No matter how much we deny it, we live in a world where there is non stop competition. We compare ourselves with our peers instead of looking at the individual progress we have made from the past. We find our motivation through affection from people around us, achieving new goals and milestones that others don't have the potential to set for themselves, etc. In between, how much authentic do we feel about ourselves? In order to be the best version of us for ourselves and to win people's faith, we must feel good and true inside of us. This post goes hand in hand with my post of January 2016 on gratitude. Authenticity is one of the most powerful keys to make peace with your life regardless of what kind of circumstances life throws at us.
Being authentic is about being able to live in and appreciate the present moment. As human beings, we are constantly focusing on moving forward in life that our present barely gets the attention it deserves. However, our thoughts, our behavior and our attitude towards the present can be a huge indicator of how our future will be shaped. Chances are if we are not enjoying the journey right now, we will not appreciate the destination. Therefore, it is important to be mindful about the present and to acknowledge that we are exactly where we are meant to be. By committing to the present, we are most likely going to be authentic to our other commitments such as life goals and relationships.
Being authentic is to be aware of our strengths and weaknesses. It is okay not to be perfect. Once we identify our strengths and weaknesses, nobody can use them against us. We may not be noticing the little progress we make day after day but in a year from today, we will not be the person we are today. Thus, it's important that we accept the fact that we are not a "finished product" but rather a "work-in-progress human being". In order to help people around us, we must be able to recognize what we can offer without willing to impress too hard or fake something that we can not offer. It's easy to impress people with the superficial but when we're comfortable being not perfect, we leave something more for people to remember us: we are sincere and we will be appreciated for being genuine.
Being authentic is to remain faithful to our values. Our family background, the friends we hang out with and our past journey are an interesting package that allows us to choose the values we believe in and that we want to carry wherever we go in life. It's important to have values because they create something unique out of us and they make us different from the rest of the people. It's good to get pulled out for a change once in a while but sticking to our life principles and not letting external factors or circumstances take away our main moral values show that we are resistant and resilient. Being loyal to ourselves goes beyond being honest. The latter just means that if we did something wrong, we confess it to ourselves and we usually feel guilty about it whereas being loyal is being thoughtful about the steps we take while keeping our values in mind.
I believe authenticity is a concept not widely spread or enough emphasized in today's world but when we are looking to make connections with people either on a personal or a professional level, a person who is authentic will always outweigh the one who isn't being his or her true self. It takes lots of courage along with vulnerability to present an authentic version of ourselves to others because nowadays most people are concerned more by the superficial than depth. Hence, we may not attract a high quantity of people towards us but we will attract the right quality of people towards us and that is more than enough to be at peace with our life and to make the most out of our life journey.
I believe authenticity is a concept not widely spread or enough emphasized in today's world but when we are looking to make connections with people either on a personal or a professional level, a person who is authentic will always outweigh the one who isn't being his or her true self. It takes lots of courage along with vulnerability to present an authentic version of ourselves to others because nowadays most people are concerned more by the superficial than depth. Hence, we may not attract a high quantity of people towards us but we will attract the right quality of people towards us and that is more than enough to be at peace with our life and to make the most out of our life journey.
