When leaders make a mistake, they say, "I was wrong." When followers make mistakes, they say, "It wasn't my fault." A leader works harder than a follower and has more time; a follower is always "too busy" to do what is necessary. A leader goes through a problem; a follower goes around it and never gets past it. A leader makes and keeps commitments; a follower makes and forgets promises. A leader says, "I'm good, but not as good as I ought to be;" a follower says, "I'm not as bad as a lot of other people." Leaders listen; followers just wait until it's their turn to talk. Leaders respect those who are superior to them and tries to learn something from them; followers resent those who are superior to them and try to find chinks in their armor. Leaders feel responsible for more than their job; followers say, "I only work here." A leader says, "There ought to be a better way to do this;" followers say, "That's the way it's always been done here." by Oxford Leadership Academy on Friday, May 28, 2010 at 5:19pm ·