{"id":50619,"date":"2021-10-09T19:33:33","date_gmt":"2021-10-09T23:33:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=50619"},"modified":"2021-10-10T19:24:17","modified_gmt":"2021-10-10T23:24:17","slug":"be-a-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Are you called to be a leader? Do you have a vision and the will to make it a reality?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our society is churning out followers instead of leaders. We need leaders today more than ever. In <em>Tribes<\/em>, Seth Godin argues that all you need to assume leadership is attitude and ability, and all you need to be a leader is a vision and the drive to pursue it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keep reading to better understand whether you should rise up and be a leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Too Many Tribes; Not Enough Leaders<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin contends that we need leaders today more than ever. In large part, that\u2019s because there are currently more tribes than have ever existed before, thanks to the internet, which makes it easy to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/eckhart-tolle-relationships-how-to-be-present\/\">connect with others<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>However, the leader shortage has a societal aspect as well as a technological one.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Acolytes and Apostates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Generally speaking, there are two kinds of people:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Acolytes: <\/strong>Those who follow others and do as they\u2019re told.<\/li><li><strong>Apostates: <\/strong>Those who break away from traditional teachings and beliefs.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin says that an acolyte, by definition, can\u2019t be a leader; acolytes don\u2019t create new ideas or build new tribes. <strong>Only apostates\u2014people who push their own ideas against societal pressure\u2014can lead real change.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin clarifies that you can be an apostate on a small or large scale.<strong> <\/strong>For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>You could have a new idea about how the company you work for should handle a daily task (small scale).<\/li><li>You could walk away from modern society and found a commune in the wilderness (large scale).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In both cases, you\u2019re leading the charge toward a new way of doing things\u2014and you\u2019ll need to recruit followers to turn your ideas into reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Leaders Embrace Opportunity and Risk<\/strong><br><br>In <em>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/common-business-problems\/\">Leadership Challenge<\/a><\/em>, Barry Posner and James Kouzes\u2019s Third Principle is: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-leadership-challenge\/principle-3\">Challenge the Status Quo.<\/a>&nbsp;<br><br>They provide two guidelines to help you do so effectively:&nbsp;<br><br><strong>Search for opportunities. <\/strong>Good leaders aren\u2019t afraid of change; however, the first step is to identify what <em>needs <\/em>to change. Look for areas where your tribe is stuck in a mentality of \u201cwe\u2019ve always done it that way,\u201d and try to envision ways to improve upon the status quo.<br><br><strong>Experiment and take risks. <\/strong>Along the way to any major change, you\u2019re going to encounter a number of small successes and failures. As a leader, make sure to celebrate the successes with your tribe\u2014those small victories will make the larger project feel achievable. However, make sure that you also learn from the failures\u2014each new thing that you try will give you valuable feedback about what\u2019s working and what isn\u2019t.&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Society Creates Acolytes<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>While apostates are the ones who become leaders, Godin believes that our society is designed to churn out acolytes\u2014people who try to fit in, instead of standing out.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin says there are two main ways that this happens:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>School: <\/strong>Modern education teaches us how to pass tests. In other words, we\u2019re graded on our ability to give answers that fit in with the curriculum\u2014deviation from the accepted answers is punished with bad grades.&nbsp;<\/li><li><strong>Work: <\/strong>Companies naturally want the cheapest labor possible, and that comes from people who keep their heads down and do as they\u2019re told.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>In short, Godin argues that <strong>we\u2019re trained from childhood to uphold and defend the status quo.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Upending the Status Quo<\/strong><br><br>Godin seems to take it for granted that people tend to keep their heads down and try their best to fit in. He explains how society creates the status quo, but not why we\u2019re so reluctant to fight it.&nbsp;<br><br>In <em>Awaken the Giant Within<\/em>, Tony Robbins explains <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/awaken-the-giant-within\/chapter-3\"><em>why <\/em>we\u2019re often scared to go against the status quo:<\/a> We associate some kind of pain with making a change, so we tend to keep things as they are (basically, we prefer the devil we know to the devil we don\u2019t).&nbsp;<br><br>Therefore, according to Robbins, the trick to upending the status quo is to identify exactly what we\u2019re afraid of\u2014what pain we think we\u2019ll experience if we make this change\u2014and work to unlink that fear from the change we want to make.&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Be a Leader<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Becoming a leader seems daunting; we\u2019re often afraid to become apostates, or we think there\u2019s some secret ingredient of leadership that we\u2019re missing. However, Godin argues that <strong>all you need to become a leader is <\/strong><strong><em>attitude <\/em><\/strong><strong>and <\/strong><strong><em>ability<\/em><\/strong><strong>.<\/strong> In other words, if you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/have-faith-in-yourself\/\">believe in yourself<\/a> and convince others to believe in you as well, then you\u2019re a leader.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin points out that many of us hesitate because we think that we also need <em>authority<\/em>\u2014in other words, we think that someone else has to give us the power or the \u201cright\u201d to lead. However, that misses the point: If you\u2019re following someone else\u2019s instructions, or waiting for permission, then you\u2019re not leading.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Overcoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/consequences-of-low-self-esteem\/\">Low Self-Esteem<\/a><\/strong><br><br>If you think you need someone else\u2019s permission to be a leader, you may be suffering from low self-esteem. Norman Peale\u2019s book <em>The Power of Positive Thinking <\/em>offers some advice on how to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-power-of-positive-thinking\/chapter-1\">overcome self-defeating thoughts and boost your self-esteem:<\/a>&nbsp;<br><br><strong>Find the root cause. <\/strong>Why do you feel inferior to other people? Perhaps you struggled in school, or you were constantly overshadowed by a sibling.<br><br><strong>Embrace \u201cconfidence concepts.\u201d <\/strong>When you find negative or self-deprecating thoughts creeping in, replace them with thoughts about your own competence, confidence, and the certainty that you\u2019ll succeed in whatever you\u2019re doing.<br><br><strong>Imagine the best, instead of the worst. <\/strong>People tend to inflate problems in their minds, and envision the worst possible outcomes. Instead, try to imagine the <em>best <\/em>possible outcome, and recognize that the problems you encounter won\u2019t be as bad as you think.<br><br><strong>Stop underestimating yourself. <\/strong>Take an honest inventory of your skills and talents. Assess your abilities\u2014then raise your assessment by 10%.<br><br><strong>Seek professional counseling. <\/strong>While Peale offers many tips on how to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/build-confidence-and-destroy-fear\/\">build confidence<\/a> and overcome negative thoughts, he also acknowledges that there\u2019s no substitute for working with a professional.&nbsp;<br><br>Note: <em>The Power of Positive Thinking <\/em>is heavily based on Christian faith and practices (Peale himself was a minister). However, many of the lessons within it are helpful no matter what your religion is\u2014or if you don\u2019t practice a religion at all.&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Be a Leader\u2014Fearlessly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>One point Godin repeatedly returns to is that, by definition, <strong>a leader is someone who goes off the beaten path <\/strong>(consider a common synonym for leader: <em>trailblazer<\/em>).<strong> <\/strong>Such people are often viewed as odd, crazy, or even heretical; however, a leader who only goes where she\u2019s \u201callowed\u201d to go isn\u2019t a leader at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Therefore, in order to be a leader who makes a difference, <strong>you must be fearlessly committed to your vision.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td>Godin urges us to be fearless, but doesn\u2019t provide much concrete advice for how to overcome our fears; in this case, our fears of other people\u2019s opinions.&nbsp;<br><br>Marcus Aurelius\u2019s <em>Meditations <\/em>suggests that you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-overcome-your-fears\/\">overcome fears<\/a> about what other people think of you by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/meditations\/books-4-6\">recognizing two facts:<\/a><br><br>You can\u2019t control what other people think.<br>Other people\u2019s thoughts can\u2019t hurt you.<br><br>In short, <strong>what people think of you is neither your responsibility nor your problem.&nbsp;<\/strong><br><br>Aurelius also says that the best thing you can do is devote yourself completely to your duty\u2014in this case, your duty to lead your tribe and fulfill your vision.&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Stop Holding Yourself Back<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Godin says that many of us are waiting for the right time to lead; for example, when we have the right education, the right funding, or the right support. However, Godin argues that <strong>waiting never pays off. <\/strong>Instead, he urges you to <strong>just get started: <\/strong>Make that Facebook group, publish that blog, or start that workplace petition. With how easy it is to build and lead tribes in the modern world, the only thing stopping you is yourself.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You don\u2019t need money or education to lead, and you certainly don\u2019t need permission.<strong> All you need to be a leader is a vision and the drive to pursue it.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Just Start Somewhere<\/strong><br><br>In <em>The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, <\/em>Mark Manson offers similar advice for when you\u2019re struggling with accomplishing a difficult task or making a major change: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-subtle-art-of-not-giving-a-f-ck\/chapter-7\">just start somewhere.<\/a> You don\u2019t need to have every step planned out, and you don\u2019t even need to have all the necessary skills and resources; just find something you can do that will get you a step closer to your goal, and then do it.&nbsp;<br><br>Manson says that there are several major benefits to approaching your problem in this way:<br><br>Reaching a small goal (even if that goal is \u201cjust do <em>something<\/em>\u201d) <strong>will motivate you to keep working toward your larger objective.<\/strong><br><br><strong>You\u2019ll get your mind working on the problem.<\/strong> Doing something\u2014anything\u2014is much better than staring at your problem and waiting for a fully formed solution to appear in your head. For example, say you\u2019re trying to solve a difficult math question. If you just start to write down numbers and formulae, you may find that you actually do know the first step, and then the step after that, and so on. If not\u2026<br><br><strong>You\u2019ll find out where you\u2019re getting stuck. <\/strong>Continuing with the math example, you might realize that you don\u2019t know the proper formula after all. However, now you know exactly what information you\u2019re missing, so looking it up will be quite easy.&nbsp;<br><br>You can use this same approach when you\u2019re trying to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/build-a-tribe\/\">build a tribe<\/a>: <strong>Just get started. <\/strong>You\u2019ll undoubtedly run into problems along the way, but\u2014as Manson says\u2014you\u2019ll either find solutions to those problems, or you\u2019ll find out exactly what your weaknesses are so that you can fix them.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Is it time for you to be a leader?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you called to be a leader? Do you have a vision and the will to make it a reality? Our society is churning out followers instead of leaders. We need leaders today more than ever. In Tribes, Seth Godin argues that all you need to assume leadership is attitude and ability, and all you need to be a leader is a vision and the drive to pursue it. Keep reading to better understand whether you should rise up and be a leader.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":50635,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,14,24],"tags":[509],"class_list":["post-50619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career","category-management","category-society","tag-tribes","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"374\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Elizabeth Whitworth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Elizabeth Whitworth\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13\"},\"headline\":\"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\"},\"wordCount\":1711,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Tribes\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Career\",\"Management\",\"Society\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\",\"name\":\"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00\",\"description\":\"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg\",\"width\":750,\"height\":374},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13\",\"name\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\"},\"description\":\"Elizabeth has a lifelong love of books. She devours nonfiction, especially in the areas of history, theology, and philosophy. A switch to audiobooks has kindled her enjoyment of well-narrated fiction, particularly Victorian and early 20th-century works. She appreciates idea-driven books\u2014and a classic murder mystery now and then. Elizabeth has a Substack and is writing a book about what the Bible says about death and hell.\",\"sameAs\":[\"rina@shortform.com\"],\"award\":[\"Contributions to joint task force efforts (FBI)\",\"Contributions to Special Operations Division (DOJ & DEA)\",\"Efforts to fight the war on drugs (NSA)\",\"Contributions to Operation Storm Front (US Customs Service)\"],\"knowsAbout\":[\"History\",\"Theology\",\"Government\"],\"jobTitle\":\"Senior SEO Writer\",\"worksFor\":\"Shortform\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/elizabeth\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers - Shortform Books","description":"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers","og_description":"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00","og_image":[{"width":750,"height":374,"url":"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Elizabeth Whitworth","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Elizabeth Whitworth","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/"},"author":{"name":"Elizabeth Whitworth","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13"},"headline":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers","datePublished":"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/"},"wordCount":1711,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","keywords":["Tribes"],"articleSection":["Career","Management","Society"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/","name":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","datePublished":"2021-10-09T23:33:33+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-10T23:24:17+00:00","description":"Our society is churning out followers, and we need leaders more than ever. Learn whether you have what it takes to be a leader today.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","width":750,"height":374},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/be-a-leader\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Be a Leader in a Society of Followers"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13","name":"Elizabeth Whitworth","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Elizabeth Whitworth"},"description":"Elizabeth has a lifelong love of books. She devours nonfiction, especially in the areas of history, theology, and philosophy. A switch to audiobooks has kindled her enjoyment of well-narrated fiction, particularly Victorian and early 20th-century works. She appreciates idea-driven books\u2014and a classic murder mystery now and then. Elizabeth has a Substack and is writing a book about what the Bible says about death and hell.","sameAs":["rina@shortform.com"],"award":["Contributions to joint task force efforts (FBI)","Contributions to Special Operations Division (DOJ & DEA)","Efforts to fight the war on drugs (NSA)","Contributions to Operation Storm Front (US Customs Service)"],"knowsAbout":["History","Theology","Government"],"jobTitle":"Senior SEO Writer","worksFor":"Shortform","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/elizabeth\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/be-a-leader.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50619","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50619"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50619\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51138,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50619\/revisions\/51138"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50619"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50619"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}