Why Authenticity Matters to Leadership

Authentic leadership means being self-aware, aligned with the unique person you are, genuine and transparent. An Authentic Leader is able to inspire loyalty, creativity and trust in their employees. According to?research, Authentic Leaders exhibit behaviors including the following:

• They say exactly what they mean,?
• They act on their stated beliefs,?
• They seek out opinions that challenge their personal views, and?
• They ask for feedback to improve interpersonal interactions.

As a result, these leaders reinforce employees’ positive attitudes and behaviors, generating benefits for specific workgroups and entire organizations.

Researchers have established four underlying dimensions of authentic leadership:?

(1) self-awareness,?

(2) relational transparency,?

(3) balanced information processing, and?

(4) an internalized moral perspective.

Self-Awareness is Key

Authenticity as a Leader hinges on self-awareness. You need to nurture a strong sense of self, including your qualities, preferences, needs and values. If you're unsure of who you are or what you stand for, it naturally forms a huge barrier to authentic leadership.?

Self-awareness means as you become aware of your gaps as a leader, Being aware of who you are and acting accordingly fosters trust among your team, and creates the psychological safety that empower others to be transparent, innovative and fallible.

As outlined in a?seminal article?by Bruce Avolio and Tara Wernsing, as an authentic Leader, self awareness means you do 3 key things:

• Seek feedback from the environment
• Use self-reflection to better understand your behavior
• Practice regular self-observation to stay aware of your feelings at all times

Self-awareness is vital to behaving and communicating in ways that build connectivity, rather than break it down. By being self aware, you tune into what is occurring in your thoughts, emotions and bodily responses right in the moment. For example, if you’re angered, self-awareness empowers you to evaluate whether you are in a healthy state to continue a discussion or need to perhaps take a short break.?

It also enables you to admit mistakes, so you can own your behavior, apologize and grow. When we are authentic, the likelihood of hypocrisy drops, because we are ‘living’ the values and behaviors we expect of ourselves and others.?

Authentic Leadership goes beyond jargon and theories - to be an Authentic Leader means working on it every day, throughout the day. Here are some practical ideas to get you started.

Authentic Leadership requires vulnerability, a curious mind and a courageous heart.

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If you’d like to become a more Authentic Leader, join us this month as we embark on our Mid-Year Reset. June’s timely topic is Self-Leadership, and our Expert session with Megumi Miki on the Changing Face of Leadership is not to be missed.

Find out more & join us at?www.wearehumanleaders.com