Humility.. The often overlooked Ingredient For Developing Great Leaders.

The more I learn about leadership and the more I interact with and study successful leaders, the greater my appreciation of the importance of humility to good leadership.

We all bear witness to the negative impact and disruption that leaders who discount the importance of humility have caused in the public, social, religious and private domains. What is more alarming though is the rapid increase in the number of these types of leaders. Unfortunately this is not surprising as we now live in a world where ego and noise get the biggest attention and arrogance makes headlines; even when humility clearly makes the difference that gets the job done. Beyond the adverse impact on leadership effectiveness, the more worrisome aspect is the tendency for younger people and new leaders to copy, aspire to be like and mimic theses types of leaders because of their visibility. The increased visibility and reach offered by social media significantly increases the likelihood of raising a generation of leaders devoid of a critical leadership ingredient.. Humility.

There is no denying that displaying humility can feel soft, especially at a time when problems are hitting hard, putting leaders at the risk of appearing vulnerable when people are looking to them for answers and reassurances. However, there is clear indisputable evidence that individuals with humility make better leaders for a variety of reasons. For starters, having humility makes us better listeners which also makes us better learners. Leaders with humility are generally more open to accepting their mistakes, learning from them and moving quickly to take corrective actions. Humble leaders are also less likely to suffer from the Dunning-Kruger effect (overestimate their own abilities) or abuse their authority.

The words of Mahatma Gandhi, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world” beckons on leaders to be conscious of their behaviour and role model a style of leadership they would like to see in the next generation.

As a leader, your responsibility is not just to a few individuals or to a section but to make your entire team, division, organisation, and even your community perform better. Displaying humility and respecting others’ opinions gives you a broader platform to achieve this objective. The openness to feedback, new ideas and learning from others creates the growth mindset required for leadership agility and effectiveness at this rapidly changing and uncertain times.

A sense of humility is also essential to leadership because it authenticates our humanity, by helping us recognise what we do well as well as identity our weaknesses, this self awareness is essential for appreciating the contribution of others, sharing credit for results, openness to new ideas and feedback. These leadership behaviours have the extra benefit of fostering a high performance culture by legitimising team work, rapid learning and personal development.

With respect to the workplace, research findings show that humility in leadership leads to higher rates of employee engagement, higher job satisfaction, and lower rates of turnover while also encouraging a culture of openness, trust, and recognition, which are important precursors to success. Sadly, many organisations overlook this important trait when hiring for leadership roles.

Jim Collins in his research based best seller, Good to Great, found two common traits of CEOs in companies that transitioned from average to superior market performance: humility and an indomitable will to advance the cause of their organisation. Fortunately, like every other leadership skill, humility can and should be learnt.

This is what humility as a leader looks like in practice:

1. You get comfortable saying “I don’t know” or “I need help”.
2. Ask a lot of questions.
3. Spend time listening to others.
4. Ask others to step up and shine.
5. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
6. Develop, support and empower others.
7. Seek feedback from others on a regular basis.
8. Ask how you can make things better for others.

While there is a common misconception that leaders can’t be humble and ambitious at the same time, humility in leadership does not imply the absence of drive or ambition, nor does it excuse the inability to make difficult decisions. Rather, humility in the pursuit of ambition is the most effective and sustainable mindset for leaders who aspire to do big things in a world filled with huge unknowns. Humble leaders are better able to channel their drive and ambition back into the organisation, rather than use it for personal gain.