Humility as a leader.

“𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗹𝘆, 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.”

That's one insight shared by Heather Gates, on The Craft of Consulting Podcast, hosted by Deborah Zahn.

How do leaders recognise when it's time to bring in external expertise?

Heather shared how leaders and organisations thrive when they admit their limits and bring in the right consultant for support. Without this humility, organisations can flounder in inefficiency or make critical missteps.

Yet, it’s easy for leaders to get caught in trying to manage everything internally.

When that happens, projects stall, teams burn out, and opportunities for innovation are missed.

She offered 3 suggestions on when it's useful to bring in external help:

1️⃣ When you’re in over your head.
↳ You need to recognise when additional expertise is beneficial.
↳ External consultants offer both process guidance and content knowledge.

2️⃣ When a neutral perspective is needed.
↳ Process facilitation is best done by someone outside the organisation.
↳ Consultants can unify groups without internal biases.

3️⃣ When credibility or validation is required.
↳ Third-party validation brings clarity and confidence.
↳ Consultants can convey messages that internal leaders may struggle to communicate.

These are useful thoughts.

And there’s much more in the full episode. So, grab a Front Row seat and listen to the conversation.

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P.S. Let me know your recommendation for my next Front Row listening.