Last night I met with a group of business owners ( an Executive Development Group ) to discuss the role of authenticity in running a business. I know that this is a subject that is getting a lot of attention as people look for more meaning in their work and want to remove sources of anxiety and stress.
Our discussions were really wide ranging.
We began by reflection on what we meant by authenticity. People had a range of different perspectives but we all agreed it was about being honest with yourself and others, being grounded and living life in an integrated way. We also thought it was about creating meaning and that this involved living in a more mindful way. We all recognised that if we lived authentically it would remove a lot of the stress caused by the gap between how things were and how we thought they ought to be!
So having agreed what authenticity was, we then thought about how we ran our businesses and when our behaviour could be described as authentic. We agreed behaving honestly and being direct was important. But we also recognised that we needed to be sensitive to when our clients were ready to hear the truth, and that also involved being mindful. Fore some of us it was ablout being able to draw on our own experience and not hiding behind management theories and jargon.
We all agreed there were a number of significant benefits to running a bsusiness authentically:
* It encouraged clients to be more open, honest and direct and you then have access to the information you need to make decisions.
* It builds and maintains relationships that are underpinned by trust and confidence. When thios happens you can be more flexible.
* It helps you to see things as they really are rather than being influenced by the judgements you have about a situation. In turn this helps you to deal with issues rather than avoiding them…or just as bad, ruminating and not making progress.
If we are honest we all have times when we do not behave authentically….whether out of choice or not. When this happened to me, my work lost all meaning and my anxiety and stress levels soared.
So how do you become more authentic…what tools do you need?
I think it starts with having a strong Personal Brand i.e. defining what your personal ambitions are, being clear about your values and your “bottom line”, having a personal Mission and knowing your key roles …and this needs to be reviewed on a regular basis. I also think it involves having the ability to look deeper into things, to ask the deeper questions, and to be able to listen to both yourself and others.
Tools I use to help me to remain authentic are meditating regularly, using a journal to reflect on thoughts and feelings amd attending regular retreatsto help me to adopt a more mindful approach to my business.
What do you do to to ensure you remain authentic?
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