A Lesson in the Airport
The other day I was in an airport lounge preparing for my latest consulting trip. The lounge was filled with the usual business types chatting on their cell phones, having drinks and generally conveying an air of self-importance. An employee came by to clean up my area, collecting glasses and trash. She greeted me and I replied by asking her how she was doing. Her response? “I’m so blessed by God to have a job.”
This woman had what many consider a very undesirable job. Cleaning up trash after people who rarely show gratitude. Yet she was so grateful to have the job and clearly proud to say so. Her response humbled me and reminded me how far I need to go to have that kind of joyful gratitude for everything in my life. Her response also got me thinking about the importance of humility in leadership.
Can Humility and Confidence Coexist?
Humility and confidence are surely opposites, are they not? But great leaders have both. They are very self-aware, so they understand their strengths, as well as their weaknesses. Great leaders leverage their strengths and put themselves in situations which play to their best abilities. Because they have confidence, not many things, or people, intimidate them. People follow confident leaders. They portray assuredness, decisiveness and action. They achieve results others are unable to duplicate. They accomplish great things.
Confident, Not Arrogant
Unbridled confidence can easily slip into arrogance. Unfortunately, many people will also follow arrogant leaders. Leaders who become arrogant can achieve short-term success, but there is a key difference between confidence and arrogance. Arrogance will ultimately result in downfall. Over time, arrogant leaders fail to accurately assess risk. They will say or do something that causes harm to them, their company, their team and in some cases their family. The statements of famous individuals after their fall from grace show common themes. They thought they were above consequences and in some cases the law. It did not occur to them they might actually get caught one day. In short, they stopped adequately assessing risk in their lives and/or careers.
Humility: Protection Against Arrogance
In order to protect yourself against arrogance, your confidence must be balanced with humility. Accept your strengths and be confident in your abilities. But when you become more and more successful how do you guard against arrogance? By believing in something greater than yourself. Many of the best leaders I work with are genuinely in awe of the positions, success and influence they have attained. They did not seek to become a CEO, CFO or General Counsel. Instead, they focus on doing their jobs to the best of their ability and let the outcomes take care of themselves. They understand many things happen beyond their control. They understand their abilities are given to them, not self-created. They work hard to perfect those abilities, but they understand they are a gift. They are grateful for their abilities, opportunities and success. Because they believe in something greater than themselves, their humility and gratitude prevents confidence from turning to arrogance.
Leaders, understand your success is not just about you. Humility and gratitude are your protection against arrogance.
Tags: Arrogance, Coaching, Confidence, Excellence, Executive Coaching, Fame, Humility, Leadership, Power, Success