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LEADERSHIP AUTHENTICITY… WHAT IT REALLY MEANS ROSS SWAN There is a lot of talk now about leaders needing to be authentic. But what does that really mean? I have heard people misconstrue the meaning. They take the word authentic, to mean, I can just be myself. But just being yourself is not that simple. There can be a difference between being truly authentic and just being yourself. The question here is, what is driving ‘being yourself’? Are you being a reflection of your inner self or are you a reflection of the people around you? Authenticity is a continuous connectivity between the head, the heart, and the soul. Understanding, and then living that, makes one truly authentic. If you continually see yourself through the eyes of others, then that will change the equation. Seeing yourself through others means you become a person who is not staying true to 48 MAY-JUNE 2020
Don’t get me wrong, you can be influenced by others, having mentors and role models are healthy learning opportunities. themself, but a person staying true to other’s expectations. How often do we see executives continually rate themselves against others for the wrong reasons? Playing office politics, winning at the expense of others, and the list goes on. Don’t get me wrong, you can be influenced by others, having mentors and role models are healthy learning opportunities. But that’s just it, it is for your personal development, not for you to be a replica of someone else. Competition is healthy also, but not at the expense of others. A behaviour which also leads to misalignment of strategic objectives.
So the being an authentic leader is something that comes from within you. When your heart, soul and inner self are connected you will have good thoughts. Over the years coaching numerous executives, I have never met anyone, that once they are connected their to inner self, that is, recognising their deep feelings about themselves, have they wanted to treat people badly. Where thoughts to compete, seek revenge, I am better than him/her etc., come when they are in their head space, not when they are connected with their inner feelings. An exercise I have done may times as a coach is to help people get in touch with their inner self. Its amazing how much people get out of that exercise. It quite often liberates them. They like the energy that it provides, and they work hard to be more in this mode of behaviour. That is taking regular time out to meditate and reflect. So, with continual
