Suddenly, we find ourselves in a world that is at each other’s throats. And there is no shortage of reasons and people to blame for all the unrest we are seeing.
When you take a closer look, this really shouldn’t surprise any of us. What else could be we expect from a society that places a premium on overconfidence and entitlement? The ego will always reign supreme under conditions like this.
It seems that every solution that is offered to stop social unrest comes with a threat or conditions that require submission from someone.
Since all these different narratives are fueled by egos, shouldn’t we look for ways to dial back those egos?
The polar opposite of ego is humility. We could consider humility as the opposite of an inflated ego.
5 Ways We Benefit from Humility
Humility has a way of changing your mindset. It can shed light on what matters.
Increase in Tolerance
The first thing that must be done during heated confrontations is to remove the emotional element. Yelling and screaming at one another rarely accomplishes anything.
And when rioting and violence come into play, the parties who felt aggrieved has just removed the real issue out of the conversation. This is because riots become the issue — and the original issue is forgotten.
When we have authentic humility, our tolerance level goes up. We are willing to stand calm when others are still emotional. Calmness is the only way to diffuse hostility.
We find that if we are patient, the other party will increase their tolerance as well. This is when real solutions can be discovered.
Increase in Compassion
Compassion comes from the heart. And it takes humility to demonstrate real empathy for those who fiercely disagree with your position.
Yes, this is an act of submission, but it is done for the common good. We must submit to become humble in the face of our enemies, and we must truly care for their well-being. This is true compassion.
Compassion is the basis for real progress and it can move mountains.
More Self-Control
Self-control is a trait that will benefit each of us daily, but for resolving conflicts, it is invaluable. Self-control is a huge benefit of being humble.
When you are humble, your emotional response becomes less important, and you realize that emotions will not serve you well under these conditions.
The real test comes when emotional outbursts are taking place all around you. Can you stay composed and level-headed?
The Higher State of Learning
Socrates once said that “The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing”.
This essentially means that the more humble you are, the more new knowledge you are prepared to receive.
We have seen this principle at work in our daily life. Think back to someone you know who thought they knew it all. Were they willing to learn anything from you?
Never forget that knowledge can be learned rapidly, but it takes years to learn wisdom. Humility is a subset of wisdom. Look around you, the wisest people in our society are usually quite humble as well.
Exhibits Leadership
Believe it or not, when you can remain humble in the face of extreme conflict, you are tremendously admired by others. This is because you are demonstrating that you have character and are devoted to your beliefs. Even your enemies will admire these qualities.
Think about it. When you demonstrate self-control, wisdom, tolerance, and compassion, you are viewed as a leader. People will want to listen to you because you are behaving differently than everyone else.
When others want to hear what you have to say, then you can resolve conflict. This is what true leadership is all about.
Our society needs real leaders — not another person who “claims” to be a leader. Those trying to convince us that they are leaders are phonies — they have no humility.
