How Authenticity Can Prevent Professionals From Growing Into Leaders

The concept of “authenticity” means many different things to different people: not putting on a show, being true to one’s values, being transparent, feeling aligned with one’s integrity, etc. For thousands, the practice of authenticity feels positive, liberating and growth-inducing. But, in practice, it can also mean “being as I have always been.”

I remember once when I was in my early 20’s and serving as a marketing associate in scientific publishing, my boss (with whom I had challenges and a rocky relationship) called me “pathologically authentic.” I really had no idea what he meant at the time, but I knew it wasn’t a good thing. Now I recognize the issue. He meant that I had a deep need to share with him everything I was thinking (without any filters), about the job, my responsibilities, my desired trajectory, etc. even if doing so would hurt my career there.

All through my professional life, I’ve learned the hard way that “authenticity” needs to be tempered, moderated and examined if we’re to grow and develop in the ways we long to. I learned too that a misguided view of authenticity can be crutch for playing smaller than we wish to in our lives and work.

“The problem with authenticity is that if you have an overly-simplistic view of it, you may be hindering your growth,” says Herminia Ibarra, author of Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader.

I’ve enjoyed Herminia’s work ever since I read her first book – Working Identity: Uncoventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career, as I was researching my own book Herminia is the Cora Chaired Professor of Leadership and Learning, Professor of Organizational Behavior, and the Founding Director of “The Leadership Transition” executive education program at INSEAD in Paris, a top international business school.

Herminia feels that there are moments in our careers when too much authenticity can hold us back from adapting to new expectations, and I was eager to learn why. Here’s what she shared:

Kathy Caprino: Herminia, how can authenticity hold us back from becoming the leaders we want to be?

Herminia Ibarra: 

There are plenty of people who are very “authentic” but also highly ineffective. When we’re aiming for impact, sometimes we have to stretch way beyond what feels like “the real me.”

In fact, almost anything that gets us out of our comfort zone, as any new and unfamiliar leadership behavior, will feel inauthentic and contrived at first. Even when it comes to something as basic as listening, people who are not very good at it will admit that they don’t do more of it because they don’t feel genuine if they have to force themselves to do it. The problem is that what feels like the authentic you is actually the old and outdated self that you need to shed in order to be a better leader.

I’ve found that many of the most common challenges of stepping up to bigger leadership roles often make people feel like fakes. Two good examples are taking charge in a new role and selling your ideas (and yourself):

Taking charge:

First impressions form quickly, and they matter. New leaders want to communicate who they are and what they stand for in that formative period when they are first taking charge. At the same time they are under an unforgiving spotlight, so they need to be careful about what they communicate. A definition of authenticity as “coherence between what you feel and what you say or do” is especially tricky when you assume a new role that is a big stretch. Yes, we all want leaders who are human and can admit their weaknesses. But that does not mean that you should express each doubt or thought that comes into your head.

Selling your ideas:

Moving into a bigger leadership role usually involves a shift from having good ideas to selling them to diverse stakeholders. Inexperienced leaders often find the process of getting buy-in distasteful and “inauthentic” because it feels artificial and political; they believe that their work should stand on its own merits. And, it’s even harder for them to sell themselves to senior management even though they know that their good ideas and strong potential will go unnoticed if they don’t do a better job of self-promoting.

As much as transitions require us to move way beyond our comfort zones, they can also trigger a strong countervailing impulse to protect our past identities. When we are unsure of ourselves or of our ability to perform in a new setting, we easily retreat to old habits, especially those that have been rewarded in the past. But the only way to avoid being pigeonholed and ultimately become better leaders is by doing the things that a rigidly authentic sense of self would keep us from doing.

Caprino: So what are some critical ways we can become effective, empowered leaders while ALSO being true to ourselves?

Ibarra: Here are 5 ways I’ve found to be very effective:

Play with your “possible” selves.

Making significant changes not just in what you do but how you do it requires a playful frame of mind. I recommend that people think of leadership development as “playing with” rather than “working on” themselves (which, let’s face it, is not much fun).

When you adopt a playful attitude, you’re more open to a diverse, even divergent, set of possibilities. It’s OK to be inconsistent from one day to the next. You’re not being a fake. That’s just how you figure out what’s right for the new challenges we face. The trick is to work toward a future version of your authentic self by stretching way outside the boundaries of who you are today.

Sign up for a new project, taskforce, association or extracurricular professional activity.

New activities don’t only help you learn new things; they allow you to try on new ways of being because the rules of the game in your “day job” don’t apply outside of it. And, your image is not set in stone in a new group (as it is with those who know you well). New activities also provide a context for meeting people from whom you might learn stylistically (see ”Steal like an artist” below). To become a better leader, don’t try to unearth your true self. Let it emerge from what you do by plunging into projects, experimenting with the unfamiliar and interacting with different kinds of people.

Steal like an artist.

Like an artist who integrates ideas and inspiration from many different sources, it’s important to learn from a broad range of role models (and not just imitate a favorite role model’s leadership style). In leadership as in art, no one values a copycat: there is a big difference between imitating someone wholesale and borrowing selectively from various people to create your own collage, which you then modify, improve, and keep refining until it is effective and also feels authentic. Identify two or three people whose leadership you admire. Try to pick people who are different from each other. Start watching them closely. What do they do especially well? Try to adopt some of what they do.

Aim to learn.

When you are in performance mode, the game is about presenting yourself in the most favorable light. This leads you to favor tasks that you already do well and make you look good, over tasks that you don’t yet do well but will help you learn. Setting learning goals helps us experiment with our identities without feeling like imposters, because we don’t expect to get everything right from the start.

Side projects and extracurricular activities can provide a perfect setting for these experiments because we can take more risks with new behaviors outside the spotlight of our day jobs. We stop trying to protect our comfortable old selves from the threats that change can bring, and start exploring possibilities for the kind of leader we might become.

Don’t stick to your story.

Most of us have stories about critical events in our lives that shaped who we are today and taught us important lessons. Consciously or not, we allow our stories, and the images of ourselves that they paint, to guide us in new situations. But our stories can become outdated as we grow our skills and styles, so occasionally it’s necessary to alter them dramatically or even throw them out and start from scratch.

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I like these tips from Herminia, and see clearly how they can help people overcome an overly-rigid attachment to their former selves, which keeps them from growing into powerful and effective leaders.

That said, I remain fan of authenticity. In my life and work, I’ve found that learning to be more authentically connected to our own stories, values, beliefs and natural talents is what allows us to find new courage to stretch and expand out of our comfort zones (which is essential for our happiness and growth). As we boldly (and consciously) share our talents in bigger ways with the world, we naturally grow, and that authentic expansion can be the difference between an amazingly fulfilling career, and professional misery.

What’s your take? Is authenticity a positive quality that allows for expansion to greater leadership capability, or does it hold us back by keeping us connected to a limited perception of our past selves, or a bit of both?

For more information, visit Herminia Ibarra, and her book Act Like A Leader, Think Like a Leader.

To build a happier, more rewarding career, take my Amazing Career Project video training course today. To learn more about your authentic Dominant Action Style, and leverage it successfully, take my quiz.