Clegg breaks down five concrete moves for authentic leadership: align your actions with your stated values, admit mistakes publicly, ask for candid feedback, stay transparent to kill rumors, and drop command-and-control. The payoff is better innovation and team communication.
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I bet you, like many people, are really tired of hearing the word authentic.
We all have to be authentic. Authentic. Instead of being annoyed at the buzzword authentic, why don't we learn what it's all about? Being authentic means being yourself. And not only being yourself, but being the best version of yourself. The first step is aligning your actions with your values. If your team doesn't understand or know what your values are, that's the first place to start. Everything starts with your values because that's where your standards come from, the values. You must embrace vulnerability in your successes and in your setbacks. That means if you make a mistake, fall on your sword. And not only fallen on your sword, but fall on your sword publicly. So the team sees that you're not afraid to make a mistake and admit to those mistakes. It also sends off a signal to the rest of the team that it's okay to make a mistake, that they can take educated risk. Because those educated risks are where all the great ideas come from. And those great ideas lead to higher levels of innovation. And part of vulnerability is you need to give your team permission to give you feedback and go even a step further and make it an expectation that you expect them to provide you feedback. This creates the whole communication of the feedback loop. And when they do give you feedback, stop listening. Make sure you're paying attention and you hear what they're saying to you. Don't interrupt them. Don't be defensive. Just listen. Now, to be an authentic leader, you have to provide transparency, keeping your team informed and engaged on decisions or things that you may have to communicate to them, even if it's bad news. Lacking transparency creates a vacuum in the communication model and in this gap. Your employees will actually fill in the gap with rumors, innuendos, and guessing what's about to come. The more transparent you are with them, the more transparent that they'll be with you. So step away from your typical leadership models. If you're command and control, stop. Be yourself. Authenticity is a unique power because there's only one of you. Implement these strategies and witness a transformative shift in your leadership style. And creating a workplace where authenticity equ is encouraged. And not only encouraged, but celebrated. Raise your game. Become an authentic leader. Be yourself. Because you are the only you.
