Reflective Followership: Why Knowing How to Lead Makes You a Better Follower

The Surprising Power of Leadership Experience in Enhancing Followership

We often think of leadership and followership as separate and distinct roles, but they are more closely intertwined than most people realize. In fact, one of the best ways to become an excellent follower is by first learning how to lead. Why? Because when you’ve experienced leadership firsthand, or you have a good understand of leadership, you develop a deeper understanding of the complexities involved. This allows you to follow with greater empathy, insight, and purpose.

In this article, we’ll explore why people with leadership skills often make the best followers, and how understanding the dynamics of leadership equips you to support leaders more effectively. We’ll draw on insights from prominent thinkers and delve into how this concept applies in various areas of life.

1. Leadership Teaches You the Bigger Picture

One of the primary reasons that leadership makes you a better follower is that it teaches you to see the bigger picture. When you’re in a leadership role, you’re often responsible for long-term planning, balancing competing priorities, and thinking beyond the immediate task at hand. This perspective helps you understand the rationale behind decisions when you’re in a follower role.

Consider what Peter Drucker, the influential management consultant, once said: ”Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” When you’ve led before, you understand that leaders aren’t just focused on the short-term, but are trying to align actions with larger goals. This makes it easier for you, as a follower, to align with your leader’s vision and contribute meaningfully to achieving it. This can apply to you even when you have a good sense of what leadership is about.

Instead of getting frustrated by decisions that may not make sense in the moment, followers with an understanding of leadership are more likely to understand how their tasks fit into a broader strategy. This sense of alignment can boost morale, increase efficiency, and lead to better outcomes for the team as a whole.

2. Empathy: Knowing What It’s Like to Be in Charge

Empathy is one of the most powerful traits that leadership can cultivate, and it’s also a critical component of effective followership. When you understand what it is like being in charge, you know the pressure that comes with making tough decisions. You’ve likely understood the challenge of weighing different options, each with its pros and cons, and having to make the best choice with incomplete information.

This understanding builds empathy, which helps you become a more supportive follower. You understand that leaders are not perfect and that leadership isn’t about knowing everything but about making informed decisions based on the information at hand. This allows you to follow with patience and understanding, rather than judgment and skepticism.

As leadership expert John C. Maxwell noted, ”A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” When you understand how it is ”knowing the way” yourself, it makes you a more compassionate and cooperative follower because you can appreciate the responsibility leaders carry.

3. Communication Skills: Knowing How to Communicate Upward

Leadership teaches you how to communicate clearly and effectively, a skill that is just as important when you’re in a follower role. In fact, good followership often depends on your ability to communicate your needs, concerns, and feedback to leaders in a way that supports them rather than undermines their authority.

When understand leadership, you know how valuable constructive feedback is—especially when it’s delivered with respect and a focus on solutions. This understanding helps you, as a follower, to communicate in a way that is both helpful and strategic. Instead of simply pointing out problems, you can offer insights that are framed in a way that builds trust and strengthens the leader-follower relationship.

As Stephen R. Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, put it: ”Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” Leaders who understand followers (and vice versa) learn to listen deeply and communicate effectively, which is a critical asset whether you’re leading or following.

4. Followership Requires Leadership: A Paradoxical Truth

A paradox in both leadership and followership is that the best followers often possess strong leadership qualities. Why? Because good followers know when to take initiative, how to motivate others, and when to step up without needing explicit instructions. This is a hallmark of leadership.

In her research on leadership, Harvard professor Barbara Kellerman points out that followers who engage critically and constructively with their leaders—rather than passively following orders—are essential to the success of any organization. This requires the same kind of active engagement and problem-solving mindset that leadership demands.

The paradox is that following well requires a level of leadership. You need to manage yourself, demonstrate accountability, and often lead from within the team. When you’ve been in a leadership role, you’re more likely to bring these qualities to your role as a follower, making you a more valuable asset to any team.

5. Trust and Patience: Understanding the Process

Leadership teaches you patience because you quickly learn that results take time. Whether you’re trying to implement a new strategy or manage a complex project, you come to understand that success is rarely immediate. This patience and understanding are equally important when you’re following someone else’s lead.

When you’ve led before, you know that leaders are often juggling multiple priorities, making decisions that aren’t always visible to the entire team. This perspective helps you follow with trust, even when things don’t seem to be moving as fast as you’d like. Instead of becoming frustrated, you trust that the leader has a plan, and you’re more willing to see things through.

As leadership expert and author Simon Sinek says, ”Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.” As a follower who has been in a leadership role, you’re more likely to offer this kind of patience and understanding to your leaders, which in turn helps them lead more effectively.

6. Constructive Feedback: Offering Support, Not Criticism

When you understand leadership, you understand how valuable constructive feedback is. When you’re leading, you need followers who can point out potential issues or offer solutions without challenging your authority or derailing progress. The best leaders know how to balance the delicate act of providing guidance while respecting the leader’s role.

As a follower, you can apply this same mindset by offering suggestions that help the leader improve without undermining their leadership. You’ve experienced how feedback can be difficult to hear when it’s not framed in a helpful way, so you’re better equipped to provide it in a manner that is useful and supportive.

Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager, emphasizes this when he says, ”Feedback is the breakfast of champions.” This doesn’t only apply to leaders but also to followers who understand the value of offering insights that help everyone, including the leader, succeed.

7. Initiative: Knowing When to Step Up

Another reason understanding leadership makes you a better follower is that it teaches you when to take initiative. Leadership is not about micro-managing but empowering people to take responsibility for their roles. As a follower with and understanding of leadership, you’re more likely to anticipate what needs to be done and take action without waiting for detailed instructions.

You know that good leaders don’t want to be burdened with every minor decision—they need followers who can think critically and act independently within the framework of the leader’s vision. Your leadership experience equips you to take initiative in this way, contributing to the team’s success while reducing the pressure on the leader.

Coining a term: Reflective Followership

To describe the unique ability of those with leadership experience to follow effectively, we’ll introduce the term Reflective Followership. This concept refers to the way in which individuals who have led in the past are able to bring a thoughtful, reflective approach to their role as followers. Reflective Followership is characterized by empathy, insight, initiative, and a deep understanding of how leadership works—qualities that make for highly effective and supportive followers.

Reflective Followership emphasizes the idea that good followers don’t just follow passively. They engage with the process, think critically, and support their leaders with the knowledge that comes from having been in their shoes.

Challenge for Readers: Practice Reflective Followership

If you feel you understand what leadership is about, take time over the next month to consciously apply your leadership skills to your role as a follower. Identify at least two situations where you can:

Anticipate your leader’s needs without being asked.
Offer constructive feedback that is framed in a supportive way.
Take initiative to solve problems before they escalate.

Reflect on how your leadership experience enhances your ability to follow, and how this makes you a more valuable and engaged team member.

SM YALÇIN | KONSULT & FACILITATOR