes some sense:

• Leaders make unpopular decisions and are often chastised, ridiculed, and/or ostracized. They start as Thought Leaders, then evolve with support and belief to Action Leaders (Che Guevara).
• Due to force of will, charisma, good looks, DNA, parenting, luck, or timing… sometimes their believers outnumber and out-verbalize their non-believers.
• Followers (i.e. believers) make up most of humanity.  Which is OK for the Followers AND the Leaders of the world. Leadership is a yoke of responsibility to your constituency that is often unappreciated, and sometimes even punished (if you don’t believe me…. ask Jesus).
• Followers outnumber Leaders. I would approximate 25,000-to-1.
• Being a Follower is OK. Being a Thought Leader can be scary, and clearly unappreciated. Sometimes poorly paid; Edgar Allen Poe was paid $15 for The Raven and was never paid more than $100 for anything he wrote.; he died poor. Nietzsche died insane and poor.
• Followers make the Leader. Sometimes following a Leader is a bad decision. Which is When and Why the Follower must evolve. How, incidentally, is never known by a Leader; it is defined through decisive actions. The How inevitably evolves.
• Followers must, at a bare minimum, be responsible for Who they follow. Blind faith is stupid. Unused muscle inevitably atrophies.

Which conveniently leads us to this post:

I was watching Stargate SG-1 with my 19 yr old son. The episode involved a complex paradox that lead to a robotic-artificially-intelligent humanoid named Lotan, deciding the fate of one innocent and peaceful race’s demise vs. another innocent and peaceful race’s demise; due entirely to circumstance. Without belaboring the episode: Lotan was not programmed to save the race of the people at risk, despite seemingly having the power to do so. Through the introduction of empathy and self-preservation, he eventually saw that he had to consider the Purpose of his Mission, or the “Integrity of his Mission,” vs. the simple hierarchical commands he was given.

While that sounds all sci-fi and weird, it was a beautiful episode that taught a simple message.

Followers are responsible to insure that the purpose of the Leader is honored. Beyond the Leader, the purpose or vision of their Mission… the Integrity of their Mission must be honored through their actions. Not simply following hierarchical commands without thought or consideration. Followers are responsible.

Another example of this same message is found in one of my favorite movies, The Last Samurai. Katsumoto is loyal to the Japanese Emperor, yet wages rebellion against him. At one point the Emperor, a teenager being mislead through inexperience and fear, asks Katsumoto why he rebels. Katsumoto responds that he would gladly take his life for the Emperor, but he is convinced the Emperor’s decisions are wrong and is fighting him… for him. For his people. For the Purpose, Integrity, Mission, Goals, and Intent that the Emperor wanted, needed, stood for, and had mistakenly abandoned.

Followers still have to make decisions. Responsible decisions. This is inescapable. Since most people reading this are more likely Followers than Leaders, please consider YOUR Power:

1. Who is the Leader I am following; more specifically, what do they represent to and for their constituency?  (Is there value, to self and others, in this daily effort?)

2. Ignoring past actions, are the Leader’s current directives properly representing the constituency? (Are the commands, words, and intent consistent…am I doing the ‘right’ thing?)

3. How can I honor the INTEGRITY OF MY MISSION, supporting the constituency that the Leader is obligated to serve; even in the absence of clear direction or if said direction is not cohesive with the Mission? (If the Leader does not have the information you have at your disposal, would he / she prefer you seek an alternative, creatively finding new solutions, in order to support the constituency?)

Some Leaders want unquestioning Followers, and there are clearly plenty out there in this world of ours (one that encourages and cranks out Followers through the educational system, large corporations, even the stifling of the word ‘why’ in our youth). But the BEST Leaders, those who TRULY serve their Purpose, Mission, and Constituency…are those that take responsibility for their actions and seek to follow the Integrity of their Mission. Even if it means subtle rebellion.

Every executive in my company, and every past or present employee that I respect, is someone with the guts to question my commands.

Confident Leaders honor their rebels. Nothing is more valuable to a Leader than a Follower with the guts to ask Why.

And once someone has lost sight of the Integrity of their Mission, they no longer deserve to Lead or Follow.

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