Are you an Authentic Leader?

Are you comfortable being authentic or being vulnerable as a leader? Or do you feel uncomfortable to be vulnerable? Or you think sharing your vulnerability means you are a weak leader and no one will trust in your leadership. I am sure as we all navigate through our leadership journeys all of these questions have raised at one point or another in our life.?

I believe we live in a very complex world and effective leadership needs more than a mastery of strategies, it needs authentic leadership at its core. But why is authentic leadership still so rare? What is stopping us from being more authentic?

I was in a panel a few weeks back and I was very open about my challenges and how I am working to win the same but after the panel one individual reached out to me and said it can be only you who can be so honest in your response, he/she can't. And that started me thinking why accomplished senior leaders are still struggling to be authentic and if senior leaders are struggling then what about the new leaders. Is the struggle true for both or new generation leaders are handling this very differently? Today I would like to share my journey of transforming into an authentic leader and hoping this helps other leaders to win over their reservations and as well connect to share their thoughts with me.?

Will start by saying it was not easy as I had my own fears to overcome before embracing the change. Being transparent was not a challenge as I always believed in honesty and integrity but being open to my vulnerabilities was difficult for me. I was raised in an environment of “Do Not show your weakness” mindset but through the course of my career I have understood one thing: I would rather have trust with my team, my peers, my leaders etc. than be comfortable and to build trust I have to be authentic and embrace my imperfections and vulnerabilities.?

Here are some lessons learned as I transitioned over the years, hoping this will help in your leadership journey:

• Do not try to fit in a mold- Be yourself, don't try to fit into any other’s leadership style. You can be a relatable, phenomenal leader by just being genuinely you and bringing yourself to the table. For example, if you don't like sports but still read the highlights so that you can contribute in small talks before or after the meeting and feel part of the team (been there and done it )don’t do it. I am sure you have other interests to discuss and bring that to the table, maybe you can bring diversity in small talks and be more inclusive as a leader.
• Invest in Strengths- Leaders are taught to focus on finding weak spots and fixing the inefficiencies. Instead I cultivate strengths, within myself as well as for my team.?
• Be genuine and share your stories- I made myself comfortable to share my stories, experiences, failures, lessons learned along with my successes. It was tough for me to be productively vulnerable(need to balance openness and professional boundaries)but once I embraced it, it was liberating. This helped me to connect better with my team as well as build a safe and trusted culture.?
• Build meaningful relationships- I do not believe in transactional relationships instead I seek for genuine connections built on trust and mutual development. I am very results driven but along with that I am very true and transparent with everyone.
• Reflect within yourself- Take time out to reflect and connect with your inner self. It is not a waste of time but a part of becoming a more genuine and effective leader.

Authentic leadership allows business leaders like us to establish trust and improve team performance from the top down. I believe when you build the foundation of your team on trust, people perform well individually as well as team members and extend support to each other. According to a PwC survey, 93% of business executives say their ability to build and maintain trust improves the bottom line.

Being said that I will infer that leadership isn’t about being perfect or about one-size fits all concept, hence to become the best leader you want to be you have to find what makes you unique and embrace your strengths to keep growing! Be capable of adapting to the demands of the situations you will face and people you will lead, but don’t lose your identity in the process.