Strategy? Nope.
Focus? Not it.
How about Success? Try again.
The word is the root word for all things good and yet there is very little discussion or teaching on the subject in today’s 24/7 world.
It’s a word that makes leaders great and keeps them grounded and confident…
It’s HUMILITY.
Humility is the root virtue of all virtues. Many leaders today dismiss the true significance of the word. To most, humility means weak or to be a doormat but humility is neither. It is the key to security, hope and confidence.
I believe humility is the most underutilized word in the leadership vernacular today.
Perhaps the best way to understand humility is to look at the relationship between the word humble and the antonym, pride. Pride is the root word for all things bad. Pride makes men and women do the most insane things all for the sake of protecting, hiding, or propping up.
You can watch humility and pride play themselves out daily in our daily news mediums. Have you ever watched a news report of a famous person making the dumbest mistake and saying to yourself, “how could they do that?” or “what were they thinking?”
To be humble is to have a conscious and use it. To understand our shortcomings and be comfortable in our limitations and defects knowing that what we give is for the best for others.
Pride is having an over-high opinion of yourself. Maybe even an exaggerated or egotistical self-esteem. Arrogance is a great synonym for the word as pride makes people over delight in their achievements.
Humility is rarely spoken by leaders because we are too busy focusing on our achievements. Modesty is not valued in our society as much as it should be. Yet, everyone of us appreciates the strong, bold leader that doesn’t think too highly of themselves. We all want the leader who lifts everyone else up around them.
Let’s make the decision today to be the change.
Let’s boldly lift Humility to the heights where it should be in our leadership culture and language.
Let’s lead by example and live it out so that others will do the same.
