Be yourself! This is the advice that mothers, fathers, grandparents and friends give when we have a job interview, a serious conversation with someone who imposes on us, or a public presentation. It is the most widespread practical advice among people who love us at a decisive moment: be yourself.
Although some academics suggest that ‘being yourself’ is a bad advice, as it can diminish the self-regulatory factors that allow us to live in society with a certain harmony, and prevent us from automatically saying what we think, as this would have dire consequences, the academic literature on the authenticity of people in organisations is a subject of growing attention and with remarkable individual and organisational benefits.
Strangers and outsiders: the aligned professional
Authenticity is a subjective experience of alignment between the sense of self, and external expressions[4]. In other words, it is the living expression of what we are. Authenticity is the opposite of alienation, feeling alienated from oneself. Alienation was one of the great concepts developed by social sciences at the height of the industrial revolution. Social scientists perceived how men, women, boys and girls who began to work in factories felt alienation, they were not themselves. There is
The million-dollar question would be: How many 21st century employees still feel alienated in their organisations?
Among the interesting concepts that have emerged recently regarding authenticity in organisations, this article will present three: authentic functionality, authentic leadership, and authentic personality. For more details on other concepts related to authenticity in organisations, read
this article.