Leadership Talk
February 2007

Word of the Month

“AUTHENTIC” - Genuine, original, real, not copied or false. When someone is expressing his or her authentic self you can feel it.

One way to tell if someone is being their true self with you is if you think they need your approval. How do you know that? Again, that’s a feeling. You sense it. They wander over to you to tell you something that you already know as a way to connect. They ask if they can help – all the time. They watch you in groups, even while someone else speaks and then wait to see what your response is before sharing their own.

Authentic people don’t need your approval. They may want it, (they are human after all) but they don’t need it. Authenticity is another way of saying that the essence of a person shines through when you’re in their presence. You believe them. You may not agree with them, you may not like them particularly, but you believe that they believe what they say. This builds respect.

If others put you down for being true to yourself, remember this above all else: people who doubt you for following your dreams are afraid of being disappointed by your potential failure (as they perceive it). When you persevere, you inspire them to believe in their own dreams and their own potential. The greatest gift you will ever give yourself, someone else or the world is the gift of the unique you in its fullest expression.

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