Last year I read Bill George's first book - Authentic Leadership, a true reflection of what leaders ought to be, a true reflection of Bill George! The book was holistic from style to values to overcoming hurdles and setbacks a true leader needs to be able to handle.
I was reminded of the book this morning when I came across an article on FastCompany - Who Do You Love? Brand-Authenticity (the title of this essay is excerpt from the article).
The article is focused on brands and products but is just as extensible into authentic leadership as relayed by Bill in this classic. Following are some nuggets from the article.
What does it take to be authentic?
Authenticity constantly requires reinforcement, and it can come from a number of sources: craftsmanship, timeliness, relevance. But it is a brand's values--the emotional connection it makes--that truly define its realism. And there are four primary strands that draw out that connection.
- A sense of place. "Authenticity comes from a place we can connect with,"
- A strong point of view. Authenticity also emerges from "people with a deep passion for what they are doing,"
- Serving a larger purpose. Consumers quite rightly believe, until they're shown otherwise, that every brand is governed by an ulterior motive: to sell something. But if a brand can convincingly argue that its profit-making is only a by-product of a larger purpose, authenticity sets in. "Just as there are purpose-driven lives,"
- Integrity. Authenticity comes to a brand that is what it says it is. In other words, "the story that the brand tells through its actions aligns with the story it tells through its communications,"
How do you stay authentic even as you get big?
- Ubiquity might not be toxic to authenticity, but it certainly dilutes it. When a brand spreads far beyond its home turf, its branches almost invariably (though not inevitably) weaken
- growth and authenticity are not wholly incompatible
Can you be authentic when you're trying to be authentic?
- Authenticity is necessary, but it cannot be compelled
- And therein lies an authentic paradox: A brand doesn't feel real when it overtly tries to make itself real. To the hypertargeted consumer, baldly billboarding a brand's message smacks of insincerity
Can you be cool and still be authentic?
- To maintain its integrity, a brand must remain true to its values. And yet, to be relevant--or cool--a brand must be as dynamic as change itself. An authentic brand reconciles those two conflicting impulses, finding ways to be original within the context of its history
