SCENARIO AND QUESTION

While there is so much focus on building your leadership skills, in reality you need to develop your followership skills as well. That's because, given the situation, you can be the leader or a follower. Organizations are looking for people who are versatile and can assume both roles as needed. Just as important as developing your leadership skills, you need to develop the characteristics and skills that will make you a good follower. What do you think are the three most important characteristics needed to be a good follower? Explain your reasoning for each.

ANSWER

As a manager, it is absolutely just as important to know how to be a good follower as it is to be a good leader. I think the three major characteristics of good followers are active listening, adaptability, and accountability.

I believe the first major characteristic of a good follower is being an active listener. Good followers must practice active listening, and pay close attention to their leader's instructions, feedback, and expectations. "Active listening is an integral part of followership because it helps both the leader and the followers to understand each other. (Hossain, 2022) Without active listening, followers can not understand the goals and objectives of their leader. A big part of active listening is being willing to ask questions for clarification.

Another major characteristic of a good follower is adaptability. Being able to transition easily when change arises is a highly valuable characteristic for followers to have. According to Career Advice on Indeed.com, "Showing adaptability as a follower also exposes you to multiple types of responsibilities and prepares you for future leadership opportunities." (Indeed Editorial Team, 2023) Good followers are flexible and can adjust their behavior and work style to meet the needs of different situations.

The last major characteristic of a good follower I want to discuss is accountability. Good followers are accountable. They are reliable and take responsibility for their actions.They honor their promises and follow through with their responsibilities.

In conclusion, while there are many characteristics of good followers, I believe the most major ones are active listening, adaptability, and accountability. Active listening helps followers understand their leader's expectations, adaptability helps them to handle change and embrace new opportunities, and accountability ensures that followers are reliable and trustworthy. Developing these characteristics will help individuals become effective followers and contribute to the success of their team and organization.

Sources

Hossain, Muhammad Arif. "Definition of Followership - 17 Qualities of a Good Follower." ManagementVerge.com, Management Verge, 30 May 2022, https://managementverge.com/definition-of-followership-qualities-of-a-good-follower/.

Indeed Editorial Team. (2023, February 4). What Is Followership? 14 Qualities of Good Followers. Indeed Career Guide. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/followership

TASK

Reply to above answer. Reply needs to acknowledge the contributions of the writer and add value to the conversation. 150-Word Minimum. To do this, each reply should follow this 4-paragraph format.

Paragraph 1: State whether you agree/disagree and preview two reasons you think that

Paragraph 2: Explain the first reason

Paragraph 3: Explain the second reason

Paragraph 4: Summarize your reply By the way, you can agree with one characteristic a person gave and disagree with another. You do not have to agree or disagree with everything in the main post to which you are replying.