In a lot of inspirational books and talks about leadership, work ethics and management, you often hear this concept of bringing your authentic self to work. It is what leaders say will make you love what you do and avoid (or at the very least, delay) the inevitable burnout caused by the fast paced nature of the corporate world.
However, I question the legitimacy of this claim. This may be a controversial viewpoint but in the corporate world, you are always in a race – a race to perform at your best and a race to out perform your peers (if you hope to get a good performance review because ultimately your bonus/paycheck depends on it). New age advice may be that there is no competition with peers, just competition with yourself to be better today than you were yesterday! While that sounds great in theory, I doubt it is realistic practically. In Consulting, there is the added pressure of getting staffed on projects so that your utilization goal isn’t hit. That is definitely competition with your peers!
Your insecurities, your apprehensions, your ideologies, your capabilities, your drive, your values and your goals & ambitions all make up your true authentic self. However, there are those out there who are ready to write you off without a moment’s notice if they see any weakness. All too often, those aspects of your self are far more visible than your strengths. It is very easy for people with “known” weaknesses to be overshadowed or overlooked. When you bring your authentic self to work, it means you will be in situations where you will inevitably show vulnerability and your weaknesses may become visible and known. In such cases, it is highly likely that some people may exploit your weaknesses against you.
There aren’t enough leaders out there who are willing to invest in you if you are truly authentic and show vulnerability because there are others out there who are “rockstars” in terms of abilities and confidence. It is not that the “rockstars” don’t have weaknesses or a vulnerable side, its just that they can hide it better. To be fair to leaders, with the pace of this world, who has the time to sit and nurture your weaker (for the lack of a better word) self? Very few people are lucky in life to find great mentors who take a personal interest in building you up and sponsoring opportunities for you because they believe in your capabilities. What about those of us who aren’t as lucky? In such situations, what is the alternative?
In a world where you should usually be extremely careful about how much you open up about your true self, how can someone truly bring their authentic self to work when there is the high likelihood of it being used against you and more importantly, not everyone actually brings their authentic self to work? Until I am convinced, I will be semi-authentic, but with extreme caution!
Featured image credit – https://www.womanunruled.com/bring-your-authentic-self-to-the-table/
Musings of a confused nut! 