Leading with Humility

Rob Nielsen, Jennifer A. Marrone, Holly S. Ferraro

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN:
  9780415807227
• eBook ISBN:
  9781136494048
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Psychology

The media is saturated with images of leaders as powerful, headstrong individuals, who are certain of their position and willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their organizational goals or personal ambitions. In reality, far too often, a leader's ego gets in the way of sound decision making, adversely affecting the organization and the individuals involved.

This insightful book, based on cutting edge research, advances a new model for understanding effective leadership. Nielsen, Marrone and Ferraro advocate the idea of leading with humility, a trait that is rarely discussed and frequently misunderstood. Humble leaders consider their own strengths, weaknesses and motives in making decisions, demonstrating concern for the common good, and exercising their influence for the benefit of all.

Leading with Humility offers students and leaders clarity in understanding the connection between leadership and humility, and teaches them how to enhance their own abilities to become better leaders.

PART I

Introduction

1

HUMILITY AND LEADERSHIP

Why So Many People Are Calling for It Today

A leader is always first in line during times of criticism and last in line during times of recognition.

Orrin Woodward, founder of Amway

Find the Humble Leader

Let’s start by asking maybe the toughest non-rhetorical question in the entire book here at the beginning. Which of the following leaders would you consider to be humble? Jesus, Kim Jong-il (the late supreme leader of North Korea), Tony Hayward (former BP CEO), John Wooden (the late UCLA basketball coach), Margaret Thatcher (the late former British Prime Minister), Mahatma Gandhi (leader of the Indian independence movement). Do you think everyone could agree that even one of these people is humble? We doubt it and our doubt is not borne from cynicism, but from experience. We’ve been researching humility for nearly a decade. Over that time, we’ve found that people can make a case that just about anyone who ever lived wasn’t always humble. We’ve come to accept this fact and continue writing about humility in leadership because it’s a fascinating topic and the inclusion of humility in the discourse on leadership has great potential for making a difference in the lives of organizational leaders.

Demonstrating Humility

Humility is expressed through action. It is something someone does. Yet, it begins with one’s thinking. People demonstrate humility in their interactions with others when they have perspective about themselves, their roles in relationships with others, and their place in the larger scheme of things. It can come through in one’s dealings with direct reports, with clients, with friends and family, and even with the grocery store clerk. Not everybody has or acts with humility and that’s fine. Even people who demonstrate humility don’t always behave with it in every situation. As you read through the chapters you will see that we cover humility from a lot of different angles and while many of those describe humility as a quality, humility ultimately comes through as a behavior.

Who We Have Written This Book for

More so now than ever, people are writing and talking about humility. What is it? What does it mean to be humble? Is humility a good thing to have or to show? Are leaders more effective with humility? As the world grows more connected and people are exposed to different cultures and ideologies, people are experiencing and experimenting with different ways of leading. Leading with humility is one of the most intriguing, albeit somewhat counterintuitive, forms of leadership being embraced. To help guide and nurture the discussion, we have written Leading with Humility.

We have written this book for people who are intrigued by humility, but don’t understand it and really don’t understand what it looks like when it comes to leading. This book is for aspiring leaders, leaders who still think they have room to grow, and for leadership scholars. And while this book provides for a more thorough understanding of humility, how it is enacted, and suggestions for how to cultivate it in individuals, the conversation regarding humility and leadership is in its infancy. Much more will be revealed as leaders recognize the role humility has in leadership and academics continue to build the body of research on humility and leadership. The basic text of Alcoholics Anonymous (1976) said it best: “Our book is meant to be suggestive only. We realize we know only a little” (p. 164). So let’s make it clear right now that we often fall far short of integrating humility into our daily lives and we’re not here to convert anyone into a humility zealot or to tell you it’s the one best way for you to lead. But, if you are currently a leader or plan on becoming a leader and want to know more about what humility is and how one can lead effectively with it, you have found the right book.

Related Emerging Theories and Writings on Leaders

Our book complements and, we hope, advances current scholarly and managerial thinking on leadership. Over the years, researchers have explored leadership with very different lenses. In most recent years, however, there has been strong focus on creating or developing positive leadership theories. Some of these emerging theories and studies conceptually lend support to the notion that humility is a desirable leadership quality, and they are gaining a lot of steam. Jim Collins (2001), for example, is credited with introducing the importance of leader humility in popular management literature, sparking more interest in theories such as authentic leadership and servant leadership in the scholarly circles of universities as well as in the managerial ranks of “real” organizations. Gaining the attention and respect of both PhDs and CEOs is no small feat.

So we think it’s worth spending some time highlighting this work right at the onset. We’ll briefly introduce you to four emerging theories below: level 5 leaders, authentic leadership, servant leadership, and spiritual leadership. Each, in its own way, demonstrates the importance of a different kind of leadership than has been promulgated in the past—leaders who strive to see a “bigger” picture for the long term, be true to themselves, and positively relate to others.

Level 5 Leaders

In his bestselling book, Good to Great, and related articles, Collins (2001) researched over 1,400 of the largest companies and found that only 11 achieved exceptional financial performance for 15 years after a major time of change. These 11 companies each had a level 5 leader. Collins’ levels each describe a different type of effective leader, with the first level capturing highly capable individuals with good working habits. Level 5 leaders blend professional resolve with personal humility. The humility of a level 5 leader manifests itself by the leader acting quietly, calmly, and determinedly. When successful, level 5 leaders give credit to others, the environment, and luck—as opposed to themselves. However, they shoulder the blame when the company fails to meet expectations. Collins is less sure that Level 5 leadership can be developed and suggests that some have a level 5 seed while others don’t.

Authentic Leadership

Authentic leadership has recently received much attention from practitioners and academics. Authentic leaders are consistent in leading from their values and are genuine in their relationships with others (George, 2003; Yukl, 2013). In his book on the topic of authentic leadership, the highly regarded former CEO of Medtronic, William George (2003), describes the five key dimensions of authentic leadership: purpose, values, relationships, self-discipline, and heart. He prescribes authentic leadership as the antidote to the celebrity CEO. Research has found that employee perceptions of authentic leadership are a strong predictor of employee job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and workplace happiness (Jensen & Luthans, 2006). Authentic leadership is also positively related to follower performance (Hannah, Avolio, & Walumbwa, 2010, as cited in Avolio & Mhatre, 2012) and predicts organizational citizenship behaviors (i.e., actions outside of an employee’s job description that benefit the organization) (Walumbwa, Avolio, Gardner, Wernsing, & Peterson, 2008).

FIGURE 1.1 Jim Collins’ Good to Great level 5 hierarchy

Source: Good to Great. Copyright © 2001 by Jim Collins. Reprinted with permission from Jim Collins.

Servant Leadership

Robert K. Greenleaf retired from AT&T as the director of management research in 1964. Six years later, he published an article, “The Servant as Leader” (reproduced in Greenleaf, 1991). Servant leadership theory proposes that servant leaders have a duty to meet the needs of others first and their primary purpose is to help followers grow. Greenleaf distinguished between people who are servants first versus those who are leaders first. According to Greenleaf (1991), the choice to serve first aspires one to lead. These leaders put the interests of followers ahead of their own (Bass & Bass, 2008). These types of leaders also take a holistic approach to work, promote a sense of community among followers, and share power in decision making responsibilities (Spears, 1996). They are service oriented and directed by what their organization and followers need. Despite its intuitive appeal, there is less empirical research on servant leadership theory than on many other leadership theories. However, the existing research suggests that for followers, servant leadership strengthens goals related to growth, pursuing ideals, and seeking opportunities to achieve aspirations. Servant leadership is also positively related to team effectiveness (van Dierendonck, 2011). Interestingly, several measurement instruments that have been developed to identify servant leadership indicate that humility is a key component (van Dierendonck, 2011).

Spiritual Leadership

Finally, spiritual leadership is another theory that has recently picked-up in research interest from academics. Fry (2003) suggests that spiritual leaders create a vision for members of an organization to experience a sense of calling in that their life has meaning and makes a difference. Spiritual leaders also establish an organizational culture of altruistic love in which leaders and followers demonstrate care, concern, and appreciation for themselves and others (Fry, 2003). Research on spiritual leadership has found a significant positive correlation between employee life satisfaction, organizational commitment, productivity, and sales growth (Fry, 2003). More broadly, the concept of leading with spiritual based values has been researched and findings have suggested that the values can increase commitment, teamwork, sense of service, and personal growth (Milliman & Neck, 1994, as cited in Bass & Bass, 2008). In developing the theory, Fry (2003) suggested that spiritual leaders demonstrate humility by being of service to others.

What these emerging theories tell us is that people may want something different from their leaders than what the media and others promote as celebrity leadership. Leadership has a profound amount of influence on the world and in the development of others. These theories have recently flourished because people recognize how important good leaders are to the community. The increasingly diverse workforce and various stakeholders are demanding a new kind of leadership, one in which leaders relate to their followers. People want more from their leaders. They want leaders who care about their employees—both in terms of their development and their work product. They want leaders who care about the community and demonstrate it by reinvesting in the community. They want leaders who realize they have a responsibility to the future—in terms of sustainable business practices and eliminating waste. We believe leading with humility may be one way that leaders can achieve such positive influence.

Section and Chapter Overview

Part I: Our introduction sets the context needed for readers eager to explore leading with humility. The goal in the opening of this chapter was to get you thinking about humility and how challenging it is to associate humility with a specific person. We also sought to introduce you to several emerging leadership theories that suggest the need for new models of leadership.

These recent theories suggest the field of leadership research is growing and argue for the importance of morally upstanding leaders who support followers rather than solely focusing on maximizing the leader’s own output. In Chapter 2, “Rethinking (Your) Leadership,” we encourage readers to rethink traditional notions of leadership and to begin reflecting on their own leadership and humility.

In Chapter 3, the first chapter of Part II, we define humility. In the process, we cover humility’s historical and etymological roots. We also juxtapose dictionary definitions of humility with definitions that are developing from academic research on the subject. Chapter 4 covers the first of three components that make up the definition of humility: Understanding yourself. In this chapter, we discuss self-awareness and the importance of understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses. We also provide an overview of some of the most well-known biases that threaten self-awareness. Chapter 5 discusses the second component of humility, relating to others. There we describe different identity orientations and unpack the specific levels through which we relate to one another: cognition, affect, and behavior. The third and final main component of humility, perspective, is described in Chapter 6 where we dive deeply into the concept of perspective taking and outline its importance in exercising humility. We also discuss the developmental stages of perspective taking that evolve over one’s lifetime.

In Part III of the book, we focus on practical applications of humility for leaders. Chapter 7, “Everyday Leadership,” offers five behaviors for leaders to act more humbly and discusses what it means to have followers attribute humility to leaders. “Why Humility Matters: Empowering Followers” is the eighth chapter and there we discuss how leading with humility may uniquely empower followers and why this is important. Chapter 9 adds to the application section by encouraging readers to cultivate humble leadership and provides several concrete exercises that leaders can start practicing immediately. Finally, in Chapter 10, we conclude by calling on all leaders to embark on their journey toward humble leadership despite the obstacles that might arise.

As this first chapter comes to a close, keep in mind that this book is largely academic in nature. Although we certainly expect you will grow from reading it, it’s not a self-help book, or a “how to” course, and it doesn’t have a ten step action plan to transform your life. However, over the course of the chapters that follow we ask you often to reflect on difficult questions regarding leadership and humility. We define humility and delve deeply into each one of its core components. We talk about how humility is applied in everyday leadership situations and with followers. Interspersed throughout the book, there are case studies of different leaders who have demonstrated humility at various points in their life. The Appendix also includes an assessment tool for evaluating humility. Overall, our goal is to provide an in-depth and, at the same time, accessible look at what it means to lead with humility.

Closing Thoughts

Emerging (and increasingly popular) theories of leadership such as authentic, servant, and level 5 leadership suggest that people are interested in understanding more about humility. However, very few authors have attempted to articulate what humility means and why it is so important to good leadership. Our aim in writing this book is to make the connection between humility and leadership clearer. Let’s begin by questioning traditional notions of leadership and reflecting on how you practice leadership.

2

RETHINKING (YOUR) LEADERSHIP

There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.

Ernest Hemingway, author and journalist

Overview

Before the book delves into the research regarding humility and leadership, we believe it is important for you to take the opportunity to reflect on your thoughts about leadership and leading with humility. This chapter will ask you to rethink traditional notions of leadership, reflect on your own leadership style and your ideas about humility, and consider the importance of empowering followers, advancing shared goals, and leading for a common good. The reason for this is simple: research has shown that leaders who develop inspiring visions with followers produce long-lasting and sustainable results (Yukl, Seifert, & Chavez, 2008; Yukl, 2006). This requires considerable time and effort on the part of the leader. Leadership—whether enacted with short-term or long-term impact in mind, for the betterment or not of followers, or to advance the personal goals of the leader or the collective good of a community—is, at the end of the day, still very hard work. If leading for the short term or long term both require considerable efforts, then why not choose to exert that effort toward leading in a manner that ultimately produces sustainable and impactful results? Why not choose to lead in a way that listens to and advances the interests of the collective, that seeks to achieve a common good for all involved rather than pushing ahead individual or even organizational interests?

One reason is simply because many leaders do not yet know how to lead in this way. Organizational training on leadership, when made available, frequently focuses its content on more traditional (and even outdated) notions of leadership. Poor training coupled with the pressures of organizational life that focus one’s attention on predetermined goals that must be achieved within tight timeframes, can make it surprisingly difficult to lead to...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Half Title
• Contents
• List of Figures and Tables
• Acknowledgments
• Part I Introduction
• Part II Humility
• Part III Application
• Appendix: Diagnostic Survey for Humility
• References
• Index