Authenticity

I’ve been interested for a while about authenticity in daily living.

Authenticity is about being honest and genuine. It means being honest with yourself and in your relationships, relating to others meaningfully, and not trying to be something you’re not.

Simple enough in theory but to achieve or approach true authenticity, you must at times have the courage to speak even when it’s uncomfortable. This can be difficult.

People want candor. They want to connect with someone down to earth who speaks their mind and isn’t afraid of common sense truth. They want to feel like they’re talking to someone real. When you show people who you actually are, you give them permission to do the same. Authenticity inspires.

Naval Ravikant argues that you escape competition through authenticity. Competition leads to copycatting, to playing the game completely wrong. Being genuine, being ethical, is magnetic to the right people. You stop chasing and start attracting.

Implicit in all of this, have an opinion. Never hesitate to describe with confidence your impression, perception and feeling. Your honest read of a situation.

Yet why is it so hard to shake off the cultural pressure of “don’t judge”? Important distinction: being judgmental is not synonymous with being intolerant. The ability to make judgments is a defining characteristic of being human. Whether we care to admit it, human beings profile. Rather than avoiding it, we should strive to improve it.

When someone takes an unpopular position, find out what they were actually putting forward. They might be onto something.

As Winston Churchill put it, “The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it and ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.” Embrace authenticity. Speak your mind without fear.