Humility! I was recently teaching one of my graduate business courses, and as is my normal custom, I ask the students if they have any questions about me, my experience, etc during one of our first sessions. I usually field a myriad of questions which I never have an issue answering or addressing, but I must admit that I was taken a bit by surprise of a really tough question that caused me to pause-now, as you read this, you may think....that's not such a tough question! But, trust me, this one caused me to really pause and think about the student's question as he was very serious and seeking the guidance...so, the questions was: In one word, what has been your biggest learning in becoming a great leader, and/or what is the one word of advice you would share with someone who is seeking to become a really effective and positive leader? ONE WORD!
Let me share that I pride myself on being very thoughtful and quick on my feet so to speak whenever I am in front of a group of people presenting, teaching, etc. And, here I was putting my brain into overdrive (it really hurt :-)), trying to go back over my entire career; my trials and tribulations; my successes and failures; and all by trying not to be flip or cavalier with my response. Voila! It occurred to me, and has since caused me to reflect on my answer over and over again, only to realize that it was probably the best, most truthful and impactful answer I could have provided-my answer was HUMILITY!
Subsequent to the interchange, I really began to reflect on this and have come to realize that this is a very important aspect for any/all kinds of leaders to learn and master; and, the only way to truly "master" humility is to actually surrender to it and become humble (not just say it or feel it). As I reflected on ways that this was imparted to me, I went back and looked at the seminal book by Jim Collins called "Good to Great" (read it if you never have); what became obvious to me in the research that was done for highly effective leaders and their quest/success in bringing organizations from "good" to "great" as Collins defined it, was an underlying quality called humility-I honestly can't recall if he actually pointed this out in the book/research, or it was an undertone that I grasped in my reading. Regardless, many of these leaders were not your household names; and many came up through the ranks in their organization and were well respected by all in the organization. Understated, non-bombastic, decisive, but HUMBLE in their interactions, decisions and leadership.
So, I truly thank that student for causing me to reflect so hard on this key element for being an effective leader, and more importantly a truly effective, positive and genuine person. My reflections on this key quality continues, and I must admit that it is not an easy quality to assimilate....Be humble in all you do and with all who interact with each and every day.....
Humble as defined in the dictionary: not proud or arrogant; modest
Humility as defined in the dictionary: the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.
