Just be Real – Trust Me, Your People Will Love You For It!

Authenticity is definitely a growing buzzword in personal branding – with reason.

With the rise of technology and AI tools, it’s easier than ever to be fooled by people creating fake personas on the world wide web.

Some folks hide behind their computers and tablets and smartphones and lead people on the Internet to believe whatever they want.

Some people put A LOT of time and effort into representing themselves as someone they are not for the sake of being perceived a certain way on social media.

Ugh - just be real!

According to Wikipedia, authenticity is the degree to which a person's actions are congruent with their values, and desires, despite external pressures to social conformity.

So, why is it so challenging to just embrace who you genuinely are?

Because you don’t want to be judged.

But guess what...you will be judged by people no matter what!

Yerp, we humans collectively suck at not being judgmental ????

If that’s the case, I’d prefer to be judged for being myself versus being judged for some fake persona #scamlikely

What would you prefer?

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OK. Let me ask you this...

If you’re going after more speaking gigs, job offers, customers, clients, mentees, media features, or any other lucrative opportunity, you know what will surely separate you from your “competition”?

I'll tell you. It's:

Your unique approach.

Your special sauce.

Your personal experiences.

Your rare story.

You may have read a thousand articles on authenticity in personal branding. This one won’t sound exactly like those others. This one is backed by my specific background and sprinkled with my story. I’m using my own voice, my own examples, my own secret sauce.

Why?

Because authenticity builds trust and I want you to trust me. So, I make sure to write these articles in my own sarcastic, yet authoritative and down-to-earth tone.?

If you’re honest about who you are – no matter how “undesirable” you think it may be, your people will trust you and love you for it.

They know they can believe you because even though we don't say it out loud, we all know that it is very challenging to show up authentically. The way I see it, if you can be honest about who you really are, you can likely be honest about anything.

Fake personas are exhausting - just be real!

Here’s the other issue people run into about being authentic.

Ready for this one?

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They don’t know who they are ??

They have been influenced from such a young age to act a certain way to be accepted, that they have lost most of the essence of who they are. So, now as adults, they are looking to find their authentic identity again. They need to do a lot of self-reflection to gain clarity on something that should be as natural as breathing.

So many societal systems like school and work have forced us to abandon our individualism and conform that we don’t even remember who we originally were. There is an underlying fear that if we fully embrace ourselves that others would reject our way of thinking and our truths.

But even deeper and more powerful than authenticity is vulnerability.

Let’s look at the meaning of vulnerability, shall we?

According to dictionary.com, it’s "willingness to show emotion or to allow one’s weaknesses to be seen or known; willingness to risk being emotionally hurt.”

What?! Open ourselves up for someone to be able to attack?

Yes.

Hear me out...

When someone knows you willingly shared something private, they admire it. Most people are no good at vulnerability. So, we praise those that are.

Here’s why this is powerful: while folks are admiring how courageous you are for being vulnerable, they will feel connected with you because they share similar stories that they were ashamed to share and in the midst of that, they may also find the courage to be vulnerable themselves.

This level of trust goes much deeper than surface-level interactions. We connect emotionally through the deep dark parts of ourselves that leave us open for an attack. This is so much more meaningful, isn’t it?

To that I say, it’s time to dig deep #surfacewontsuffice

“I love this, Mel…how do I get started embracing my authenticity?”

?Here are a few steps to get going:

1. Do the work to dig deeper into your stories. Jot down the experiences that shaped your life, the decisions that got you where you are now. The mishaps, the mistakes, the meltdowns, the wins. Get to know you on a deeper level. Watch your own biopic.
2. Share your stories of setbacks, failures, and challenges you have faced along your journey. Even when you share your wins, tell us about the hardest parts. People love a story of overcoming. Resilience is sexi.
3. Engage in meaningful conversations within your industry or areas of interest. Offer valuable insights, ask thoughtful questions, and be genuinely interested in others' perspectives.

Authenticity flourishes when there is openness and honesty in your interactions.

Remember, your authenticity is your superpower, so just be real…trust me your people will love you for it.

Happy Self-Marketing!

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If you are a high-performing executive woman of color looking for support as you build your personal brand, Empowered Presence? was created with you in mind. Learn more and book a free consultation at: myempoweredpresence.com.

Ready to go from Invisible to Influential, get instant access to the free virtual workshop here: Invisible to Influential Workshop

Melanie L. Denny is a personal branding consultant, self-marketing expert, certified LinkedIn strategist, and founder of the Empowered Presence? framework designed for brilliant women of color to gain visibility and capitalize on new opportunities beyond the 9-5 through the power of personal branding.

Melanie has been featured in Forbes, Huffpost, Yahoo News, Fast Company, NBC News and countless podcasts sharing self-marketing tips and tricks. She has been invited to speak to national organizations and non-profits across the world on career topics including LinkedIn, personal branding, networking, and career empowerment.

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