Authentic leadership is nowadays seen as an effective, desirable leadership style. But
what is authentic leadership? Simply put, it means that you, as a leader in the
organization, are the same person as you are outside of the organization, in your
personal, social life. There is no pretending to be someone you’re not because you put the leader’s hat on.
For some of us, it may feel like you finally have permission to be yourself as a leader. For others, it may feel very vulnerable and destabilizing. Either way, don’t shy away from trying to lead with authenticity – your teams will thank you in the long run. My goal here is not to outline all the advantages of becoming an authentic leader, but rather to
show you the first step to this journey, in a highly practical way.
If you aim at being genuine, true to yourself, authentic, you must know who you are and
what you stand for. Although you may have pretty good idea, can you name without
hesitation your top 3 core values? Because this is the first step to being an authentic
leader.
Let your core values be your north star in all your actions and decisions.
Try this exercise. As simple and straightforward as it may seem, you find yourself
having to ponder on what is truly important to you.