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| Rule #13 is a reminder to be HUMBLE & REVERENT |
Always remember that my own best efforts are insufficient to help me become all I am capable of becoming. I desperately need continual help from others and the omnipotent Power and Grace of the Almighty [SERENDIPITY for secularists] to fully engage the utmost existential transmutation of my body, mind, and spirit.
Rule #13 is a reminder that no matter how wealthy, talented, skilled, fortunate, endowed, or lucky you might be, we all need the help of others to maximize our potential and be successful in our lives and careers. Rule #13 is also designed to help us remember that SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP—powerful as it is—remains an insufficient resource by itself to get us where we ultimately want to go and what we most want to become in our lives and careers.
This fact is very humbling because self-action leaders are inherently driven, motivated, and ambitious people; they are self-starters in every sense of the phrase. They also place a premium on self-reliance. Nevertheless, as Stephen Covey so incisively taught, Interdependence is a much higher state of being and living than Independence.* To maximize their potential, even self-action leaders must recognize, acknowledge, and embrace this great TRUTH about personal and professional GROWTH.
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| John Donne 1572-1631 |
"No Man is an Island, entire of itself, every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away from the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a Promontory were, as well as if a Manor of thy friends, or of thine own were; Any Mans [sic] death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee."**
A fascinating phenomenon of life and growth that I have been experiencing and observing for many years now is as follows... the older I get, and the more educated and experienced I become, the more I realize how much I don't know.
"The more you know, the more you realize how much you don't know!"
This recognition of my own relative ignorance is the seedbed of authentic humility. Similarly, the more capable I become in my own niche skill set, the more keenly I become aware of the manifold skill sets that exist which I do not yet possess. Likewise, the bigger my own family and career roles become, the more I come to recognize the infinitesimal minuteness of my own self and contributions to the world.
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| Truth is usually Paradoxical |
Thus, we are confronted with a paradox—which we usually are when dealing with any tenet of truth—and the paradox is this: while each of us holds an infinitesimally small place in the world and universe, each of us nonetheless holds limitless potential for individual progress, growth, and contribution to the whole.
Try to wrap your mind around that marvelous PARADOX!
Moreover, I would suggest that the only way to fully maximize your personal progress, growth, and contribution is to accurately comprehend your relative nothingness. In other words, a self-action leader's humble recognition and contrite acknowledgement of one's own smallness paves the way for one's steady increase in influence, impact, and contribution. Thus, you'll never know how much you can accomplish until you recognize how much you cannot accomplish, and you'll never know how BIG you can become until you recognize and acknowledge how small you currently are. Perhaps that sounds like a concatenation of contradictions; that's because on its face, it is... hence the paradox!
What does it mean to be authentically humble?
Many people mistake outward displays of modesty with authentic inward states of humility. While modest behavior is undoubtedly a natural outgrowth of authentic humility, the two practices are not always mutually inclusive. In other words, it is possible to behave very modestly and still be quite prideful—prideful of your own supposed humility (or modest behavior) and a variety of other narcissistic-influenced states of mind.
It is also possible to be quite humble while exhibiting a strength and confidence that some might erringly misinterpret as arrogance. In fact, there are even times when the humblest thing you can possibly do is exercise the very kind of confidence and strength that may be misinterpreted (by some) as arrogance.
It is vital to remember that being humble has nothing to do with pretending you are not as good, smart, or gifted as you really are. Nor does it involve unnecessarily hiding your knowledge, talents, or skills so that you won't offend others. It has everything to do with maximizing the use of your knowledge, talents, and skills in kind, courteous, and respectful ways that build and encourage others to do the same.
What then is the secret to being authentically humble?
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| The purpose of SAL is to help YOU to see things more as they really were, are, and will be in your career, life, and the world at-large. |
Accomplishing this feat is a daunting challenge and difficult undertaking. It does not come fast or easy for even the most conscientious and dedicated self-action leaders.
Moreover, it is not a one-time accomplishment. Self-action leaders do not automatically become humble at some arbitrary point in time. Rather, they gradually develop greater levels of humility over long periods of time as they become increasingly knowledgeable, experienced, and self-aware. Part of this process occurs naturally through the course of daily living. But most of it comes as a result of one's conscious and intentional focus and effort to better see and then accept REALITY as it really was, is, and really will be. After all, how can you effectively change the future until you have fully accepted the reality of the past and present?
I still have a long way to go in terms of my own humility quotient. However, I've made enough progress in this area over the years to at least be able to detect genuine growth. This progress allows me to compare different periods of my own life and the humility (or lack thereof) that marked those periods.
For me personally, humility is an outgrowth of the closeness and strength of my relationship with Deity. For non-believers, there are other ways you can practice humility, such as continually reflecting upon your own weaknesses, shortcomings, and inadequacies—not to the extent of damaging your self-esteem, but simply as a wise reminder of the menagerie of vulnerabilities that we humans possess in our present state of being in this world, which is so obviously difficult, dangerous, and imperfect.
REMEMBER: Self-action leaders are NOT uninhibited optimists. They are optimistic REALISTS. But in order to be a positive realist, you must first be completely honest about any negative realities in your career or life. As Tony Robbins once put it, the goal is not to look at your garden and proclaim: "There are no weeds, there are no weeds, there are no weeds!" The goal is to identify the weeds in conjunction with the beauty—and then proactively invest the effort to remove the weeds.
I have found at least THREE (3) significant benefits to practicing REVERENCE & HUMILITY in my life and career.
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| Humility helps us with Pacing |
I am a very ambitious person.
I want to succeed.
I want to contribute.
I want to be influential and make a difference.
And I want to win.
Nevertheless, I am very aware that I am not Batman, Ironman, Superman, or Jesus. By lucidly recognizing, acknowledging, and making plenty of headspace for my many weaknesses, shortcomings, and vulnerabilities, I can achieve an effective balance in my approach to my life and work that allows me to accomplish great (albeit realistic) things while avoiding preventable mistakes, sins, and failures along the way. And perhaps most importantly, it empowers me to enjoy the journey and find happiness, contentment, and inner peace along the way. This makes me a very RICH man, since, as Benjamin Franklin so aptly put it: "Who is Rich? He who rejoiceth in his portion." Click HERE for Full Article on Life Riches.
"Who is Rich?
"He that rejoiceth in his portion."
—Benjamin Franklin
2. Humility helps me avoid preventable mistakes while learning from necessary, naturally-occurring mistakes.
Many mistakes are preventable and precautionary measures should be taken to circumvent them. Others are not; they are a necessary and inevitable part of gaining experience in the laboratory of real life. By practicing REVERENCE and HUMILITY, I am empowered to avoid preventable mistakes because I am continually reminding myself of my own shortcomings and vulnerabilities. Moreover, when I do make a natural mistake as part of life's endless experiments, I can recover quickly because of my self-awareness of my own fallibility and my recognition that individual mistakes are an inevitable—and important—part of the process. This recognition empowers me to learn from my mistakes rather than being defined and/or labeled by them. Just as importantly, it erodes my fear of failure and empowers me to ambitiously seek after things I otherwise would avoid were I paralyzed by the fear of making a mistake.
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| Laws of Attraction govern many of the dynamics of human relationships both at home and work. |
One of the most important laws of the Universe that self-action leaders must understand is the Law of Attraction. It's a pretty basic law. It states that similar things—and people with similar desires—are naturally attracted to each other.
This is a beautiful concept to self-action leaders because they understand its potential power in their lives and careers.
I love being around other people who are authentically humble and reverent. They are not only easy and pleasant to be around, but so inspiring as well!
If you want a different (better) result, relationship, or series of events in your life, YOU must attract it by virtue of your own willingness to CHANGE. As Gandhi put it, "YOU must be the CHANGE you wish to see in the world." By changing yourself, you begin the process of naturally attracting the things (and people) you most want to be a part of your life. In the inspired words of Jim Rohn: "Your life does not get better by chance; it gets better by CHANGE."
"Your life does not get better by chance.
It gets better by CHANGE."
—Jim Rohn
And CHANGE and GROWTH are what Self-Action Leadership are all about. So... are YOU humble enough to recognize your own needs for change and brave enough to do whatever is required to initiate real change in your life and career?
Tune in NEXT Wednesday for a special celebratory blog post commemorating our 250th published Blog Article. Included will be links to some of the most popular posts published since November 2013.
NOTE: This article is the 15th in a series of 22 articles on the subject of LIFE RULES.
Click HERE to access quick links to the other 21 articles.
—Dr. JJ
Author's Note: This is the 249th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013.
Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 248 FF Blog Articles.
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Tune in NEXT Wednesday for another article on a Self-Action Leadership related topic.
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