How Real Are You?

No matter what you do, are you yourself? Or do you adopt a second front of who you think people want you to be? Lately that is the question I’ve been getting from anything I listen to. The term that keeps slapping me in the face and we seem to hear on a recurring basis, Authenticity. I feel I am a very authentic person. There may be a couple aspects of myself I don’t really broadcast, but for the most part, you get me.

If you ask me, when I talk to someone, I can usually tell if they are putting up a face. The interaction seems forced. Anybody else able to sense this? Usually this is a turn off. The interaction ends and you don’t necessarily care to interact with them again. As difficult as it is, we need to let loose. I’ve come to find that in most situations, people connect with people they share similar ideas with, similar experiences.

Everyone will not connect with everyone and I don’t think we’re supposed to. All personalities don’t mesh as well as others. As a society in general, it seems we need to work on accepting that as well as working with it better. We don’t all have the same idea’s either and we don’t have too. We can still connect with each other over a few commonalities.

Some may not agree, but I tend to gravitate towards those who are authentic with me. They aren’t afraid to let a four letter word slip occasionally. They can laugh when they screw up at something and admit they are a horrible at some things. Nobody can relate to someone who is perfect. We as humans forget, screw up, fail, do things wrong a lot before we figure out the right way. We have horrible days and we may say the wrong thing without realizing it. I also have a larger amount of respect for people who can own what they do. Life is not polished, that’s fake.

Would anyone agree that in anything in life, you gravitate away from people who are not themselves. Since you really can’t relate? I’ve had a hard time showing the messy parts of my life, I’m getting better. The more I do so, the more people tend to relate to me, because its normal. Nobody has every part of their life together. As much as I want to get a picture of my toddler when he’s screaming because of who knows what, I can never find my phone. I still can’t bring myself to take a picture of myself when I’m having a rough day and I need to break down. Just not there yet. But it happens, I cry really ugly and I feel one hell of a lot better after.

I’m not sure if people are just so close off that they don’t want to admit they do things like that. Folks that was me for a long time. I’m a really emotional person, I’ve cried to a boss multiple times because of stress. (any bosses love that employee?) I’ve come to accept that I need a good cry sometimes to get my stress an emotion out so that I can function again.

If you’re a business owner, you have a brand, or whatever the case may be. Do you ever get real with your clients or customers? Instead of acting like you really have everything together and nothing ever hits the fan, do you tell them you’re having a rough day? People relate to rough days. I get wanting to look polished, but sometimes it not a bad thing to go behind the scenes and give a glance.

So again I ask, are you authentic with yourself? With your friends? With your teams? Do you let them know when they will be going into a rough patch so they can be prepared for it? Do you get to know them so you can level with them when either one need it? People work harder and smarter when they can relate to you. People do better when there is a relationship there instead of just getting and email telling them they need to have this done ASAP.