People say they want to lead authentically. They fear that if they weren't authentic, it would sap their energy. Is that true?

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Can you be an authentic
leader?
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Can we be authentic in a
leadership role?

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Being authentic as in knowing yourself is almost
impossible.
Let alone being an authentic leader, where leading is all about influencing others. "Combining both,
authenticity and leadership, in one concept becomes an endeavor only heroes from mythological realm can ever
aspire to successfully overcome."
It seems those who want to be authentic are setting themselves up for failure if at the same time they
want to do a good job as a leader. Leadership is about social connections and influence. We can't be good
at that if we're not willing to adapt to some norms and conventions in our environment.

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Are we clear about what
authenticity really is?

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Authentic vs. sincere
How would those young leaders feel if they'd strive for being sincere rather than authentic? Is this even
what they meant all along? Being sincere means presenting yourself accurately and honestly to your team
and colleagues.
This could take a lot of stress out and reduce the somewhat schizophrenic feeling.

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What if you could just do a good
job?

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Some more realistic standards you could hold
yourself accountable to (1)
Focus on the job at hand and the people around you.
If we're less concerned about ourselves and our appearance to the outside, we'd have plenty of
headspace to complete our tasks and be helpful to our teams.

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Some more realistic standards you could hold
yourself accountable to (2)
Be diplomatic and consider the needs and wants of those you lead.
Think about it. Which leader do you prefer? The one who always has to express himself (or herself) or the
one who cares about you?

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Some more realistic standards you could hold
yourself accountable to (3)
Be a bit more thick skinned.
Not as in "not giving a ...", but in the sense of a healthy self-defensive mechanism. Yes, you'll make
mistakes. Yes, you should learn from them. And yes, you should care not to hurt others. But often people
on the cheap seats have quite an expensive opinion of you. And even the feedback from your most senior
leader is flawed. There are moments where you can respectfully ignore what others think of you.

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Some more realistic standards you could hold
yourself accountable to (4)
Hide Mr. Hyde.
Have you come across those leaders who sometimes get a fit are shouting demeaning words to those
around them? You could argue they're being authentic. A little hot-tempered (with a smile you want to
slap off their face). I prefer the leaders who are able to keep their "narcissistic and abusive impulses" in
check.

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Some more realistic standards you could hold
yourself accountable to (5)
Don't preach or try to convert.
This is something that is quite interesting for the whole #diversity debate. You want people to be able to
bring their true self to work? Fine by me, but be careful not to impose your own worldview on others.

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The very real downsides to
authenticity

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Does your organisation - or you - want full
authenticity?
If there are people around you with only good qualities, of course you'd want them to be authentic and
express these. But what about the ones with "bad temper, poor social skills, neurotic and narcissistic
orientations, intolerance, non-mainstream political or religious orientations, problems with the other sex,
a dislike for certain professions or functions and other views that make collaboration difficult if these
come out in full bloom"?

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Is your authenticity a career stopper?
When it comes to your rating and the senior people debating behind closed doors whether or not to give
you that promotion... What will they look for? If you always "speak your truth" or if you're loyal to the
company and willing to go the direction that has been set? Now you may still want to choose "speaking
your truth". That's fine and can bring constructive dissent. (#rebel, anyone?) But be aware of the
consequences it might have. You can't have your cake and eat it in every company.

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Did you cross the line to being self-centred and
narcissistic?
In today's world, we can't get much done all on our own. We need to collaborate with others to get stuff
done. But, an "authentic person focusing highly on self-awareness [...] may put him or herself in the center
of the universe."

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Ready to be vulnerable?
Oh yes, this word. If our self is the focus of attention, rather than what we do, everything becomes
personal. Anyone who ever had to downsize a company will know that these are moments where you
want others to be as far as possible from your true self.

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Is authentic leadership blocking your
development?
When you stick to an ideal, it becomes very hard to evolve to adapt to the changes in your surroundings.
So rather than seeing these challenges as a threat to your (current) true self, why not us them as an
opportunity to become the next, better version of yourself?

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