“Though the virtue of humility is occasionally praised in some faraway tribe, remote religious order, or politician’s rural birthplace, the reality of our fame-addled and power hungry existence today means that arrogance is rewarded and humility is ignored,” writes author David Bobb. It is a fact that many people believe that the humble are shy wimps, and that only egotistical jerks are able to succeed in business.

Despite the abundance of arrogance in every arena of life, humility has recently made a surprise comeback as a sought-after virtue in business. For example, a recent article in the Journal of Business Ethics argued that “an excellent manager can and must be an ethical and, therefore, a humble manager. And this by no means implies any obstacle to her human and professional flourishing, her success within the firm or her reputation in society. In fact, quite the opposite: the humble leader is precisely the person who is best qualified to transform his firm into a profitable, successful, and respected organization.”

The Wall Street Journal also recently reported that humility is becoming the “flavor du jour” among executives in large companies. After some poor financial performance, Proctor & Gamble’s CEO A. G. Lafley faced the company’s investors with a humble tone, shouldering the responsibility and assuring them that his successor will do better. Boards are also increasingly looking for humble leaders. When Krispy Kreme Doughnuts was looking for a CEO, the main trait it identified was that of a humble servant leader. The job went to Tony Thompson, who “exhibited those two characteristics strongly.” Similarly, humility is what Google is looking for in its new hires. “Your end goal is what can we do together to problem-solve. I’ve contributed my piece, and then I step back. [It’s about] intellectual humility. Without humility, you are unable to learn,” says Lazlo Bock, Google’s senior vice president of people operations.

What does humble leadership actually mean? The five main foundations of humility as it applies to business include:

• Authenticity
• Teachability
• Transparency
• Humaneness
• Interdependence

Humble authentic leaders confess to their followers that they make mistakes, and ask for their patience. They demonstrate their teachability by admitting openly that they are wrong and asking for forgiveness when mishaps happen. They are transparent in acknowledging it when they don’t know something, and they constantly ask their team members for their ideas. They show their humaneness by accepting that they can’t do everything and that they need all their followers’ talents to achieve their goals. And finally, they exhibit interdependence by stressing that they are there for a larger purpose and not for themselves.

Humility in leadership is not, like some people might imagine, weakness, lack of self-confidence, low self-esteem, lack of assertiveness or lack of ambition. On the opposite, humble leaders are ambitious, strong, self-confident and fiercely determined. They are also highly effective. A recent Harvard Business Review article confirms this: “The research is clear: when we choose humble, unassuming people as our leaders, the world around us becomes a better place. Humble leaders improve the performance of a company in the long run because they create more collaborative environments. They have a balanced view of themselves – both their virtues and shortcomings – and a strong appreciation of others’ strengths and contributions, while being open to new ideas and feedback. These “unsung heroes” help their believers to build their self-esteem, go beyond their expectations, and create a community that channels individual efforts into an organized group that works for the good of the collective.”

Putting it All Together

Effective leaders are authentic, teachable, transparent, humane and interdependent. They are admired for their humility and are respected for their ambition. They are humbitious.

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Dr. Amer Kaissi is a Professional Speaker, Executive Coach and an expert on Leadership, Humility & Ambition, Assuming Positive Intent, Psychological Safety & Accountability, Growth Mindsets & Resilience.