Humbleness

Submitted by Jerrod Smelker
Department Manager of Loss Prevention and Safety
Lowes

Being an LP professional we are a proud group. We take pride and have honor in what we do each day. We are problem solvers, trainers, investigators, counselors, educators, number crunchers, speakers and thinkers. It is how we do these things and conduct ourselves that define us as true LP professionals. Of all the traits and skills we have and use perhaps one of the most important is being humble.

It is my sincere belief that within the LP profession there is no room for egos and selfishness. There is however a great deal of room for being humble. Humbleness is a trait that is learned throughout your lifetime through trial and error, lessons learned and walking in other's shoes. The hope is that you have it prior to becoming an LP professional; however luckily it can be ascertained while in the LP positions.

If you are truly able to understand and embrace what being humble is, you will then be able to appreciate and be compassionate and supportive when it comes to peers and those you encounter within your day to day responsibilities. Allow yourself to better appreciate and recognize those around you and you become a student of life and all that it has to offer. If you abandon any egotistical attributes and selfish wants and needs, you will find that those around you have quite a bit to offer.

We need to always remember that there will always be someone else out there who knows more than us, has done more than us, has more experience and can teach us something. Along with that we need to remember that to someone else, we are that person who knows more and can help to educate them.

Whether you know it or not there are most likely people you work with that are enamored with you and your position. They wish they were in your shoes at times because to them, you and what you do is a bit of a mystery and looks prestigious. If you open yourself up to them you will be surprised at what you may find and learn.

Use humbleness to grow in your personal life and your professional life. You will come to find that being humble will change the way you hear people, see things, act and react to the world around you. You will find that you will be rewarded professionally, mentally, physically and emotionally.