Courageous Followers

Humor me for a moment and allow me to share one of my favorite stories. It’s a story from the Bible so, if that’s not your thing, feel free to check out now.

This is the story about Jonathan, the son of King Saul, and his armor bearer. Fact of the matter is we don’t even know the armor bearer’s name, but he was a courageous follower like no other. As the name implies, an armor bearer was a servant that carried additional weapons for the one they served.

One day Jonathan said to his unnamed servant, “Come, let’s go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side.” The problem with that request was that the Philistines were the enemies, and they had the high ground. The armor bearer could have said, “You’re out of your mind,” but instead he said, “I am with you heart and soul.” He was all in!

The Philistines began to shout down from their advantageous positions, “Come up to us and we’ll teach you a lesson.” With that Jonathan began to climb up with his armor-bearer right behind him.

There’s more to the story, but what stands out to me is how courageously the armor bearer followed. Some might call it blind allegiance, but blind allegiance requires no courage. It’s na?ve to follow blindly. The armor bearer was fully aware of the circumstances. He was also aware of whom he followed. Trust had been established, proven through previous battles fought together.

There is another story we think of when we talk about courage, the story of the cowardly lion from Wizard of Oz. He journeyed together with Dorothy and the others so that he might meet the wizard and receive courage. Of course, it took great courage to go somewhere he had never been, to face the flying monkeys, and to stand before the great and terrible Oz.

I wonder if the lion gained the title “cowardly” because instead of being a roaring leader he was, instead, a follower. The fact of the matter is that both the armor bearer and the Lion were courageous followers. The Lion went with Dorothy. The armor bearer went with Jonathan.

What does it mean to be courageous followers? Courageous followers have the courage to serve. That’s what the armor bearer did. Even when the work may be hard, when it may be risky, or when it might be unglamorous you have the courage to serve.

Courageous followers have the courage to challenge. It takes a lot of courage to ask a leader, “Are you sure about that?” As part of our quality management system, we encourage employees to provide feedback. If processes aren’t working, it’s best for everyone if you bring it to the attention of the leadership team. Don’t be afraid to speak up.

Finally, courageous followers have the courage to assume responsibility. It’s often easier to cast blame than to assume responsibility. Victimhood runs rampant in our world today. It takes courage to own up to mistakes and take responsibility. Courageous followers take responsibility for company goals, for personal growth, and public perceptions.

You may not be the king of the jungle, but you are still called to be courageous. It’s good to serve. It’s good to contribute. It’s good to develop. None of which come without courage.