A signature trait of the most likable leaders -- a trait that leads to uncommon loyalty in employees as well as business results -- is one that's extremely hard to pull off: humility.
最受欢迎的领导者的一个特质——既能引发员工不常见的忠诚度，还能带来良好的商业效益——那是极难去培养的：谦逊。

But fair warning: If you're in charge of people, and you think you've arrived at the top of the humility mountain, I question your honesty. Here's what I mean.
不过公正的警告：如果你是负责管理人的，你认为自己已经到达谦逊之峰的顶端了，我就会质疑你的诚信度。下面说说我的想法。

Cheryl Bachelder, former CEO at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and author of Dare to Serve, created a high performing culture during her tenure that included the daily practice and valuing of humility. But she was quick to admit, "We value it because if we said we were humble, we'd be lying on a daily basis."
谢丽尔·巴谢德是“派派思路易斯安娜厨房”的前任行政总裁，也是《敢于服务》的作者，她在任期内创造了一项出色的绩效文化：包括日常训练以及谦逊度的考核。但是她很快就承认：“我们之所以重视它，是因为如果我们声称我们很谦逊，我们只是每天在撒谎而已。”

Calling yourself "humble" is something you cannot do, because the very admission of it exposes you as potentially cocky.
声称自己“谦逊”是你无法做出的事情，因为这种特别的认可暴露了你潜在的自大狂妄。

Yet for leaders courageous enough to take the journey toward humility, the long-term benefits are plainly evident in the way followers respond.
然而对于具备足够勇气去锻炼谦逊度的领导者们，谦逊的长期好处是追随者们都认为是显而易见的。

The Essence of a Humble Leader
一名谦逊的领导者的本质

When prolific consultant, author, and lecturer Jim Collins wrote about top leaders in his seminal book Good to Great, he said that they have mastered the paradoxical balance of personal humility and fierce resolve. Collins determined from his extensive research that these respected leaders direct their ego away from themselves to the larger goal of leading their company to greatness.
当多产的顾问，作者以及讲师吉姆·柯林斯撰写他的重要著作《从优秀到卓著》时，他表示他们已经掌握了个人谦虚与好斗决心之间的矛盾性平衡。柯林斯从他的广泛研究中确定，这些受尊敬的领导者们把专注力从个人自尊转移到引领公司实现更大的目标上。

In essence, humble leaders achieve greatness without arrogance. They shift from ego to humility which can drastically alter the outcome to their advantage.
本质上来说，获得卓越成就的谦逊领导者们都不是狂妄自大的。他们从注重自尊心转移到能够大大转变到有好处的结果的谦逊态度上。

Here are three ways they exercise their influence through humility.
下面是三个能够通过谦逊度锻炼个人影响力的方法。

1. Humble leaders don't take the credit.
1. 谦逊的领导者不抢功劳。

Leaders who deflect the limelight away from them and allow their followers to be in the limelight gain respect at an alarming rate. There is something very liberating for employees when they receive credit.
主动走出光芒之地，把光芒让给追随者们的领导者会以飞快的速度受到他人的尊敬。这是员工们受表扬的时候非常解气的行为。

Bachelder and her team once concluded that too many leaders hunger for the spotlight, too many leaders want to stay in the spotlight, and too many leaders forget to shine the spotlight on others.
巴谢德和她的团队曾经总结出，有太多的领导者急切想要获得光芒，有太多领导者想要逗留在光芒的照耀下，也有太多领导者忘记了给别人投射光芒。

She said, "What if we turned the spotlight to the people we serve instead of keeping it to ourselves? And what would that look like?"
她表示：“要是我们把光芒转移给我们服务的人们身上，而不是留给自己呢？那会是什么样子的？”

Well, they did. They transformed Popeyes into a servant leadership culture and the results were incredible during her tenure as CEO. From 2008 through 2015, Popeyes posted average global sales growth of 8.4 percent, and average earnings per share growth of 14.1 percent.
嗯，他们办到了。他们把派派思厨房改造成一个服务员领导者文化的公司，并且在她的任期内取得的成果很惊艳。从2008年到2015年，派派思厨房向外公布全球平均销售增长率为8.4%，平均每股收益增长14.1%。

2. Humble leaders never stop learning.
2. 谦逊的领导者永不停止学习。

Humble leaders are a different breed. They gladly accept the role of learners because they know it will make them better. They know that each person has something important to teach them.
谦逊的领导者是另一种人。他们很乐意接受学习者的角色，因为他们知道这样会让自己更好。他们知道每个人都有值得他们学习的地方。

They ask questions, and are sincerely interested in the answers. They never assume they know more than the very people they lead. This is even more important for new managers with long-tenured employees or knowledge workers who hold expertise in a specific area.
他们会提出问题，并且很真诚地对答案感兴趣。他们从不设想自己比下属懂得更多。这一点对于许多新的管理者来说更重要，他们带领着任期更长的员工、或具有特定领域专业知识的知识工作者。

In turn, humble leaders will leverage the skills and education of these people, and enable them to contribute great ideas that lead to great customer experience.
反过来，谦逊的领导者们会缩短这些人之间的技能和教育差距，促使他们贡献更好的点子促进优质的客户体验。

3. Humble leaders involve others.
3. 谦逊的领导者让别人有参与感。

You'll find humble leaders in open spaces sharing plans for the future, communicating important things to their people, and fostering a transparent culture. The last thing you'll see a humble leader do is hide behind closed doors or delegate important things to someone else.
你会发现，谦逊的领导者们在开放空间分享未来发展计划的时候，会跟他的员工们沟通重要的事情，塑造透明的文化。你最不可能看到的情况便是，谦逊的领导者躲在封闭的房间里，或把重要的事情分配给别人去干。

Lastly, humble leaders create an environment in which risks are taken, allowing those around them to feel safe to exercise their creativity, communicate their ideas openly, and provide input to major decisions. Because there's trust there, not fear. It communicates to employees a sense of "Hey, we're all in this together."
最后，谦逊的领导者们会营造一个敢于冒险的工作环境，让身边的同事带有安全感地运用自己的创造力，开放地交流自己的想法，并且为重要决策提供输入。因为那里有的是信任，而不是恐惧。这样会给员工们传递一种这样的感觉：“嘿，我们都在一起参与这件事情呢。”

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