Authenticity: The Honest Trait

When we are authentic we need not worry about what we said or did. An honest, true lifestyle spreads a sense of genuineness around. Our authenticity reflects in the work we do, people we talk to, and in our behaviour. An authentic life led with honesty brings honor, grace and equanimity in our existence. Over time we-human tend to cut corners, take shortcuts, and by-pass morality. But then we can’t avoid our conscience. We can’t out think the omnipotent. We can’t out maneuver our souls. We are answerable to our inner self and we can’t avoid it. When our pursuits are in sync with our morality, it sets us free. It empowers us. It gives us strength.

Authenticity leads to honor, provides strength and does unshackle us. Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It’s about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.

• To be authentic means:
• To be more concerned with truth than opinions
• To be sincere and not pretend
• To be free from hypocrisy – to walk your talk- to know who you are and to be that person
• To not fear others seeing your vulnerabilities
• Being confident to walk away from situations where you can’t be yourself
• Being awake to your own feelings
• Being free from others’ opinions of you
• Accepting and loving yourself
• Often misconstrued, authenticity is not about being an open book, revealing every detail of yourself without rhyme or reason. It is simply the act of openly and courageously seeing what needs to be seen, saying what needs to be said, doing what needs to be done, and becoming that which you are intent on being. How we enter and honor our relationships, treat others and ourselves, give and receive; these are all measures of life lived with integrity.

Reject the fake life. Reject the life of the fraud. Reject the personal life, the masked life. Stop faking it. Stop living in bad faith. Shatter the false ceiling. Become who you are. Become authentic. Get active. Get real. Get going.  Real people are comfortable being themselves and don’t have to think about what they want. They laugh out loud and they eat when they’re hungry and they say what they’re thinking no matter who is listening. If we can share our own interruptions, our real life experiences, we can better navigate those interruptions with grace and move forward to stand in power in authenticity and truth. You are more than a number, a like or a vote. You are a voice. You are part of an authentic collective that is heard, honored and amplified and followed.

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Don’t let the expectations and opinions of other people affect your decisions. It’s your life, not theirs. Do what matters most to you; do what makes you feel alive and happy. Don’t let the expectations and ideas of others limit who you are. If you let others tell you who you are, you are living their reality — not yours. There is more to life than pleasing people. There is much more to life than following others’ prescribed path. There is so much more to life than what you experience right now. You need to decide who you are for yourself. Become a whole being. Because true belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world, our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance. Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free. Your ability and desire to try things out, make mistakes and, at times, make a fool of yourself, are a big part of why being imperfect will be core to your long-term success.

If you find yourself criticizing other people, you’re probably doing it out of resistance. When we see others beginning to live their authentic selves, it drives us crazy if we have not lived out our own. Individuals who are realized in their own lives almost never criticize others. if they speak at all, it is to offer encouragement. Watch yourself. Of all the manifestations of resistance, most only harm ourselves. Criticism and cruelty harm others as well. The greatest leaders always looked inward and were able to tell a good story with authenticity and passion. You might think that, as an executive, admitting mistakes shows weakness, but handled in the right way, it actually shows strength. Those who are resilient have a bias for action. They don’t wallow. They learn, and then move on, beyond failure. Being comfortable and unafraid to live in your own authenticity is radical. Revolutionary people don’t have to try so hard to be who they say they are. They exude it and live it effortlessly in their natural state.

You’ll learn, as you get older, that rules are made to be broken. Be bold enough to live life on your terms, and never, ever apologize for it. Go against the grain, refuse to conform, take the road less traveled instead of the well-beaten path. Laugh in the face of adversity, and leap before you look. Dance as though everybody is watching. March to the beat of your own drummer. And stubbornly refuse to fit in. The greatest challenge in life is to be our own person and accept that being different is a blessing and not a curse. A person who knows who they are lives a simple life by eliminating from their orbit anything that does not align with his or her overriding purpose and values. A person must be selective with their time and energy because both elements of life are limited.

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It doesn’t matter what age you are, what colour you are, or what race you are. As humans, we all want to be loved and appreciated for who we are. We have values and beliefs, and it is with these values and beliefs that we are different, that life gets to be amazing. Never try to change people for who they are, appreciate them instead. A human being who deeply looks into himself or herself and asks: Who am I? What is the meaning of life? Why am I here? Why is anything here? Why are other people here? And so forth, begins to find within himself or herself their authentic beliefs. Finding your authenticity gives you the path to be yourself. It gives you freedom. It gives you strength and power which no one else in this world has.

The suggestion then is to lead an honest life. And the satisfaction and calm it brings is incomparable.

The sense of having chosen the right path is divine.

~Ajay Rathee