Humility is a Gateway to Wisdom

In addition to genuine humility, the mentors I’ve learned the most from over the last three decades have all been intentional about learning everything they possibly can from others. To that end, their humility serves them as a gateway to the wisdom they’ve been able to pass on to me and so many others. During a recent visit with a few friends at their place of business, I asked them how they worked to model their organization’s core values daily - a very relevant question since Cindy and I had spent much of the day prior working with that company’s executive team around the importance of The Values Advantage. The location manager, without hesitation, detailed how he sees his coworker (who actually reports to him) live out their core values daily. He went on to say how much he had learned from her since accepting his role. As thrilled as I was to receive that response, I’m pretty sure there was one person in that conversation who appreciated it more than me. The most influential mentors in my life have not only displayed consistent humility, they’ve been very open in their willingness to learn from everyone around them! That always solidified the trust I had in them, and it clearly added to the trust the lady in that office had in her manager.

Earlier, I referenced how open I’ve heard John Maxwell be about his own weaknesses, and how he’s worked to surround himself with people who support him in those areas. That humility amazes me to this day. As one of the most influential leadership gurus on the planet today, I’ve never seen John display the slightest bit of arrogance. Make no mistake though, he’s extremely confident in his areas of strength. People too commonly believe confidence and humility can’t coexist. Humble leaders don’t think less of themselves, they just think of themselves less - focusing more on the people they’re responsible for serving and the opportunities they have to learn from everyone around them.

Having spent more time with John than anyone else in the world over the last twenty-five-plus years, possibly even more than John’s wife or kids, should it come as any surprise that Mark Cole mirrors that quality of humility (and many of John’s other traits)? After Mark provided the closing keynote at our first LeadershipLegacy Experience in June 2024, a friend who had never heard him speak mentioned how Mark’s presentation style and mannerisms closely resembled John. I mean, duh… I have a solid friendship with Rod’s (my former HR manager) son. It’s often like seeing a younger carbon copy; tone, body language, everything. I’ll bet you can think of plenty of your own examples too… Even more than his speaking style and mannerisms, I’ve seen Mark replicate John’s intentionality for actively learning from anyone he interacts with. 

Mark obviously learns from John and through his work, he has opportunities to learn from some of the most powerful leaders around the world. He’s also built a core team around him within Maxwell Leadership. But more impressive than any of that, I can’t point to a single time he and I have talked one-on-one when he hasn’t asked me very specific questions about issues he’s working through that he knew I had experience in. Two of those have been tied to decisions he was facing that would impact people around that world as well as how the entire Maxwell brand was viewed. The details around either are irrelevant here, but the fact that he took the time to get input from someone like me - especially considering the people he rubs elbows with daily - emphasizes how having the humility to learn from others can serve any of us in being a gateway to wisdom.

Seeing Mark’s spirit of humility has been the primary reason Cindy and I have worked so hard to build our friendship with him over the last decade. Watching how he works to learn from everyone around him explains why John chose him to carry the Maxwell legacy. That said, Mark is definitely the exception. Far too many people in roles as influential as his are pulled more toward arrogance than the humble confidence I referenced before. Unless they overcome that ego, they’re unlikely to truly embrace collaboration - and we’ll pick up there soon.