Humility and Credibility
I am currently reading a book that was written over 25 years ago: In Search of Excellence, by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman Jr. Tom and Robert share some findings from a psychological study that really made me think. In the study, a random sample of male adults were asked to rank themselves on “the ability to get along with others”. All the subjects put themselves in the top half of the population. Sixty per cent rated themselves in the top 10 percent of the population, and a full 25 percent ever so humbly thought they were in the top 1 percent of the population.
In a parallel finding, 70 percent rated themselves in the top quartile in leadership; only 2 percent felt they were below average as leaders. At least 60 percent said they were in the top quartile of athletic ability; only 6 percent said they were below average.
The truth is that we all think we are tops. Thinking of ourselves as winners is awesome. It shapes our perspective. However, it is also important to have an honest view of ourselves. That is the key to credibility. Being humble should not mean that we see ourselves as less of who we really are. Be humble and people will see you as very credible.
