Humility is Agile and Humble

*Note: The following text is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors.

Bill Berthel

Welcome to the Get Emergent podcast, where we discuss leadership, team, and organizational topics and best practices. We like to provide ideas, concepts, and pragmatic experiments to help you develop your potential in your work and leadership. I’m Bill Berthel.

Ralph Simone

And I’m Ralph Simone.

Bill Berthel

Ralph, today we’re going to talk about humility—specifically, how being agile is a form of humility. Being agile and humble.

Ralph Simone

I was intrigued by this title, and I’d like you to say more. First of all, I was a little concerned you picked it because maybe I wasn’t being as humble as I needed to be. But how would you differentiate between the two, and how are we putting them together?

Bill Berthel

This isn’t aimed at you, Ralph. This is a place to discuss not just humility, but also agility. Being agile is a great way of demonstrating humility. I think sometimes people avoid humility because they’re concerned it means they can’t fully participate. But it’s not that at all—it’s really about being agile enough to let others contribute at a high level too. It’s about making room for others.

Ralph Simone

I like that explanation. If you’re overly confident in your point of view, you often don’t make room for other people—or for yourself to learn something new.

Bill Berthel

Exactly. If we stick with the idea of agility, overconfidence can look rigid. It can look like we’re fixed or set—right? Not demonstrating humility. We’ve all been there—stuck in a fixed way or hyper-focused. Sometimes our work demands that.

I think of my son. He’s like a typical preteen. Sometimes his attention is all over the place. But when he’s doing something he loves or something really important, he enters a state of flow—he’s hyper-focused and locked in.

That’s a form of rigidness with purpose. So sometimes we need that kind of hyper-focus. I’m not suggesting we’re always agile—because that can look floppy or aloof. But we want to be agile in the right ways at the right times to demonstrate humility.

Ralph Simone

It occurs to me that there’s some unlearning that may need to happen for us to become more agile and humble.

Bill Berthel

I love that. Probably for many of us, yes. I think it was Maslow who said, “If all you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail.”

One reason we see everything as nails is because we’ve been successful—our hammer has worked. But sometimes we need to unlearn. Switching tools, switching our approach, changing our leadership style—those are all forms of agility and signs of humility in our work, leadership, and relationships.

Ralph Simone

Seems like agility gives us the opportunity to add more arrows to our quiver.

Bill Berthel

I love that—and knowing when to reach for a better arrow, too.

One form of agility we often talk about is strategic pauses. It’s being patient on purpose—not moving too fast. Impatience can look rigid and overconfident.

Ralph Simone

Let me put you on the spot. Are there situations where you feel you’re not agile or humble enough?

Bill Berthel

For me, it’s around time—tolerance of time. As a kid, my mom would always teach patience. My answer was always, “I can’t be patient—it takes too long.”

It’s been a lifelong opportunity for me to improve. Humility applied to time is patience. I struggle with this most behind the wheel. I think it was George Carlin who said, “Everyone in front of you is an idiot, and everyone behind you is a loser.”

A humble driver would be patient—and probably safer too.

A humble leader slows down to go faster. They create space for others. They’re not just tolerant of time—they utilize it meaningfully, creating more agility and humility.

Ralph Simone

Seems like a humble leader wouldn’t always go first.

Bill Berthel

Love that.

Ralph Simone

Because by going first, you may crowd out or make it harder for others to follow.

Bill Berthel

Absolutely. We often think leaders go first. They’re in the front. But if we look at the animal kingdom—wolves, for example—contemporary research suggests the pack leader is often in the back.

They have a better view, and they let others go first to develop without their immediate presence. Sometimes, the leader goes closer to last.

Ralph Simone

Humility helps develop people and delegate tasks. Being humble enough to know others can do what you do—well, almost as well, or maybe better.

Bill Berthel

Absolutely. Our business partner, Cathy Gaynor, often says it’s about extending trust to allow others to build their potential.

That takes humility—letting go, surrendering opportunities you could easily take on yourself. It’s not just delegating—it’s giving space to extend trust.

Ralph Simone

So how do you guide a leader to cultivate humility—especially if they’re confident, always ahead of everyone, and don’t see the need or benefit?

Bill Berthel

You’ve given me the term “the curse of competency.” I’m a DIYer—I’ve almost never had a contractor at my house. You’ve graciously said that’s the curse of competency: because I can do it, I do do it.

One way to practice agility and humility is to start strategically. For me, it might be hiring someone for a project at home.

In the workplace, it could mean identifying someone with the potential or desire to lead a project, even if they’re not perfect. Extend the trust. That’s where you start.

Ralph Simone

So using agility and humility could help scale an organization. It could lead to greater engagement and satisfaction.

Bill Berthel

Yes—it’s about scaling. Not just your team, but the next layer out—the entire organization.

Ralph Simone

What are some characteristics of a humble and agile leader? What do they do day to day?

Bill Berthel

You mentioned not going first—that’s a great one.

They also ask more questions than they give advice.

In group settings, they ensure turn-taking, create space for all voices, and facilitate meaningful participation—especially from remote participants.

Ralph Simone

It seems there are dated paradigms—like the idea that leaders must know everything. That mindset makes it hard to ask questions.

Bill Berthel

Yes. That’s a paradigm we need to shift. We can’t know all the answers—and we don’t have to. Leadership today is about facilitation, not expertise.

Ralph Simone

Do you have any stories to illustrate this?

Bill Berthel

At a former organization, we’d occasionally have more orders than we could fulfill. A good problem, right?

We had great cross-training across departments, including leaders.

When those spikes came, we initiated a “call to arms.” Leaders would put aside lower priorities and pitch in on the shop floor.

It wasn’t about rank—it was about what the task demanded. And honestly, it was fun. You got to work alongside people you didn’t usually interact with.

Ralph Simone

That story shows that the task becomes the boss. The context—not the hierarchy—drives behavior.

Bill Berthel

Yes. Some of that work was messy, wet, or dirty. Didn’t matter who you were—CEO, CFO—you were in the pit scrubbing too.

Ralph Simone

If I’m a confident leader who needs a bit more humility and agility, where do I start?

Bill Berthel

Start by reframing it. You’re not giving up confidence—you’re using it to support others.

Agility means facilitating others’ contributions, not always being the first with the answer.

Ralph Simone

There are many ways to do anything. When my kids asked how to do something, I’d say, “Here’s one way… but what other ways can you think of?”

Bill Berthel

Love that. That’s leadership as coaching—asking more than telling.

Ralph Simone

So what should we leave our listeners with—what’s the reflection or call to action?

Bill Berthel

First, choose a strategic place to practice humility. Maybe it’s a specific relationship or the way you run meetings. See what unfolds.

Second, be intentional about your agility. Set a daily intention. I call it creativity—but it’s agility.

Ask yourself: where will I be flexible today?

Ralph Simone

One thing that’s coming up for me—I might ask people I interact with: “Where would it be useful for you or our team for me to be more agile?”

Bill Berthel

Love the vulnerability and service behind that. You’ll eventually get honest answers.

Ralph Simone

And that requires humility—admitting you don’t know.

Bill Berthel

Exactly. I love it.

Ralph Simone

Love it.

Bill Berthel

Thanks, Ralph. And folks, thanks for listening. You can catch a new episode twice a month here at Get Emergent or wherever you listen to podcasts.

This is where we bring you contemporary leadership topics and ideas—balanced with what we hope are better practices you can apply to your work and leadership.

Thank you.