Many employers look for natural leaders or candidates they see leadership potential in. They often ask questions to gauge a candidate’s leadership skills during an interview. A common question for interviewers to ask is “Are you a leader or a follower?” In this article, we discuss how to answer this question and provide examples of sample answers and tips for how to answer.
Why employers ask questions about leadership
Employers choose questions to learn more about how you and your qualifications align with the job requirements. They often ask leadership questions to determine how well you fit the requirements of a role and how you will work with the rest of their team. Employers may ask leadership-related questions for any type of job to evaluate your ability to be a leader at any level.Many employers look for a candidate who can lead a team just as well as they can follow directions from others. They often want candidates who are flexible, adaptable and willing to take on different roles based on the specific needs of the company or project. It’s important to show you have balanced experience with being a leader and a follower.Related: 7 Common Leadership Interview Questions and How To Answer Them
How to answer “Are you a leader or a follower?”
Here are some steps to help you prepare your answer to this question:
1. Think about your previous experiences
It’s important for you to share a past example with the interviewer. Reflect on your previous leadership experiences. While you may not have formal leadership experience as a manager or supervisor, you may have influenced your coworkers to act or respond in a certain way. It’s also important for you to think about times your ability to follow directions and listen to leaders helped your team achieve success.
2. Choose an example that a balance between leading and following
Identify an example of a time you showed characteristics of both a leader and a follower. Think about the choices you made and how the situation affected your decision to lead or follow. Consider how your flexibility affected the success of the project.
3. Explain how you see yourself
Begin your answer with how you see yourself. Tell the interviewer if you consider yourself to be more of a leader or follower and why. You may also answer the question that you view yourself as a leader or follower based on what the situation requires. If you consider yourself more of a follower, you may also consider expressing a desire to gain more leadership experience.You may also provide details about your personal leadership philosophy. For example, consider providing your approach to influencing others and your decision-making process. Talk about how you feel about dealing with changes or how you maintain an optimistic point of view.
4. Provide an answer using the STAR method
Provide the interviewer with a specific example about your previous experience. Consider using the STAR method. This method makes it easy for you to tell your story with clear details about a problem and how you helped solve it. A STAR response includes the:
Situation: A brief description of the situation or challenge you faced
Task: A brief description of your role in the situation and what you needed to achieve
Action: A detailed explanation of the specific actions you took, highlighting the most impactful steps you took
Result: A concise explanation of the results of your actions, including quantitative or tangible examples if possible and what you learned from the situation
Example answers for “Are you a leader or a follower?”
Here are some examples of answers to questions about your leadership skills to help you develop your own answer:
Example for a leader
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