AUTHENTICITY

No, this isn't a lecture on forsaking all the nice stuff and becoming a monk. This is a confirmation that authenticity is not an impediment to success but actually a pathway to success. I am not especially successful, when viewed in strictly financial terms, so I am not particularly qualified to write on the topic but I have found so many examples of others who are definitely qualified to do so. Based on my observations, I find the argument in favour of authenticity in an otherwise very fake world to be utterly compelling.

The inspiration for this Article comes from the book "Crushing It" by Gary Vaynerchuk. I have been watching his videos for a while and Gary rocks! In addition to Gary's own story, the book also contains the stories of other people who have similarly experienced success while being authentic. I love Gary's quote from the book: "You have no reason to start acting like something special, until you actually have something special to show for it. Even then, don't act special." Amongst all the people that I know personally, more often than not, those who have achieved the greatest success (in business) frequently don't "act special" and I find that special.

Those who continue to be authentic ... endure. Those who are inauthentic (i.e. the fakes and phonies) often flounder. Sometimes they don't but hey, who said life is fair? Those that follow me know that I have a couple of businesses. Without ever really expressly striving for authenticity per se, I trust that subconsciously I have always done so. I would expect that anyone who has ever worked for me would confirm that I am indeed (at the very least) authentic.

My Project Management company, M5 Bimagorsy (Pty) Ltd, secured the contract to roll out the Zakhelikhaya Project nationally for Cashbuild. In order to do so, I had to secure the input of some specialist service providers, without having any money. These people have bought into my vision at a level that I could only have dreamed of. Without any conscious decision to be brutally honest with them, it seems as if that is exactly what was required. My biggest desire at the moment is to provide adequately for my family but just behind that is to ensure that these "believers" are handsomely rewarded for their faith. I have brought these lofty ideals forward into the Gorsy values. See our values at www.gorsy.co.za I have fashioned them in the mold of my grandparents, who epitomized these "old school values" and hence I named Bimagorsy after Bill, Marge, Gordon and Sybil.

At Elegant Corporate Services (Pty) Ltd, we have just embarked on a whole new direction in the last few months. We are no longer focused exclusively on Trusts and Trustees but expanded into providing all the resources that a Small Business or budding Entrepreneur may require. Yes ... I want to make money (duh, obviously) but we have an opportunity to help so many people at the same time.

You will also have seen that I joined Stegmanns Incorporated in December. I am so pleased to have discovered that the people at my Firm are the living embodiment of authenticity. There is an genuine caring culture at the Firm that is authentic and not something that merely appears on a mission statement or other such platitude. The tag-line on our Website says: "Celebrating 132 years of Sound Legal Advice. We are proud to continue the tradition!". Could they make more money by being more heartless , well maybe. Would a move to greater callousness result in greater longevity (i.e. for another 132 years) ... absolutely not. My humble advice - Retain your authenticity but continue to adapt with the times!

I have afforded myself the opportunity to always be the authentic Gareth Shepperson by the businesses that I conduct and the people that I surround myself with. I hope that they will continue to help me to be authentic.