Good question Bob. I have often wondered about that. If I am too humble I tend to become a doormat. That's not healthy. So how can you be humble and not let people run over you?

if your thinking your being humble you probably arent

Hmmmm....

How do you show humility Bill?

As an egomaniac, if I'm humble, it doesn't mean I'm a doormat, but that I am respectful of other people and not always tootin' my own horn.

To me humilty is being able to have an accurate idea of yourself - both strengths and weaknesses, positives and negatives. Thinking less of yourself than is accurate is therefore not true humility.

This is a great link for understanding more about what is humilty and what isnt.

http://www.huna.org/html/pride-and-humility.html

An extract:
"True humility has to do with acknowledging and respecting who you are and what you can do, without any outside confirmation or approval. False humility has to do with claiming you are less than you believe you are, and that you can do less than you believe you can. This kind of humility almost always requires outside confirmation or approval to cover up an inner feeling of arrogance. The person with false humility has a driving need to convince others of how humble he or she is. Sometimes this is because a person believes that any form of pride is bad, and sometimes an essentially arrogant person is using false humility as a way of disarming or manipulating other people. A truly humble person has no need for others to know how humble he or she feels, nor any fear of others knowing. A truly humble person feels neither superior nor inferior to anyone else."

I think your response is really helpful Nicky.

For me, I think that humility becomes as it should be by simply following the spiritual principles I have learned in AA. In the Big Book, p.68 carries an important message in this vein:

"Perhaps there is a better way - we think so. For we are now on a different basis of trusting and relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite selves.

We are in the world to play the role He assigns. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would have us, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to match calamity with serenity.

We never apologize to anyone for depending upon our Creator.

We can laugh at those who think spirituality the way of weakness. Paradoxically, it is the way of strength.

The verdict of the ages is that faith means courage. All men of faith have courage. They trust their God.

We never apologize for God. Instead we let Him demonstrate, through us, what He can do. We ask Him to remove our fear and direct our attention to what He would have us be. At once, we commence to outgrow fear."

i think we all know the difference between being humble and being a doormat..at least i hope...lol..i think though being humble is not an alcoholics strong suit.i was use to doing whatever i wanted and relying on self.when i was a active alcoholic i could never reach out ,even admit i had a problem..when i reached out to others in a/a it was very humbling but it wasnt esteem lowering at all to me it was very empowering to own up to what was really going on...to me staying humble is not letting people walk all over you but taking a honest inventory of the validity of whats being presented to you..then being able to process and take action when needed.

Sometimes I know that I know the answer to a question but I just keep it to myself unless asked. Just knowing that I know is enough for me now. I don't feel the need to show off. I thought that was just maturity but maybe it is humility.

Next20 that's such a great practical definition. I agree with that one too.
Humility is sort of like sobriety to me. If you lay a strong claim on either....as in "i'm so humble" or "look at me I'm so sober" its a slippery slope.
Humility to me is evidenced in people comfortable in their own skin. People who know, but don't need to let *you* know they know, as Next20 said. People who just are.

Humility is a very strange thing. The second you think you have it, you have lost it.

i can nothing to lucysdad's response. that basically sums it up.

BIG HUGS lucy......:)

oops...i meant to say i could add nothing.......i'm humbled lol

TO BE HUMBLE IS TO KNOW THAT YOU DON'T KNOW, BUT ARE WILLING TO LEARN.