Humility in professional practice
Dr Paul Prichard | August 2025
Read more from the Reflections on Relational Practice blog series:
- 'Hard to reach' families or difficult to access services?
- What is relational practice and why is it important?
- Listening to speak or listening to understand?
- Understanding the broader context of individual families
- How our interpretation of experiences might get in the way of helping families
- Building and sustaining effective relationships: why first meetings matter
- Listening beyond words: what children's behaviour is trying to tell us
- Difficult conversations: when care meets courage
- Summarising: creating connection and empowering speakers
- Why partnerships with families and children matter more than ever
- Humility in professional practice
- Building trust: turning small moments into lasting connections
Humility is a critical attribute for practitioners working in partnership with parents. Far from being a passive trait, humility in professional practice reflects an awareness of one’s limitations, coupled with a willingness to learn and adapt. This quality is not only essential for building trust and mutual respect, but also for fostering authentic, transformative relationships between professionals and the families they serve.
The roots of humility
The etymology of the word ‘humility’ offers a powerful metaphor for grounded practice. The term derives from the Latin humilis (lowly or humble) and humus (earth), suggesting a posture of being ‘on the ground.’ This grounding is not about subservience but about being present, open, and connected to others in a way that acknowledges shared humanity.
Humility is often linked to modesty and the absence of self-serving behaviour, defined by the Macquarie Dictionary as ‘the quality of being humble; modest sense of one's own significance.’ In professional contexts, this translates into a practice that resists hierarchy and embraces learning together.
Humility as a relational practice
Davis and Day emphasise that humility enables practitioners to engage in genuine partnerships with parents. This involves recognising that professional expertise, while valuable, is only one part of what support entails. Parents bring their own expertise rooted in lived experience, cultural knowledge, and deep understanding of their children. Humility allows practitioners to listen deeply, reflect critically, and remain open to being changed by what they learn from others.
I’ve come to believe that professionals are most authentic when their practice reflects humility. This authenticity fosters trust, reduces sensitivity, and creates space for shared reflection. When a parent engages with a professional in any supportive context, it can be helpful to begin with the recognition that this is, first and foremost, a meeting between two human beings. Holding this awareness at the centre allows the professional to draw on their relational skills to foster trust, rapport, and a sense of safety. This lays the groundwork before introducing their technical expertise.
While it's reassuring to receive humility from others, showing humility is challenging in today's service industry, where unspoken competition for promotions and raises is common. Sometimes humility can be mistaken for weakness rather than valued as a strength.
Cultural humility and power dynamics
The concept of humility has been further developed in the field of multicultural medical education through the work of Tervalon and Murray-García, who introduced the term ‘cultural humility.’ This framework calls for a lifelong commitment to self-evaluation and critique, aimed at redressing power imbalances in practitioner-client relationships. Cultural humility challenges the notion of the practitioner as the sole authority and instead promotes mutually beneficial partnerships. It acknowledges the systemic inequities that shape interactions and emphasises the importance of ongoing learning and responsiveness to cultural difference.
In the context of parent-professional relationships, cultural humility is particularly relevant. Many families — especially those from marginalised or underserved communities — have experienced exclusion or judgment from service systems. Practitioners who embody humility are better equipped to recognise these dynamics and work collaboratively to dismantle them.
Humility as a catalyst for change
My own thesis proposed a reconceptualised model of practice within parent support services characterised by professional humility. Humility emerges as a defining attribute of effective partnerships, particularly in contexts where parents have struggled to engage with services. When practitioners approach their work with humility, they become more relatable and trustworthy. Relationships grounded in shared reflection and learning can evolve to be resilient enough to navigate the inevitable challenges of change processes. These relationships not only support parents in transforming their own practices but also invite professional’s practice to evolve as well.
In sum, humility is not a soft skill — it is a transformative one. It invites practitioners to step down from the pedestal of expertise and walk alongside families, co-creating solutions that are grounded in mutual respect and shared humanity. In doing so, humility becomes the soil in which authentic, equitable, and enduring partnerships can grow.
References
- Davis, H., Day, C. (2010). Working In partnership: The family partnership model: Pearson Assessment.
- Day, C., Ellis, M., Harris, L. (2014). Family Partnership Model: Reflective practice handbook. The Centre for Parent and Child Support. South London and Maudsley NHS.
- Macquarie Dictionary. (2017). Macquarie Dictionary Publishers Sydney, NSW. Retrieved 10.12.2017, from https://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/
- Rowatt, W.C., Powers, C., Targhetta, V., Comer, J., Kennedy, S., Labouff, J. (2006). Development and initial validation of an implicit measure of humility relative to arrogance. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(4), 198-211. doi:10.1080/17439760600885671
- Tervalon, M., Murray-Garcia, J. (1998). Cultural humility versus cultural competence: A critical distinction in defining physician training outcomes in multicultural education. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 9(2), 117-125. doi:10.1353/hpu.2010.0233
About the author
Dr Paul Prichard has extensive experience in early childhood services, specialising in family engagement and relational practice. He works to amplify the voices of disengaged families in the design and implementation of services, ensuring that their unique needs are prioritised. Paul previously worked at the Centre for Community Child Health as Training and Development Manager.