The Truth is more Fun. Start telling it.

The truth is more fun. Start telling it.

Have you ever noticed, the truth is so much more fun to tell ... and more interesting to listen to? Many movies and books are based on true stories, and even the ones that are not, often include fragments of real life experiences. What’s real is what’s interesting.

If you want to be more interesting and attractive to the people and opportunities that are meant for you, the best way to do that is by being yourself. Sounds simple and easy but actually it’s not, for many people and much of the time.

For the majority of my life I was not fully myself. I’m a very direct and honest person and I was taught by some key people in my life from a young age that that was wrong. Trying to please other over myself left me feeling unhappy, anxious and ultimately, depressed. Once I recognized that this pattern was not serving me, I chose to change it by just starting to be me.

Since that moment I began feeling happier and gaining more confidence each day. After years of choosing to just be myself, it’s now easy, and has resulted in attracting people and opportunities with whom I align.

Recently I was talking with one of my hiring manager clients that I recruit for and he gave me the best compliment. Years ago when we first started working together, he was dragging his feet on getting the interview process going for what was supposed to be a fast initiative building out a new division. It’s a candidate’s market and has been for years now. When you get a good candidate, that’s time to start interviewing. You don’t want a rushed process of course, as it’s imperative to have multiple steps in the interview process in aiming for the right hire. But when you hold the process up by not starting it, you lose good candidates. Candidates want to feel wanted and are likely entertaining other opportunities as well. Delays in the interview process can cause star candidates to drop out and also lead to crunch time challenges as you approach the hire date.

My client, who I now consider a friend, told me he’ll never forget that I called him up and called him out. He said I yelled at him, which I don’t exactly remember it like that, although I imagine my frustration was apparent. I was myself – direct, honest, confident. Clear communication is the best way to help others and that’s my goal. He told me from that moment he really respected me and decided he would only work with me as his recruiter moving forward. I won that client and his business for the rest of my recruiting career by being my direct and honest self.

Not everyone likes my personality and that’s okay. We’re all different. There are different people and different opportunities meant for each of us, and the best what to attract the ones meant for you is to be you.

It can be hard. We get scared of what others might think. But the sooner you get started, the happier you will become and the easier it will get. When you’re not being 1000% you in efforts to please others, you attract people that don’t like the real you. How can they? You’re not showing the real you. I challenge you to be 1000% the real you and see how good it feels and see what opportunities show up.