When the knees are not often bent, the feet soon slide. Anon
Humility is a great virtue and even the most egoist person would have to bend his knees to offer his / her prayers to the almighty. Often there are times when we have to bow down to other forms of authority and as many a business man has realized ‘customer is king’ and ‘customer relations’ the mantra that brings even the biggest business man to his knees. The finicky movie business demonstrates it best when we see the lead actors and actresses forced to make public appearances to promote their latest movie simply because there is no guarantee of success and connecting with the audience is mandatory.
Being humble is a sure shot way to connect with reality. The fact is no one can achieve anything all on his/ her own. You have family and friends to thank for their implicit faith and trust in you, colleagues and associates for their part in supporting your endeavors, your competitors and critics for keeping you on your toes and making you competitive and there is the world at large who is the reason you become someone. Failures are inevitable but they reinforce the reality that you are vulnerable and that is a sobering thought that keeps you grounded. Your mistakes force you to apologize and that is a humbling experience and an ego buster.
Humility is an excellent ego monitor. While ego propels people into venturing into unchartered waters, success pumps the ego and one can tend to be over bloated with pride and arrogance. Humility comes as an antidote to such crass and crude mentality. Dynasties and kingdoms have met their Waterloo not because of social revolution as much as because of the lack of humility that blinded the power hungry to the reality of a changing world order. The days of monopoly business are over partly because of the technological revolution but in large measure due to a brash management cozy in their ivory towers blissfully ignorant of their own inadequacies and bashfully brushing aside the any suggestion that competition is heating up.
Networking and connections are best established if one is humble. The lowest to the highest person in society can connect with a person who is perceived as humble. Humility empowers a person to be open, free and frank, virtues that immediately attract others to ones aid. The remarkable achievements of social activists, local level leaders, visionary citizens and the like can be traced to the fact that almost all of them is humble enough to go to the people with their pleas and get the necessary resources from the very people whom they want to serve. Rich or poor if a person requires to ensure the availability of fresh blood for a surgery to be undergone, it is the network and connections that will come in handy more than money and power. Humility will be the one virtue that ensures people connect with your need and go out of their way to help.
Remember: “To be humble to superiors is duty, to equals courtesy, to inferiors nobleness.”Benjamin Franklin
Try this:
- Reflect on the 3 individuals for whom you have a very high regard. Ask yourself if their Humility is one of the virtues that influenced your appreciation of them?
- On Good Friday, the Pope washes the feet of 12 people who represent the disciples. It is one of the most public display of humility. Do you recollect any such similar incidents or events that you have come across?
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