4 Reasons Why Humility is Important in the Race to Success

4 Reasons Why Humility is Important in the Race to Success 4 Reasons why Humility is Important in the Race to Success Image Source: iStockFirst  of all, if you are not accustomed to collaboration, true teamwork and admitting that you are not always right, do not panic. No-one, most of all the experts who understand this field better than anyone, says that it is going to be easy.  Ego-driven thinking is what we are hardwired for. Ally that with a culture in which you’ve been able to pursue decisions on the basis that you know best, then you are going to be opening yourself to criticism, listening to constructive feedback, and learning how to take it on the chin.  It may not be easy, but it’s worth it in the long run. We take a look at 4 reasons why humility is important in the race to success. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); “Thank you. I appreciate that.”For an illustration of what we’re talking about here, let’s go  back  a few years to the show My Big Fat Obnoxious Boss. This show’s hook was that it was a parody of The Apprentice, and its winning job and cash priz e were fake… unbeknownst to the contestants.Although it  never took off, here is an example of how  the show  dished out some lessons in humility to its contestants, at the hands of the ‘boss’, Mr N Paul Todd (an anagram of Donald Trump).“Thank you. I appreciate that.” This is one of the things that Professor Edward Hessâ€"author of Learn or Die: Using Science to Build a Leading-Edge Learning Organisationâ€"maintains is essential to counteracting the “ego-based thinking” that he claims runs counter to effective leadership.Speaking to ‘Industry Week’, Prof Hess acknowledges that humility is the “mortal enemy” of the ego, as “ego-based thinking is our brain’s default positionâ€"we naturally seek to reinforce what we already think we know”.Here are a few reasons why we cannot any longer ignore the need to work on our egos:1. It’s Scientifically Proven Image Source:  Amazon Check Price As well  as the views of Prof Hess, we must also consider the work of Ja ck Zenger and Joseph Folkman, authors of The Extraordinary Leader: Turning Good Managers into Great Leaders  and other titles including Speed: How Leaders Accelerate Successful Execution  and The Handbook for Leaders: 24 Lessons for Extraordinary Leadership.Zenger and Folkman have mined “360-degree feedback data” on 69,000 managers as seen through the eyes of 750,000 respondents at hundreds of firms.Their findings demonstrated that the more managers underrated themselves, the more highly they were perceived as leaders. Why this is so interesting is that it suggests that even the impression of humility is an effective leadership trait.As Zenger and Folkman write: “an aura of humility is always superior”, whereas “an illusion of superiority (regardless of whether it is accurate) [is]… damaging to both leadership effectiveness and morale”. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 2. Benefits of Humility Outweigh ShortcomingsZenger  and Folkman admit that the da ta does not confirm whether there might be a downside to under-rating oneself as a leader. They do suspect that the answer is “sometimes”.They speculate that “some of these leaders expend a great deal of emotional energy in proving themselves to others. For others we think it also curtails their willingness to take on larger and more challenging assignments”.However, they conclude that the data from their 360-degree feedback researches proves that “it is valuable to realise that while I may be good at some things, Im probably not great at everything, and no matter how good I am, I can always get better”.With the data also concluding that leaders who under-rated their strengths tended to have more engaged employees, these are compelling conclusions, freighted with great possibilities for how to meet the challenges of the new.3. Humility Could Help Preserve Your Job Image Source: Amazon Check Price In a future  where robots and smart technologies are predicted  to take ove r key jobs, Prof Edward Hess says that the  jobs remaining for  humans will  involve the skills that technology cant replicate, such as critical thinking, innovation, creativity and emotional engagement with other humans. “All of these skills have one thing in common,” Hess writes: “They are enabled by humility”. The way ahead will not be easy, but Hess  is adamant that it must be face if humans are to remain competitive in the Smart Machine era. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 4. Humility is a Win-Win Image Source: Amazon Check Price Humility  and empathy are two of the key qualities most marked in people of high emotional intelligence.They are qualities that help you ownership of and manage your feelings: and understand that success does not ‘happen’, but is attained by those who empower themselves to succeed.As US teacher, philosopher and coach Michael Benner points out: “Let’s drop the meme that happiness is a function of success: happiness an d love are the way to success.”And isn’t it clear, also, that humility and better understanding of your feelings, and of your relationship with the world and with other human beings, is going to make for a rounder, better-adjusted life in general?It’s  that humility and empathy help get resultsâ€"think of the times that these qualities are mentioned among the characteristics of the most notably successful leaders or achievers in life.Anyone who continues to doubt these conclusions, should investigate and explore  the achievements of their own role models and inspirations, and satisfy themselves.As Bill Gates said: “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they cannot lose.”Don’t get caught short or compromise your leadership effectiveness through complacency or arrogance. Business really is a lifelong learning process. It’s imperative to accept the core centrality of that wisdom, and not just pay lip service to it.