Humility
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.”
-Tim Keller
Being humble means you know exactly what you have to offer. We will often remind our team after a game we're not as good as we think we are (usually after a win), nor are we as bad as we think (after a loss). We need to know who we are as a team and as individuals. Here within lies the challenge: How do we arrive at this sober judgement? Consider yet another Tim Keller quote, “Humility is so shy. If you begin talking about it, it leaves. To even ask the question, ‘Am I humble?’ is to not be so.”
Humility is such an elusive virtue. It's impossible to pursue it as you would resilience, courage or some other character trait. It's like chasing a butterfly. Chase it, and you'll never catch it. Sit still, and it may come to rest on your shoulder. With that said, how do we "sit still"? We turn all of our attention to others.
For example, Crazy Horse was among the greatest leaders and warriors in Native American history. He was entitled to wear all the headdresses and other symbols of successes, but he always chose to wear a single feather. He did not have to tell or show anyone how good he was, they already knew and he was admired and loved by his people. He knew who he was, what he stood for and what he had accomplished, and he didn’t have to continually remind people.
Crazy Horse thought of others first and made it a point to pour into the lives of his people. He was the first to applaud his ‘teammates’. We also want all of our players to celebrate in the successes of their teammates. We like to say, “Be the first to praise others and the last to brag or draw attention to yourself.” This is not always easy to do in a society that glorifies self more than ever, but not impossible. Arrogance is not a Titan trademark, however, thinking of others is.