Humilitas
A female old hand on soil-earth. Close-up. Concept of old age-youth, life, health, nature.
The term “humility” comes from the Latin word humilitas, a noun related to the adjective humilis, which may be translated as “humble”, but also as “grounded”, or “from the earth”, since it derives from humus (earth) – Wikipedia Dictionary
The practice of humility is something I feel very strongly about. Quite often when I talk about humility in leadership and my desire to coach others to practice humility, I can draw strange looks or a simple nod of the head with people commenting “okay”, as though to say “good luck” with that. There were several reasons I decided to start HumblePye, but the key motivator was to help people embrace humility in the way they live, work and lead.
My career has taken me around the world, I have experienced different cultures, diversity, have reported to a mix of women and men. The leaders, the teams in which I found to be the most productive and enjoyable were those where there was truly a strong sense of humility. I came to recognise that those who were the most successful were the people who had a balanced ego, a desire to serve others, and were incredibly engaged because they really took an interest in those around them. They were focused on helping others be the best they could be, it was never about them; they had a mindset of growing others. In a rising world of self-entitlement and self-focus I felt we could do with some more humility.
To understand humility is to first understand where it has evolved from
The word humility evolved from the word humilitas which in turn originates from the Latin word Humus, meaning the earth beneath us. Thus, the reason we associate humility and being grounded. Since its inception it has been influenced by philosophical, theological and psychological bodies of knowledge with elements of self-sacrifice and weakness but a resurgence in its interest has led to a reading of it as a position of strength particularly in an organisational context. The strength of humility comes from a greater need to implement coaching leadership styles, to providing a psychological safe environment. This is hard to do if you have an over confident narcissist leading the show.
Humility defined
There are a few definitions:
The American Psychological Association defines humility as characterised by a low focus on the self, an accurate sense of one’s accomplishments and worth and an acknowledgement of one’s limitations, imperfections, mistakes, gaps etc.,
Marilyn Gist, a US professor, author and advocate of leader humility whom I have had the pleasure of meeting defines humility as a tendency to feel and display a deep regard for others dignity. While arrogance is self-focused and often insensitive to others, humility is other focused and emphasises recognition and support for others dignity and self-worth. With humility in leadership there is a focus on being less consumed with oneself (inner focus) to being more consumed with contributing to the development and the help of others (outer focus).
In essence humble people see themselves accurately, they have fabulous self-awareness. They know what they are good at, and they know what they are not good at. They appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of other people and use them accordingly. A key point is they are OPEN to other people’s feedback, they LISTEN, especially to feedback. Humble people are open to coaching and adopt a coaching style themselves, this means they can make change within themselves and within others. The humble person practices the art of asking meaningful questions as opposed to commanding responses.
Humility in leadership
In terms of what a humble leader looks like and the benefits: a humble leader understands their own limitations, they acknowledge their own mistakes, they factor in others’ opinions, they are self-critical, so they can change and improve. They never feel they have all the answers and therefore they draw on the strengths of the team around them. This makes the team open, trusting, high performing, engaging and psychologically safe in their environment.
Jim Collins, author of “Good to Great” has conducted considerable research to determine what makes organisations truly great. One such study looked at fortune 100 companies to determine their success factors. There were 11 outstanding companies, and their success came down to the CEO (no real surprises there). What was surprising and what was discovered was if you entered a room full of people you would be hard pressed identifying these CEO’s. Why, because they were quiet, standing at the back of the room, reserved, not seeking the attention but underneath this was a killer ambition, competitiveness, tenaciousness, hard work, modesty and humility. These CEOS were willing to admit mistakes, to listen and to continuously improve. They also let their teams take the glory of the success.
Lead with a humility lens
So how do you lead with humility?
When we lead a team there are a few basic questions the team will want answered.
- Who are you?
- Where are we going?
- Do you see me?
The humble leader responds by demonstrating they have a balanced ego and robust integrity. “Where are we going?” is answered with a compelling vision and accompanying strategies which are ethical in drive and context.
With regard to seeing the team, the response is always generous inclusion and a clear developmental focus.
Overall, the practice of humility in leadership means you accept the 21st century reality that the essence of leadership is no longer about hyper masculinity, and that vulnerability does not mean weakness.
Embrace humility wherever you can.
