{"id":1862,"date":"2018-12-23T21:13:45","date_gmt":"2018-12-24T04:13:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/?p=1862"},"modified":"2018-12-23T21:17:53","modified_gmt":"2018-12-24T04:17:53","slug":"are-you-a-leader-others-will-follow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/are-you-a-leader-others-will-follow\/","title":{"rendered":"Are You a Leader Others Will Follow?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cOur ability to be daring leaders will never be greater than our capacity for vulnerability.\u201d<\/p>Brene Brown, Dare to Lead<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Vulnerability \u2026 that feeling of being exposed; none of us really like it. Without vulnerability, we hold back. We protect parts of ourselves so that we won\u2019t be harmed. Better said, we protect ourselves from the fear that we will be harmed. Without vulnerability, we show a partial view of who we really are. Vulnerability requires that we let down our guard \u2026 that we deny the temptation to appear to be something that we really aren\u2019t \u2026 or to be something less than we really are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of us wouldn\u2019t admit to wanting to be a vulnerable leader; however, we\u2019re more likely to say that we want to be an authentic leader. But the reality is this \u2026 you can\u2019t be an authentic leader without also being willing to become vulnerable; vulnerability and authenticity go hand in hand.<\/i> If you are only exposing a part of who you are and withholding your complete self, no matter how justifiable the reason, you are lacking authenticity. And the truth is this \u2026 people who are inauthentic are difficult to follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps you\u2019ve had a leader like that. They seem nice enough but there is something about their leadership that doesn\u2019t seem quite real. It might have been a stretch to say that they were inauthentic but that\u2019s likely what we feel when leaders hold back from us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do we lead and model vulnerability? Probably the simplest but most difficult thing is this . . . We must take the risk. Vulnerability is a risk. With any risk, there is the possibility that it might go wrong. And that possibility of being wrong holds a whole lot of fear attached to it. What if we share too much \u2026 or to the wrong person \u2026 or at the wrong time. And behind it all this thought is looming in the inner parts of our hearts and minds \u2026 \u201cI might just fail at this vulnerability thing.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reality is that you probably already have. You\u2019ve likely already proven to yourself that you are a failure at vulnerability. And that\u2019s probably why you are afraid to try again. There is never a guarantee that vulnerability will end well. Actually, that\u2019s what makes vulnerability what it is;  if it were a safe thing, we would all do it because there would be no risk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you desire to be an authentic leader \u2026 one that people follow \u2026 then you must be willing to risk vulnerability. Risk. It\u2019s scary. But it\u2019s worth it because that is what will make you an authentic leader \u2026 one that people will WANT to follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With that in mind, what are your thoughts? Fears? Concerns? I\u2019d love to know. Share those in the comments below.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cOur ability to be daring leaders will never be greater than our capacity for vulnerability.\u201d Brene Brown, Dare to Lead Vulnerability \u2026 that feeling of being exposed; none of us really like it. Without vulnerability, we hold back. We protect parts of ourselves so that we won\u2019t be harmed. Better said, we protect ourselves from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"You can\u2019t be an authentic leader without also being willing to become vulnerable; vulnerability and authenticity go hand in hand. Read more in my latest blog post.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[31],"tags":[115,117,58,116,114],"class_list":["post-1862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-main","tag-authenticity","tag-failure","tag-leadership","tag-risk","tag-vulernability"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pzg9k-u2","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":119250,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/if-you-cant-be-honest-are-you-really-loyal\/","url_meta":{"origin":1862,"position":0},"title":"If You Can\u2019t Be Honest, Are You Really Loyal?","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"February 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Adam Grant said in a recent post, \u201cIn toxic relationships, you're forced to choose between honesty and loyalty. You bite your tongue to protect their ego. In healthy relationships, honesty is an expression of loyalty. You speak your mind to help them grow. When you have real trust and respect,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Main"","block_context":{"text":"Main","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/category\/main\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"man and woman holding hands","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/pexels-photo-127420.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/pexels-photo-127420.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/pexels-photo-127420.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/pexels-photo-127420.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/pexels-photo-127420.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1111,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/just-when-you-thought-you-werent-a-leader\/","url_meta":{"origin":1862,"position":1},"title":"Just When You Thought You Weren’t a Leader","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"February 14, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Enjoy this short video that we watched recently at our Church Community Builder staff lunch.","rel":"","context":"In "Main"","block_context":{"text":"Main","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/category\/main\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":211605,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/support-leadership-fostering-ownership-and-partnership-for-results\/","url_meta":{"origin":1862,"position":2},"title":"Support & Leadership: Fostering Ownership and Partnership for Results","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"May 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, I attended a customer meeting with one of our customer success managers, and it turned into a real eye-opener about what leadership should be. My colleague shared on LinkedIn that instead of needing more oversight, Individual Contributors just want ownership and support. 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She said: Hi! Thinking about you this morning. I work at a place where we have chapel once a week. I think of you most weeks when we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Main"","block_context":{"text":"Main","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/category\/main\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1053,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/leading-is-letting-go\/","url_meta":{"origin":1862,"position":4},"title":"Leading is Letting Go","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Serving in a local church for many years, I was always looking for ways to be a better leader. I was constantly in search of secret clues to uncover the mystery of what makes for a good leader. Now serving in a broader role as coach for churches, I am\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Main"","block_context":{"text":"Main","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/category\/main\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29315,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/your-biggest-contribution-as-a-leader\/","url_meta":{"origin":1862,"position":5},"title":"How To Guarantee Happy Teams And Create An Amazing Culture","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"July 15, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"If you haven\u2019t already figured it out, leaders wear lot of hats. Sometimes it\u2019s difficult to determine which hat we should be wearing and which is the most important in the moment. 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