Education & Work Leaders, does your team want you to be Humble?

Read this on a management forum:

Should leaders be humble? We often say yes, leaders should display humility — but there is no shortage of people who have risen to the top of an organization without it. Why the disparity? Research finds that it has to do with what team members expect. If employees prize egalitarianism, a leader who shows humility can promote creativity and open communication. On hierarchical teams, however, employees are likely to expect their leader to take charge and make important decisions. In these circumstances, humility can look like weakness or indecisiveness. In fact, a humble leader can cause these employees to feel psychologically unsafe, making them hesitate to take risks and speak up. This doesn’t mean a leader shouldn’t display humility at all; rather, it’s important to balance authority and humility. Pay attention to the values your team holds and adjust your behavior accordingly.

by Jia Hu from “When Being a Humble Leader Backfires,”

 

You have to be humble to properly listen and get an accurate picture of how things are going. Humility is key to learning new things. Ray Dalio, the most successful hedge fund investor of all time, rates humility as one of the three most important leadership traits. Agree that there has to be some balance as subordinates can't completely take over but it's very important to be humble enough to change your mind if it results in a better outcome for the mission. Choosing what's best for the team and not necessarily going with your first idea because you listen will empower subordinates and build trust as now they know you care more about the team and mission than your ego. Humility probably carries more weight in a country like Australia than in say USA (e.g. the Donald )

 

Don't have to be humble to rise to the top...but if you want to be effective at the top..yes..very likely have to be humble.
Example would be trump- good example of using a sledgehammer style management with no humility and look at his results...
The reason why it's necessary once at the top is similar to the reason why it's necessary even at the bottom or at any level...effectively working with others to achieve the goal..as they say, no man is an island...

 

True that

The question is 'is Leadership decisiveness at a cross-road with Humility'
Let's take the example of our Qantas CEO.
Alan Joyce, On 29 Oct 2011, grounded the entire Qantas mainline fleet, as a result of continuing industrial unrest following the announcement of job losses and structural changes at Qantas.
A never been done corporate affair in the history of aviation in Australia or elsewhere. He was the most hated CEO. Australian media ate him up.

Only a year later was he named the most influential business leader.
And admired for his tenacity.

 

I think humility vs decisiveness is a false dichotomy. The opposite of humility is pride. The opposite of decisiveness is indecisiveness. You can make bold, decisive decisions with humility...

 

Correct..
However, it's easy to call the shots eg be decisive, make captains call etc...and let it go to your head...It takes quite a bit of self discipline for it not to.

 

For me, leaders needs people skills. The ability for them to see everything from their subordinates point of view. They need to have patience, and the ability to communicate well. They should take an interest in their subordinates lives.

Not be judgemental of their charges (Maybe if you are, that's fine but keep that to yourselves). Something that may be major to a individual might be really nothing to the leader (leader might have challenges 100x bigger). Don't make your employee feel small. Diplomacy.

Express your appreciation for a job well done. People like to be acknowledged.

Also (when time permits), if someone has a challenge and is struggling to find the solution, a good leader should allow their subordinates to find the answers for themselves. They should try to lead their charges in that direction - ask the right questions so the individual get find their way there.

If a manager/leader does all this then their charges are going to listen when something really needs to be said.

In terms of decision making, a good leader will listen. They won't always have all the answers. They should also be prepared to give challenges to their staff... you never know, your staff could be so much more competent than you realise but you need to give them the opportunity to rise and really show you what they are capable of. And as the manager it could make your own life so much better as everybody will be less reliant on you.

Finally... a sense of humour.
Makes life so much better.

 

True. Good post @Gockie .
But cannot, not share this it's too funny...
And another subtle sense of humour here...
Just what the BIG bosses share amongst themselves ei ???

 

I feel that these days, the new coup of leaders are short sighted and are really outcomes driven. I appreciate the fact that due to the increased competitive nature of the global market and increased business demands, it makes it difficult to invest the time and energy into staff,but I feel that the rewards with having staff members that are engaged and have the right attitude to do a good job is well worth the time spend.

 

First and foremost you need to be yourself and authentic.

The best leaders are those that are natural leaders.

If you are one of those natural leaders... then it's pretty easy... just be you.

 

Not sure I agree with your 80/20rule, but I like the rest. And I’m sure each business is different.

I like a ‘get out of the way approach’ of management. If my team know what to do, then let them get on and do it. However, if I need to intervene to get it done, something has failed (however in my line, that is often just pecieved positional power).

I’ve always said “it’s dangerous to believe everything you think”. If you do, you stop asking questions, stop listening, and stop challenging your own thoughts. You never know, you may just be wrong!
I want my team to have the confidence and comfort to speak up, and be heard. They may not get their way, but I will listen to their views.

We have a great team, and when in public most people would not be able to tell who is more senior in position. It’s a nice way to be.

Blacky

 

Be aware how you are seen by your team. There are things that good employees will not tell their manager unless they are very confident it'll be ok to do so. Many managers I met seem to think they are open to feedback and 'employee should have just talked to them', they are probably not as open as they think they are.

Humility ... use in interpersonal relation. Leadership function need decisiveness and clarity.