What is Humility?

Humility is first and foremost about having an accurate view of yourself. Although some people—and even some dictionaries—view humility as synonymous with low self-esteem, psychology and leadership experts describe humility as understanding one’s talents and accomplishments while accepting one’s imperfections and shortcomings. Robert Emmons, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, clarifies that “to be humble is not to have a low opinion of oneself, it is to have an accurate opinion of oneself.”

When you have a talent or special skill and you don’t acknowledge it, you are not displaying humility. Rather, you are engaging in self-disparagement and possibly ingratitude. As a humble, smart leader, you should recognize that you are smart, but you should also know that you are not smarter than everyone else—or smarter than the collective intelligence of the group that you lead. You can appreciate that you have expertise in strategy, for example, but you should also acknowledge that you don’t know everything about the subject and that you still have a lot to learn.

Humility is not about deflating or inflating your abilities or status; it is about understanding them just the way they are. You can strive to know your strengths and weaknesses based on disciplined self-reflection. This is especially challenging when you get promoted to higher positions and are granted great power and authority. Unless you practice humility intentionally, your views of yourself can easily get skewed, especially if you believe everything you are told by some of the sycophants that may have surrounded you.

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Amer Kaissi is a Professional Speaker, Executive Coach, and Professor at the Department of Healthcare Administration at Trinity University. Check it out his new book “Humbitious: The power of Low-Ego, High-Drive Leadership .”?This article is an excerpt from the book.