A quality you must look for when selecting a strong leader

Posted: November 26, 2014 | Categories: Leadership, Management

Humility:  “To refrain from boasting.  To minimize personal accomplishments in favor of building others” (Webster’s definition)

Put yourself in this scene:  You are interviewing someone for a key leadership position in your company.  The person you are interviewing is poised, confident,  and articulate.  When you ask a question, they are sure-footed and think quickly on their feet.  Everything looks and sounds good, but in the back of your mind something doesn’t feel right.  In spite of this “bad vibe” you hire the person anyway because you are anxious to fill the position.  What happens when we ignore that “little voice”?  It usually ends up being a disaster.

Once upon a time there were two brothers who started a company.  They had a dream and they went for it.  Even though these two brothers had vastly different personalities, they shared the same values and vision, and they went for their slice of the “American dream” They hired good people and treated them well.  The employees reciprocated by doing their best and being loyal.  Within a few years, the company was a huge success.

About 15 years later, the two brothers decided to ease into retirement and hire a new leader they could count on to fill their shoes.  As in the scenario described above, they hired someone who was poised, confident, and quick on their feet.  They have him the keys and backed away.

One day about three years later, the brothers learned some startling news; Their once cash-rich company was on the verge of bankruptcy.  Their slick CEO had expanded the business beyond its ability to manage.  Because he was not one to admit failure, he kept the bad information from them until he was no longer able to cover things up.

This story has a happy ending.  Most of the loyal employees had stayed, and the company eventually rebounded.

None of us would want to go through what these two fellows did.  Here is the hard lesson:  When you are hiring someone for an important position, ask this humbling question:

What are the biggest mistakes you made in your previous job and what are your greatest weaknesses?  Listen and observe how the candidate answers this question.  If they don’t pass the humble test, pass on hiring them!