Humility

Humility is not a virtue that past generations would have naturally associated with leadership, or even wanted their leaders to possess, but a recent Harvard Business Review post included it in its list of qualities that help shape an “inclusive” leader. It went on to suggest that leaders who wish to develop their inclusiveness should be “modest about their capabilities, admit mistakes and create the space for others to contribute”. This is not a list of requirements that political leaders would necessarily recognise as being helpful, but it does clearly demonstrate how the philosophy and practice of organisational leadership is developing to reflect changes in society, in working structures and relationships.

As it is understood today, humility still has the associations of meekness and self-abasement which come from its past as one of the great virtues of the early Christian Church, the counter to Pride, one of the Seven Deadly Sins. 

But a look at its origin, far back beyond Christianity, can give us extra dimensions to value. The Latin from which our word is derived is “humilitas”, itself derived from “humus”, meaning “earth” or “ground” – a root it shares with “human”. The 9th century monks who translated the traditional Latin into Old English for better understanding gave us “earthiness” for “humilitas”. 

A reflection on the virtue of humility might remind us all, whether leaders or led, that now, more than ever before in a world that is changing so rapidly, we need to have both feet planted firmly on the earth, to be “grounded”, and that we share a common humanity.