There are several kinds of followers:

1. Worshippers who are in awe of anything they don't understand. Extreme form: cult members
2. High priests: people who codify, discipline and enforce the messy visions of charismatic visions, like COOs or Popes/high priests. Extreme form: Reducing leader to figurehead
3. Enlightened followers: who are actually more capable than the leader, but lack any particular motivation/drive to do anything, and lend their support to leaders almost as a kind of gracious blessing. Extreme form: followers who end up enslaving the leader in de facto ways, by holding them to more extreme missions than the leader may be capable of.
4. Drafters: my favorite kind, people who follow in the wake of a leader because they realize they can get most of the benefits at half the cost and 1/100th of a risk. Formation flying birds, race car drivers, bikers... all draft. In birds, the leader position naturally rotates as the lead bird starts to tire and fall back. Extreme form: true freeloaders who manage to avoid taking on the leadership burden all the time.
5. Intriguers: who form an inner circle around a leader and control all the power with none of the responsibility. Towards the leader, they are the yes men. Towards their followers, they are like the high priests: enforcers. But towards each other, they are the fascinating backstabbing, competing-for-favor coterie in a zero-sum game. This class is obviously particularly important in government.

Some day, I'll write up my theory of followership. Follwership is about 1000x more interesting than leadership.