I could be wrong but - Thoughts on intellectual humility

Digital transformation projects fail 70% of the time. (source) The individual tactics that comprise one of these projects have many pitfalls. As they say, the best-laid plans... often go awry.

Learning and adapting from these projects (success or failure), tactics, and every day life can enable growth and improve your odds of achieving success the next time around. The mindset that will allow one to be capable of undergoing this improvement journey, includes principles of intellectual humility.

Definition: Intellectual humility is often described as an intellectual virtue, along with other perceived virtues such as open-mindedness, intellectual courage and integrity, and in contrast to proposed intellectual vices, such as pride and arrogance.(source)

A recent series of events led me to the topic of intellectual humility and below are a few of the insights I found.

1. Be curious and listen

“His point is that you can be intellectually humble (open to changing your mind about things), but if you’re never curious enough to listen to other viewpoints, you aren’t really that open-minded.”

Growth comes from learning where you can improve, learning something new, or other’s point of view but you have to care enough to ask. If you explore these areas, you will never have the opportunity to exercise that open mind.

2. own the obligation to take action and deliver results

Developing a belief or habit of mind that you, as an individual, are accountable for the quality and timeliness of an outcome

No mater how much collaboration or teamwork is required, you are responsible to make it happen. Own the output but also the inputs. Collaborate with the responsible party, ask how can I help you?

3. Responsible vs blame

Fault is backward-looking, and responsibility is forward-looking. Fixating on blame delays taking corrective action and inhibits learning. Focusing on responsibility offers a sense of peace.

Know the difference. Identify where in the standard process the project, tactic, whatever fell short so you can improve for next time but after that focus on the fix and move on. Exacting blood for a misstep where all parties were giving their full effort, does no good.

How to start actioning this... when interjecting into a conversation start off the statement with “I could be wrong, but…”. It opens the mind to possibilities, disarms your cohort, and welcomes discussion.

Source:

https://hbr.org/amp/2012/08/take-ownership-of-your-actions
https://hbr.org/amp/2018/11/a-new-way-to-become-more-open-minded