Lance Secretan defines authenticity as the alignment of head, mouth, heart, and feet - thinking, saying, feeling, and doing the same thing - consistently. He believes authenticity builds trust, and followers love leaders they can trust. Are you authentic or are you exhausted trying to be what you are not. Desperately trying to be something you are not or bending yourself in a contortion trying to meet the expectations of others is not sustainable long-term. Having two different personas in public and in private can be both physically and emotionally draining. And if you are not careful, the right persona may show up in the wrong place and ruin everything you are trying so hard to build.

We all need to have a genuine passion for authenticity. If you are all about posing, the only person you truly fool is yourself. Majority of the people you are trying to impress see right through the façade. It's pretty simple - people either love you or they don't and if they don't, your life of pretense will not earn you the approval that you seek. Accept that you cannot please everyone. There will be folks who won't like you regardless of what you do so take steps to invest your energies elsewhere.

Let's stop acting. Let's start bringing our true selves to the table. Let's take off the mask we so often wear so we can demonstrate sincerity. If we are to truly influence as we should, we need to put aside all pretense and be real.