Authenticity, according to the Webster’s dictionary, is being genuine. Genuine, suggests Webster’s, means not being a hypocrite. And, at last, to be a hypocrite is "to feign qualities or beliefs that one does not actually possess or hold, especially a pretense of piety or moral superiority."

So to be a truly genuine — or authentic — leader requires a few things: To ensure one’s corporate actions and rhetoric are aligned; to ensure that such actions are meaningful (as opposed to superficial, headline-grabbing actions that don’t permeate or take root beyond the organization’s need for disingenuous publicity); and to ensure that one’s public persona and private core are not at odds. And we wonder why it’s so lonely at the proverbial "top," or why truly authentic leadership is a rarity.

Even without the great degree of personal discernment required for Plato’s examined life, it can be challenging for many leaders to ensure that their own and the organization’s rhetoric is borne out in the actions taken individually and collectively. We don’t have to dig too deep to find an ample supply of corporate hypocrisy that is the result of a disconnect between good intention (or, perhaps, good spin) and follow-through.

No, in most cases it’s not a matter of evil people doing evil things for purposes of unmitigated self-gratification, or so I’d really like to believe. It’s just that it’s pretty easy to say things, to read a speech about vision and ideals, to inaugurate a new initiative with a lofty tagline. To dub the company World Class, Ground Up. It’s not so easy to get an organization that has assumed a life of its own, driven more and more by the insatiable appetite of shareholder value, to actually be that ideal. The proof is in the follow-through. That’s where the level of leadership commitment and influence becomes, often painfully, evident.

And small businesses aren’t immune. I know from my own experience as a business owner that it’s very easy to quite authentically believe in a course of action, only to quite authentically find that it’s not the best course of action a week later. To get excited about a new idea, only to find out the idea’s time has not yet come, or worse, it’s not realistic in practice. Without straight-forward communication, clearly articulated expectations, and an authentic, stable core vision, the sort of strategic vacillation common to both entrepreneurial companies and large corporations can force a disconnect between that which is spoken and that which is done.

We’ve all heard the grapevine stories about organizations large and small that tout one thing publically while doing quite another behind closed doors. Examples would include the communication firm that doesn’t practice skillful communication; or the large corporation that’s recognized for its great work environment while it conducts round after round of layoffs and is permeated by a real culture of enforced workaholism. Or the large company that, in a competitive job market, perpetuates the myth that it’s "flat" by calling its leaders "coaches" or its employees "associates" or "team members." Is it any wonder that we live in a decade in which corporate spin and employee cynicism have skyrocketed?

In any organization, whatever the size, a truly authentic leader gets ahead of the often unavoidable, sometimes unpleasant business realities, and communicates both realities and possibilities in a context of uncompromising honesty. He or she withstands the temptation to adopt popular buzz words just for effect if he knows there’s inadequate commitment to long-term support required for an initiative or ideal to take root and survive within an organization on its own volition. She doesn’t pretend the company’s without hierarchy when both its size and its production requirements make hierarchy of some sort a necessity.

Truly authentic leadership may, indeed, be more possible in privately owned companies, given the tremendous pressure on leaders in public companies to squeeze every possible penny of profit for shareholders, regardless of the deleterious effect on the organization’s culture, employees or customers. Are the chief executives of large, public companies—like most politicians—more like actors than true leaders?

What we do know is if the market analysts are watching, organizational leaders may, or may not, be standing on the sideline struggling with issues of leadership and authenticity as they ultimately make the decision that brings value to the shareholder rather than an assurance of authenticity in the reflection of the mirror.

This information provides food for thought rather than counsel specifically designed to meet the unique needs of you and your organization or situation. Please read consciously and apply any new strategies or tactics mindfully. The most effective approaches are those that are tailored to your unique needs, Have questions? We welcome your inquiry.

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