Following Effective Leadership

Running head: FOLLOWING EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

Following Effective Leadership

Introduction

The process of being an effective follower is an important step toward becoming a great leader, or what I like to call a follower-leader. No effective leader ever truly leads without taking the input and guidance of others. To become a skilled follower is not an overnight experience; knowledge of the skills of good followership is a lifelong endeavor that is nurtured by exposure to a wide variety of experiences. Effective followers seek out the skills of winning leadership and are continually learning success at all levels.

Observing Mentorship

I am the acting Instructional Systems Specialist at a San Diego Naval teaching facility. The command is performing the yearly evaluations of the Second Class Petty Officers and a debate ensued as to the level of importance of the Master Training Specialist Qualification (MTS), with regard to the ranking process. The qualification is voluntary, but there is no question that promotion boards view this qualification highly when ranking Sailors for advancement. With this said, there was still some controversy as to its importance. As the evaluator of all of the command's training policies and procedures, I must remain as objective as possible; otherwise, I jeopardize the trust of the command when setting the operational goals of curriculum development and training evaluation. I have no specific people working directly under me; therefore, fewer opportunities arise that may compromise my objectivity.

I studied the list of Second Class Petty Officers, comparing their performance and ranking. Next, I looked at the personnel in the list that had the MTS qualification vice those who didn't. There are 20 Second Class Petty Officers and only four of them had actually attained the qualification. Each one of these Sailors were very significant members of the command, were completely engaged in the processes of the command, and all had been mentored. These individuals actively sought out the leadership within the command, accepted responsibility, and became part of the social interdependence of the command. This is an assured recipe for success, the proverbial foot in the door. Sailors who are concerned about command success are also the same sailors who are concerned about managing their careers. Those that managed their careers recognized the value in the MTS Program and became qualified. Conversely, those that didn't show much concern for the command didn't do much for their careers either. They view a difficult, but attainable, qualification like MTS as one more hassle to deal with. However, the methods for success are usually quite easy to find and if they aren't sure, all they have to do is ask. Yet so many Sailors never come to this conclusion.

Drawing on Personal Experience

I have always believed that experience trumps all, but what I had failed to realize early in my life, was what to do with the bag of collected experiences. I acquired many tools throughout my life; my tour through high school, the job working at the auto service station, my summer job before college as a carpenter, my two years in Business School at Northeastern University, the valet job at the Boston Copley Marriot (which I was fired from), the clerks position at Wordsworth Bookstore, a short stint working as an Arborist, working as an Emergency Medical Technician while going to Northeastern University's Paramedic Program, working as a paramedic on the North Shore of Boston, and eventually working for the City of Boston. All these career and educational markers left me with a wealth of experience, but like many of the Sailors that were unsuccessful, I was provided a wealth of experiences, but I didn't know what to do with them. In the book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey states, "Reactive people are also affected by their social environment, by the 'Social Weather.'....Reactive people build their emotional lives around the behavior of others, empowering the weaknesses of other people to control them" (Covey, 1989). Chess is without a doubt my favorite game to play; thinking more moves ahead than my opponent is exciting, yet I could not see past the next move in my own life. I was being driven, not driving. I was full of have to do's (Covey, 1989). I didn't seek out the successful members and sequester them for knowledge, because I wasn't sure what success meant.

At the age of twenty-six I dropped everything and joined the United States Navy. This decision was not an easy one. I knew that it would shake the norms of my professional, family, and social groups, whom I had come to trust and believe in. The irony in all of this was that I had all the trapping of a successful person; plenty of experience, I was considered very charismatic, and I was educated, but I didn't know how ask the right questions, because I didn't know how to be a proactive person (Covey, 1989). I was an isolated individual who independently decided on a course of action without fully discussing my actions. My reasoning for this individualistic decision-making was due only to my need for controversy, for change, for new experience.

Since joining the Navy I have been fortunate to be mentored by great leaders. One great leader that comes to mind is Lieutenant Zachary Levey, the Division Officer at my last command, the USS McCampbell (DDG-85). I worked for LT Levey during the pre-commissioning process of the ship, through the commissioning, and on to its first deployment, a total of almost four years.

He and I worked on many high valued projects together and we began form a trust with each other. His openness and honesty with the division helped us form a bond with him and with each other. Because he hadn't steered us wrong through some difficult events, we formed an acceptance of the information he was putting out and we reciprocated with support and cooperation. I listened intently to his methods of leadership, and we spent many hours discussing the lifecycle of the ship and what he thought the prioritization process was for leadership. The captain of the ship was very emotional and would, occasionally, publicly berate the crew. LT Levey never fought with the boss in public and never laid blame for the policies or decisions that were placed upon the command, although I had suspected that he didn't agree with them all.

As a paramedic I had learned to be thoughtful but decisive for it may have meant the difference between life and death. LT Levey taught me that my sense of autonomy was a great asset, as long as