Leadership Is Loud. Followership Is Rare. Discipleship Is Costly.
- Marcus Taylor
- Dec 20, 2025
- 4 min read
Leadership is everywhere.
There are books, seminars, conferences, consulting firms, certifications, keynote circuits, and digital platforms built entirely around leadership. It is a multi-million-dollar industry promising influence and impact.
Yet one question is rarely asked:
How many people actually understand followership?
And even fewer understand discipleship.
Not as blind obedience.
Not as loyalty to personalities or titles.
But as disciplined responsibility tied to mission, vision, execution, and growth.
Followership Defined Properly
Followership is often misrepresented as weakness or passivity. That framing is inaccurate.
Followership is the capacity to actively support leaders while exercising independent judgment, ethical responsibility, and commitment to shared goals.
True followership is active. It requires thinking, preparation, and discipline. It does not abandon standards to maintain proximity to authority. It does not confuse agreement with silence.
A competent follower understands:
the mission
the vision
the objectives
and the competencies required to execute
From there, development becomes a responsibility, not a suggestion.
A Practical Lesson From Military Training
From my own experience in military training, followership is foundational to execution. This is not a recommendation to model civilian organizations after the military. It is an example of what happens when followership is taken seriously.
In the Army, train the command is a well-established concept. Execution happens at the base, carried by followers. As responsibility increases, individuals remain followers while also assuming leadership roles. Regardless of position, everyone follows something: mission intent, standards, objectives, and discipline.
Followership begins with understanding why. That clarity drives action. Excellence is not motivational. It is developmental.
Where organizations fail is consistent:
leaders fail to develop trainers
followers fail to develop themselves
When individuals envy position instead of understanding responsibility, they often absorb poor leadership habits while believing they are preparing to lead.
How someone follows shapes how they eventually lead.
A Civilian Parallel: Followership in a Nonprofit Organization
The same dynamic plays out clearly in nonprofit organizations.
In many nonprofits, boards and committees are filled with passionate people who believe deeply in the mission. Yet execution often stalls, not because the mission is unclear, but because followership is underdeveloped.
You see it when:
board members attend meetings but do not prepare
volunteers want influence without understanding constraints
committee members critique decisions without owning execution
individuals bypass process while claiming commitment
The mission exists. The vision is compelling. But followership is thin.
Effective nonprofit followership looks different. It means understanding the organization’s objectives, funding realities, governance boundaries, and operational limits. It means developing the competencies needed to contribute, not just opinions about what should change.
When followership improves, nonprofits stabilize. Decisions get executed. Leaders spend less time correcting and more time advancing the mission. Trust increases because responsibility is shared, not assumed.
This is followership in practice, not theory.
The Meaning of “Ship” and Why It Matters
Leadership. Followership. Mentorship. Friendship. Relationship. Discipleship.
The shared ending is intentional.
The suffix “ship” comes from Old English scipe, meaning state of being, responsibility, or condition. It does not describe status. It describes sustained obligation.
“Ship” implies:
responsibility
accountability
continuity
practice over time
Leadership is the responsibility of guiding others toward a mission.
Followership is the responsibility of supporting that mission with discipline and judgment.
Mentorship is the responsibility of development and correction.
Friendship is the responsibility of trust and honesty.
Relationship is the responsibility of engagement and care.
When people ignore the responsibility implied by “ship,” roles become labels and expectations turn into entitlements.
From Followership to Discipleship: Skill Becomes Formation
This is where the conversation must deepen.
Followership is a skill set. Discipleship is formation.
Followership focuses on execution, alignment, and responsibility. Discipleship goes further by shaping identity, habits, standards, and character in service of the mission.
Discipleship is not admiration. It is intentional formation.
A disciple allows the mission to change how they think, act, and develop. Discipleship involves imitation, correction, accountability, and cost. It asks more than participation.
Discipleship asks:
What habits must change?
What standards must be upheld?
What discipline must be embraced?
What responsibility must be carried?
Organizations fail less from poor leadership than from shallow discipleship.
The Cost of Poor Followership
When followership is weak, the consequences are predictable:
execution becomes inconsistent
trust erodes between levels
leaders burn out correcting preventable issues
entitlement replaces accountability
talent stagnates
ineffective systems repeat themselves
Leadership development alone cannot compensate for poor followership. Vision collapses without disciplined execution.
A Followership Self-Assessment
Before critiquing leadership, ask yourself:
Do I understand the mission without it being repeated?
Can I clearly articulate the vision and objectives?
Have I developed the competencies required to execute?
Do I bring solutions or only observations?
Do I challenge issues with discipline or frustration?
Am I preparing for responsibility or envying position?
These questions expose readiness without accusation.
A Discipline-Based Call to Action
This is not an inspirational close. It is an instructional one.
Identify the mission you are serving.
Write the competencies required to execute it well.
Assess your gaps honestly.
Commit to development before demanding authority.
Practice disciplined followership consistently.
Titles do not produce impact. Preparation does.
Why This Conversation Matters
Followership is not the opposite of leadership. It is its foundation.
Discipleship is not control. It is formation.
“Ship” reminds us these roles are lived responsibilities.
If we want better leaders, we must cultivate better followers.
If we want sustainable impact, we must embrace disciplined discipleship.
If we want execution, trust, and growth, we must honor the responsibility the words themselves demand.
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