The biggest thing I am working on is situational humility. How do I successfully balance the subject matter expertise my organization needs with the humility to truly lead? It is clear that such humility is critical to building psychological safety, and psychological safety is critical to building innovative teams.
For most of my career I’ve been prized for my subject matter expertise, but there are huge limits, no one can know everything, so I am cultivating the following behaviors in my practices.
| To build Humility do this | Which means | And I do this |
| Know what you don’t know | Resist “master of the universe” impulses. You may yourself excel in an area, but as a leader you are, by definition, a generalist. Rely on those who have relevant qualification and expertise. Know when to defer and delegate. | I have a list of key topics that are both in my space and overlap and individuals who involving in the discussion is critical. I’ve created a “swear jar” for every time I say something like “I have an answer” and at this rate I’ll be taking a lot of people out for drinks by the time this pandemic is over. It is all IOUs right now because I don’t remember the last time I used cash and I don’t think I’ve seen a dollar bill in 11 months. |
| Resist falling for your own publicity | We all put the best spin on our success — and then conveniently forget that the reality wasn’t as flawless. | This is an interesting one for me. Having joined a new company 10 months ago it has been important to avoid the spin on my joining, and to not exacerbate it. I’ve taken to keeping a list of problems and who is the right people who are not me that can solve them. |
| Never underestimate others | The world is filled with other hard-working, knowledgable, and creative professionals | I purposely look for opportunities to meet with folks at all levels and ask them to collaborate. |
| Embrace and promote a spirit of service | Focus on finding ways to help others to succeed | I’m all about the development. Crucial for me here is stepping back and letting others lead, even if its more work for me as I spend more time coaching and mentoring than would actually take to do the job. But lets be honest, can’t and shouldn’t do anything. |
| Listen, even (no, especially) to the weird ideas | Only when you are not convinced that your idea is or will be better than someone else’s do you really open your ears to what they are saying. But there is ample evidence that you should: the most imaginative and valuable ideas tend to come from left field, from some associate who seems a little offbeat, and may not hold an exalted position in the organization. | I love the weird, though maybe most when they are my weird ideas. Been working to strengthen idea management as a concept and practice in my organization. |
| Be passionately curious | Constantly welcome and seek out new knowledge, and insist on curiosity from those around you. Research has found linkages between curiosity and many positive leadership attributes (including emotional and social intelligence). Take it from Einstein. “I have no special talent,” he claimed. “I am only passionately curious.” | I’m a voracious reading machine, its always been a central skill. How I am trying to teach others to be curious and turn it to their advantage. |
Investigations of a Dog 