Authenticity at Work: How Being Yourself Makes for Better Business

Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year in 2023 was “authentic.” Some of the definitions include:

• Not false or imitation

• True to one’s own personality, spirit or character

In essence, “authentic” means being yourself.

Being authentic with your family and friends is one thing. They expect you to be your true self. And everything from pop culture to self-help emphasizes the importance of owning your unique identity.

When it comes to authenticity in the workplace, though, it can feel a bit more daunting. Especially as a business owner trying to run a successful operation, keep clients happy, retain employees and make smart business decisions.

Yet being authentic at work can actually help you find success in all areas of your day-to-day. Here’s how:

Being authentic means you can just be you

Have you ever pretended to be someone you really weren’t? Exhausting, isn’t it?

When you aren’t living and behaving in alignment with who you truly are, you’re actually spending more energy trying to keep up those appearances than if you were to take the mask off and just be yourself. I personally spent a lot of my life performing and I can assure you, it had no benefit.

Further, being your authentic self means being true to your why — which is kind of a big deal when it comes to making decisions for your company and the people you are responsible for. When you are authentic in the office, in team meetings and when interacting with clients, it gives others the space to behave in the same way — which makes for an overall more positive working environment.

Being authentic helps you attract the right people and opportunities

People want to work with and buy from people they like and trust. When you’re an authentic business owner, attracting the right people, clients and opportunities can happen naturally. Not every offering is for every person — and that’s the way it should be. From your job postings to the content on your website, the services you offer and the ways you conduct business, when you’re authentic in how you show up, you attract those who are in alignment with you and who you can best serve.

Being authentic forges stronger relationships

For most of us, having authentic relationships is powerful for business sustainability and growth. Authenticity helps turn transactions into deeper, more meaningful interactions that result in lasting relationships (and, let’s be real: more joy!). Having a level of comfortability with your clients and people means you can get to the heart of what they’re struggling with, what their goals are and what keeps them up at night so you can truly be a source of value to them.

Part of being in business also means making mistakes. Whether you’ve been in business for five months, five years or five decades, mistakes happen. When they do, having a quality relationship with your people and clients means greater forgiveness and understanding when things go awry.

How to be more authentic in your business

Being more authentic at work sounds great. But how do you maintain that balance of authenticity and professionalism?

• Be vulnerable: No one has all the answers. When you don’t, speak up! Sharing when you don’t know what the right next move is, or the best way to solve a problem, eases the need of those around you to have everything figured out, too.

• Share about yourself: Share a story about your family from over the weekend. Or a personal goal you’re working toward and how it’s going. Or heck, something silly your dog did last night. (We love a funny dog story around here!) Opening up about yourself allows people to get to know you better and forms a stronger bond.

• Listen: Let your people and clients share what they’ve got going on. Ask them how they spent their holiday, how their kids’ sports teams are performing this season or how the latest house project they tackled went. People like to talk about themselves. Plus, knowing about your people helps foster a real relationship and gives you topics to connect on time and time again.

• Relax: Just be human! Give yourself grace to have a bad day.