Are you "Authentic"?

Something I've been thinking a lot about is authenticity, and the reason I've been thinking a lot about it is because everything else I think about seems to point back towards it. This thing we talk about so often that nobody really knows the meaning of. The idea of being authentic, being your "true self".

Here's the unbelievable thing I've come to realize recently through a number of conversations, and just watching things play out around me: this thing, whatever it is, that we call authenticity, is absolutely the key that unlocks the door to success, happiness, fulfillment, meaning, and all of the other things we're striving towards.

That might be a bold thing to say before even defining what I think authenticity is, but I first wanted to stress the importance of this, because it is absolutely no joke.

For this post, my plan is to bring you along on the search for a solid definition of authenticity, then give you some more concrete ways to assess yourself in this regard.

There are a lot of questions to answer here, and some of them are pretty deep. And some of them I can't  say I have all the answers to. Remember, I'm just a strangely curious twenty-year-old college student. But I'll lay out my perspective, and we'll see if it's worth something.

And that’s exactly what this is all about. I might write this post and nobody cares to read it. Or worse, a lot of people disagree with it, and tell me I did something terrible by writing it.

But even in that unfortunate situation, I'd learn something. I'd learn that I might've been wrong, and that I should adjust my perspective. Or, I'd have solid rebuttals to all points made against me, and I would become stronger in my perspective. But no matter what, I would carry the lessons I learn with me through to the rest of my life, and teach those lessons to everyone I have the opportunity to.

But none of those lessons would've been learned if I didn't decide to put my authentic self out there and see what happened as a result.

Now hopefully that's not the result of this, but maybe that example sheds some light on what I'm trying to say: When you act true to yourself, you find out as quickly and efficiently as possible how you could or should act.

Consider your role models. How do you think they achieved the level of success and conviction they have today? I would guess they got there by being bold enough to dive into the things that set them apart, by acting on the worldview that they knew may not have been popular, but that they trusted because it was theirs. 

So with that in mind, what is authenticity?

Well it isn't just a push. It's not just forcing your views and ideas on everyone around you. It's also a pull, meaning authenticity involves being just as honest about what you don't know as you are about what you do. Genuine curiosity is, I would argue, the root of true authenticity. I don't write these posts because I think I am a credible person to write them--I write them partially because I'm curious if I'm right. I'm testing hypotheses.

And that's what authenticity is--it's testing what you believe to be true about the world by acting on it. 

But let’s bring this down to earth a little bit, and answer some more relatable questions. Like How do you know if you’re authentic? How do you actually become authentic? 

We’ll go in order.

How do you know if you’re authentic?

Well, I guess you can judge your authenticity by your ability to answer these questions:

• When you have an idea, what do you do about it?
• What are 5 issues that you hold strong opinions about? Where do those opinions come from?
• How much time do you spend chasing goals that you yourself set, and weren’t imposed on you by other people?
• What’s one thing you can do that nobody else can? How could you use that to help the world? 

So maybe those questions are terrifying to you. And hey, fair enough–why would you have answers to those? Assuming you’re a student or a corporate employee, we are rarely put in situations that force us to find those answers. Which brings me to the next question.

How do you actually become authentic? 

I would argue that you do this by actually setting yourself up for authenticity, and giving your mind some real freedom to figure itself out. Which, to me, is completely an issue of your schedule and time management. 

This goes back to the fourth question above: How much time do you spend chasing goals that you yourself set, and weren’t imposed on you by other people?

It turns out that forming your own opinions, having your own ideas, and acting on those ideas and opinions actually takes time. Time spent learning about things you care about, and acting on those things in a way that’s meaningful to you. 

But you’re probably thinking, how much time? And what am I actually supposed to do with it? 

Well in order to answer the first question, you have to answer the second. Only you know the goals you have that you aren’t putting enough attention towards. 

For me, those goals have been simple things like reading a book I’ve been meaning to read, or less simple things like ideas I’ve had that haven’t made it out of my Apple notes.

Now I know what you’re thinking: “Well I’m really busy, and I am working really hard toward my career goals, so I don’t have any extra time to put towards anything else right now.” That’s great, but ask yourself again, are any of the goals you’re chasing yours? Or are they the same goals that everyone else around you has? Are you just plugging into some goal-setting mechanism that you were pushed into, or are you genuinely building your own?

It’s easy to feel like we’re being productive, and like we’re doing some good. Because whether we are or aren’t, as long as we’re working hard, we tend to label that hard work as “virtue”.

But at some point, you have to be bold enough to dive into the things that set you apart. It might seem like a stupid thing to do, and at first it probably will be, but you’ll be amazed by what you learn about yourself in the process. 

And lastly, don’t fall into the trap of thinking there’s nothing unique enough about you to make authenticity something worth pursuing. One of the most amazing things about us as humans is the stark differences in the ways each of us view the world. But many go their whole lives without realizing how unique their perspectives and abilities are, because they never act on them. Don’t make that mistake.

So with that, I’ll open it up for discussion. If you think I might've left some questions unanswered here, always feel free to email me at nathan@catalystxl.co. Or, if you want to put this idea of authenticity into practice, leave a comment with your perspective. 

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