The Leadership & Followership Round Up

I have often written about the relationships between leader and follower, as it’s a subject close to many of our hearts – once we realize that each and every one of us has the capability, opportunity and choice to become a strong leader, and by the same token, a strong follower.

Here, I have rounded up some of the most popular articles on this blog that discuss this subject, ranked by number of hits.

1. The Five Sources of a Leader’s Power, and how (and how not) to use them (484,655 hits) – Power is a force of influence and authority. Most leaders wield power, but how power is manifested and used often differs between leaders. Where does a leader get power from? Or do a leader’s followers give it to them? Well it’s both. In this article, we’ll be looking at the five different sources of power a leader can use, with some advice on when these powers should be used, and perhaps when not.
2. What Should You Do If Your Boss Hates You? (397,212 hits) – Your boss hates you – what should you do?
3. The Leader, The Followers, and the Situation (301,309 hits) – If you know history then you’ll probably be aware that Winston Churchill was a brilliant wartime leader, bringing the UK from the depths of despair at the beginning of World War II to being triumphant alongside its allies at the end. He was the undisputed king of wartime leadership at that time. But in peacetime, less people know, he was an average leader at best. Did he lose his touch? Did age and the effects of war wither away his ability to hold a nation together in peacetime? Maybe a little, but the greatest factor that tarnished Churchill’s crown was that the peacetime situation was totally different from that in wartime
4. As A Leader, Your Personality Is Everything (Part Four) (233,801 hits) – If somebody gives you feedback that surprises you, how should you respond? Defensively?… dismissively?… aggressively? Of course not. Here’s how.
5. How To Strike the Balance Between Personal and Positional Power (159,498 hits) – A leader has five sources of power, and each has it’s place. Use of power in the wrong way often means that a leader loses their followers. How should the balance be struck?
6. As A Leader, Your Personality Is Everything (Part One) (87,221 hits) – This is Part One of a series on the importance of your personality and it’s implications for you as a leader. It is one of the most important assets you possess. Did you know that? Your personality traits are the standard behaviors you exhibit, and they are what your followers come to depend upon . For example, you might be typically dominant, or perhaps you’re always a friendly person, or even someone who takes very few risks. These examples are personality traits.
7. The ‘mystery’ boss: why your bosses behavior may occasionally look strange (84,033 hits) – Frequently, I’ve felt my boss (in a number of organizations) is on another planet. The feeling was most acute when we’ve both been in meetings with a number of other colleagues from different departments. My boss would say strange things, e.g. use vague, ambiguous terms, say things in conflict to what we had agreed between ourselves, or in some cases, say things are technically wrong to my knowledge. In technical circles, this is typically seen as ‘bad’. This would lead to frustration on my part (particularly as it’s the tendency of technical folk to want perfection), and worse still, on occasion prompt me to correct my boss, creating disastrous results (mostly for me I should add). Why did this happen
8. As A Leader, Your Personality Is Everything (Part Three) (67,395 hits) – This week in Part Three we shall be looking at ways we can learn how other people perceive our personality and behaviors, and how they impact these people.
9. As A Leader, Your Personality Is Everything (Part Two) (56,800 hits) – Your personality is your personal brand and it’s how people, particularly your followers, will expect you to behave. Your behaviors are the root of your leadership style, and consistent behavior is what makes that style predictable by followers. Therefore, your behaviors and your personality are closely linked. But how do you know what your personality is?

[Number of hits correct at 12:30 BST 7/14/2010]