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Humble leaders

How you see others is a key factor for success

by MARILYN GIST

Should you care about being a leader everyone admires? Absolutely. When we admire our leaders, we want to work with them. We care about the direction they set and we commit to giving them our best. When everyone does this, we produce great results. And because our attitude is so positive, enthusiasm spreads and the workplace climate thrives.

At a time when many organizations are struggling to hire and retain talent, widely admired leaders have an edge. They provide inspiration, not just direction. They enlist commitment, not just compliance. And they create healthy and successful organizations.

How does a leader gain admiration? The following attributes come to mind: accomplished, decisive, strong, visionary, with charisma to achieve results. These characteristics are indeed important. But another quality that is extraordinarily powerful in inspiring support is leader humility.

Leader humility is a tendency to feel and display a deep regard for the dignity of others. It offers great value within an organization, because supporting others’ dignity is the essential foundation of healthy relationships. Healthy relationships lead to results, because we get work done through others. And results lead to successful organizations.

This all becomes clear if you consider what happens when a leader lacks humility: Relationships aren’t strong and stakeholders are less inclined to lend their full support. There’s less consensus and enthusiasm toward a shared goal. Employees don’t want to stick around.

Research has shown that people have three key questions for leaders in their companies and organizations:

Who are you? Ideally, you’re a person with integrity and a balanced ego.

Where are we going? You make clear a compelling vision and ethical strategies to get there.

Do you see me? How you answer this question plays an unexpectedly large role in determining your success. Specifically, what do you do to recognize that everyone needs a sense of self-worth (including your employees, customers and suppliers)? How do you and your managers bring people along so they can succeed in their positions and grow? Is it clear that your business truly believes its workers are its most important asset?

Answering these questions will reveal how much you and your organization support the dignity of others. In doing so, your business will achieve great things.

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