rabbijaffe

A few words about humilty:

A few times I have had the privilege of counseling people who were preparing themselves for a job interview. I would ask a question, and let them speak for a bit.

Inevitably I would have to tell them what I consider “job interview counterintuitive rule #1″:

There is no such thing as humility in a job interview.

If for even a moment you read and disagreed, or winced at the possibility that this might be true, please picture me grabbing your shoulders, shaking you and shouting:

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS HUMILITY IN A JOB INTERVIEW!!

You may not be dishonest, but you ARE the best person for this job. Here’s why…

And now you sell yourself.

As far as I’m concerned we get certain ideas imbedded in our heads, generally correct ideas, and then we mess ourselves up by not knowing when the idea is not applicable.

Humility, like all character traits, is not meant for every moment of our existences.

And here’s another truth in regards to humility about which many can easily err:

Humility should only be applied to oneself, and should NEVER be forced upon another.

Let’s make it practical, and applicable to the workplace:

Say you happen to be aware that Johnson cleaned up the conference room during his break, and now you happen to be there when someone walks in and says, “Wow, the room looks amazing.”

If you had cleaned it, there’s nothing wrong with saying, “Yeah. It sure is nice.” If you want to be humble and not take credit, be my guest.

But if Johnson did it, that would be unacceptable. You best be saying something like, “Yeah I know. Could you believe Johnson spent his whole break cleaning up the room? What a guy!”

I learned this rule the best way: By comtrasting my current employer with some of those of the past, who blew it big time on this principle. At the beginning of this year my boss ran an assembly, and every portion of the assembly had come from someone who sent him interesting movie clips. He assembled the best ones, put them in an organized manner, and presented them to the audience. For each and every clip he made sure to thank (by name) the individual who had sent him the clip, and at the end of the assembly he thanked all those who helped make it happen, severely downplaying his role.

At first I found it a little funny. Did I really need my name publicly mentioned? After all, it might have broken up the presentation and interfered with its flow. Plus, I feel no need for recognition.

But really I did, and really I do.

We all do. Even if we won’t admit it to ourselves, we all need to be recognized. There’s only so much one can take of working hard while another snatches all the glory.

The benefits of letting everyone under your employ be a hero, and be fully recognized for their contributions, are immeasurable.

An appreciated employee seeks to gain more appreciation.

An organization full of employees who feel recognized and appreciated is an unstoppable force. 

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