Michael Hyatt: Great Leaders are great Followers

 

Former CEO, and now Chairman of the Board at Thomas Nelson Publishers

I really enjoy reading Michael Hyatt’s blog on topics related to writing and leadership.

I’ll be covering the topic of leadership somewhat this month, and having a few guest writers post here also. Michael’s recent article really packs a punch, and I think you will find it quite helpful.

Here is an excerpt.
“…[N]early everyone sees him or herself as a leader.

But where are the followers?

I contend that if you want to be a great leader, you must first become a great follower. Although it is rarely discussed, this is where almost all of history’s greatest leaders got their start.

  • Joshua followed Moses for more than forty years before he led the children of Israel into the promised land.
  • Elisha served Elijah for ten years before he took up his master’s mantle and went on to perform even more miracles.
  • The Apostle Peter followed Jesus for three years—and made a lot of mistakes—before he and his fellow-disciples “turned the world upside down” (see Acts 17:6).

Though I don’t have time to develop it here, I would likewise contend that history’s worst leaders never learned to follow. As a result, they became tyrants, making the lives of their own followers miserable.”

Click here to read the Full Article.

Do his words make sense? Have you watched this play out?

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LisaColonDeLay

Lisa Colón DeLay, Puerto Rican, born creator who creates products and resources for spiritual formation. She is the host of Spark My Muse podcast since 2015 and author of The Wild Land Within (2021) and The Way of the Desert Elders (2026)

3 thoughts on “Michael Hyatt: Great Leaders are great Followers”

  1. great insight – i imagine those who never learned to follow therefore don’t know what it means (and it also means they never observed a great leader) and so therefore their hunger power took over.

  2. I actually see this play out in a negative way quite a bit, these days. A leader, or prospective leader, submits in one arena so that they become “entitled” to power in another.

    I agree that the root of the problem is probably a lack of adequate modeling.

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