How to Lead with Authenticity, Heart and Conviction

In all my years of Executive Coaching C-level execs, senior leaders and managers I have seen a number of consistent themes pop up and I believe that there are three that are especially valuable. These three I label ‘authenticity’, ‘heart’ and ‘conviction’ and they form the basis of all of our leadership courses and coaching programs here at Illuminate Personal Growth.

The idea is that an effective leader has all three ingredients, in roughly equal measure. All three show up as values, attitudes and behaviours simultaneously.

So what is ‘Heart’?

The first element is all about having a deeper concern and compassion for others. This comes down to valuing what these other people value, actively listening to and welcoming their input and being genuine in your interactions with them. Heart is also about being kinder to yourself – but that is a blogpost for another time.

And ‘Conviction’?
The second element focuses on two things: communication and boundaries. How you communicate (body language and tone of voice) makes up around 90% of what is understood from your communication. Certainty in communication is everything. When a leader communicates with clarity and conviction s/he builds trust and inspires action. Similarly when she communicates her boundaries with conviction she sets the standards for how she is to be treated and by which she does business.

So, what is ‘Authentic Leadership’?
Lots of people actually Google ‘what’s the definition of authenticity’ but what does it really mean to be an authentic leader? To understand that let’s first explore what it means to be inauthentic.

To protect yourself from pain you will put up barriers and ‘wear’ masks, creating a false concept of who you are. Many clients share this idea during sessions, that they feel inauthentic at work because they can’t ever really be themselves. Corporate cultures, expectations and self-preservation all play a part in this phenomenon.

Inauthenticity however is tiring because it’s hard continually maintaining a façade that, in your heart, you know is not a true reflection of you, your thoughts or opinions. It is also hard to thrive when you are behaving inauthentically because you aren’t giving yourself permission to unleash your natural style or to present what you are truly capable of.

‘Authenticity’ then, is about being deeply honest with yourself. Being sincere about who you are and what you most need to thrive. I don’t believe Authenticity can be achieved 100% of the time. It sort of peaks and throughs and to achieve it more often, it simply takes regular conscious work to challenge where you are, ask yourself those harder, searching questions and to get yourself back on track. Like anything, with greater practice it becomes much easier to feel authentic most of the time.

What Happens When These Elements Are Imbalanced?

Some clients, who are ‘all-Heart’ might find themselves having reviews that say they need to be more assertive or they need to ‘step up’.

Some clients, who are ‘all-Conviction’ might find themselves creating a lot of conflict, feel isolated from their teams and be told that they are too aggressive.

When authenticity is imbalanced, you are simply feeling inauthentic. You might be allowing your boundaries and values to be compromised (either by yourself or by others). You may know that ‘something isn’t right’ or ‘something needs to be said’ but you allow it to slip causing you to feel guilt, shame or self-judgment.

EXERCISE
This exercise requires you to be really honest with yourself. You are going to explore how balanced your leadership style is. In your notebook, draw a line.

At one end write ‘Heart’ and at the other ‘Conviction’. Mark the centre of the line. You now have a sliding spectrum. If you feel that generally you are ‘more-Heart’ centric, draw an asterisk towards ‘Heart’ and likewise, if you feel you are ‘more-Conviction’ centric, plant your asterisk nearer that end of the spectrum.

What is this telling you? In some situations (or with some people) does your behaviour move somewhere else along the spectrum?

Draw a second line. At one end write Inauthentic (not myself) and at the other end write Authentic (fully myself). If you are feeling honest with yourself at work, you have clear and respected boundaries and you feel like you’re operating at the top of your game – in flow, assured and thriving – your asterisk will be up there next to Authenticity. What’s your score?

Contact us if you would like to run a bespoke “Authentic Leadership to Make a Positive Impact” training within your organisation.

© Rebecca Allen 2019, Illuminate Personal Growth. All rights reserved.

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