Leadership is often confused with people with an high Ego. On the contrary humbleness is the first sign of great leadership. Take people like Ratan Tata, Azim Premji, Narayan Murthy, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and the list goes on.
People with high ego are like fragile items, they can get hurt anytime by anyone. Small things like a waiter delaying the order or a colleague not greeting them can also hurt their fragile ego, they lose control over their emotions very quickly.
Leaders have an unbreakable spirit due to which they are emotionally strong and in control, irrelevant of life conditions and people’s behaviors around them.
Here are some behavioral qualities that you can practice to be practice humble leadership rather than having a fragile ego:
- Respect everyone, no-one is smaller than you. Everyone is worthy of respect, Mother Teressa practiced this
- Remember that ‘You don’t have all the answers, keep learning’ Olympic Winners are always students
- Listen to criticism with an open mind and respect your critic for being honest, Steve Jobs did this in all his presentations
- Reflect on your decisions and be willing to say ‘I am wrong’ Presidents of countries practice this
- Speak with humbleness even though you are the best, Amitabh Bachchan is a great example of this
- Give Credit to others when you work in a team, Ratan Tata always does this his team
- Don’t preach what you don’t practice, Gandhiji was well known for practicing this
A Rainbow has seven colors and I am leaving you with seven colors of humbleness today, do practice them and inspire humble leadership by being a role model. Will you?
Mitesh Khatri
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