To thine own self be true, even at work
Posted on April 17, 2023 by TJ Bennett, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
My goal is to help people get what they want, without having to turn into someone else to make it happen.
Several years back, the agency I was at had a consultant come in to help us understand everyone’s work styles. For me, one of the biggest things that came up was a need to be myself on the job. I hated the idea of having a separate “office” personality. To be successful I needed to show up—to use an intensely overused but still useful word—authentically.
I shared this info with a colleague, assuming he would have a similar POV (didn’t everyone?) and would nod his head in solidarity. But instead, he gave me this look like I had 12 heads and none of them were screwed on quite right. Be yourself at work? What kind of Pollyanna nonsense is that?
I’ve thought a lot about that conversation a lot over the years. What drives this need for authenticity? For me, it ultimately comes down to truth. Success without truth is not success. If anything, it’s the worst kind of failure, one we can never learn from if we remain blind to the lies that prop it up.
Being yourself is the only way. To be who we truly are and to have others recognize, value and support it is the best definition of success I can think of. It’s how we can bring out the greatest strength and passion within each of us, to solve the biggest problems we face in the world.
It’s also really hard to do.
Being yourself does not mean resting on our laurels. Or expecting people to accept the worst parts of us, without challenge.
It’s about understanding our values and trying to live a life that comes close to living up to them. It’s about wanting more for ourselves and finding people and cultures that can help us get it. It’s about being okay with not fitting in everywhere and learning to trust our ability to recognize when it’s time to move on.
Being yourself is a difficult and lifelong process. But it’s worth it. Because a life spent chasing a lie is hardly a life at all.
When we’re truly being ourselves, we do our best work. We add the most value. We make the most impact. We inspire more people. We add more energy to the world. We make a difference.
The same holds true for organizations. When your brand acts according to its values, it inspires your employees. It empowers your leaders. It attracts others to you. And it will almost certainly turn some people off, which is the best way to know you’re doing it right.
For some, truth may not matter all that much. Perception is king, and any story that leads to the right kind of perception is worth the cost to your soul.
I don’t buy it. For me, and I have to imagine millions of others, truth is everything. And we can feel it slipping away in world filled with deep fakes, fake news and the Kardashianification of every moment.
I started The Pudding Factory so I could be true to myself, and hopefully help others (individuals and brands) do the same. It may prove to be the dumbest idea I’ve ever come up with. But I’ll take dumb over dishonest any day.
