Be Yourself,
Everyone Else is Already Taken
by Mike Robbins
Understanding Authenticity
• I have to get in people’s faces,
tell them how I think and feel,
Authenticity is often misunderstood
and let them know what’s on my
and misinterpreted. While most of
mind no matter what.
us understand what it means on the
• I have to be unique and creative.
surface — to be “ real ” — there is a
• I have to possess some kind of
much deeper awareness we must
special talent or skill.
have of ourselves and of life if we ’
• I have to be fearless and not
re going to be authentic in our work,
care what others think about
our relationships, and how we live.
me.
There are a few specific reasons
• I have to be passionate and
why authenticity is misunderstood.
always take risks.
First of all, it’s unique and personal
• I have to be a loner and someone
What Authenticity Really Is
for each of us, which can make it
who “marches to the beat of my
If you look up the word authenticity
difficult to define in a universal way.
own drum.”
on
Dictionary.com , the description
• I have to have had lots of
reads, “The quality of being
Second, what it means for us to
dramatic obstacles in my
authentic; genuineness.” When you
be “authentic” changes throughout
life that I’ve dealt with and
then go to the word authentic, there
our lives as we grow and evolve.
overcome.
are a few variations:
Third, due to the complex nature • Not false or copied; genuine;
of real authenticity, many of us
Some of the items on this list can,
real: an authentic antique.
are not willing to take an honest
in fact, be aspects of authenticity
• Having the origin supported
look at ourselves, speak our truth,
and important in our journey toward
by unquestionable evidence;
or live our lives in a way that is
deeper realness. The way we
authenticated; verified: an
true. This resistance is based on a
often try to put these myths into
authentic document of the
number of personal factors — fear of
action, however, are in the form of
Middle Ages; an authentic work
embarrassment, family programming,
ego - based posturing or superficial
of the old master.
societal expectations, and more.
behaviors that don’t amount to real
• Entitled to acceptance or belief
authenticity. Whenever we think
because of agreement with
What Authenticity Is Not
we have to
known facts or experience;
do or be any
reliable;
There are a number of common
particular
misconceptions of what it actually
“Personal authenticity is
trustworthy:
way, chances
an authentic
means to be authentic. These
are we not about proving anything
report on
misconceptions add to the confusion
aren’t being
we have about authenticity and also
to anyone; it’s about being
poverty in
authentic.
Africa.
make it that much more difficult for
While there’s
ourselves from our core.”
us to live authentic lives. Many of us
nothing
While all
think that in order to be authentic . . .
inherently
of these
wrong with anything on this list,
definitions make sense and
• I have to know exactly what I
authenticity is much deeper than
essentially reinforce our general
want to do with my life, where
this.
understanding that authenticity
I’m going, and what’s important means “realness” and “genuineness,”
to me at all times. for the purposes of this book and our
40
Fall 2009
aspiremag.net
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