Welcome back to the Look and Sound of Leadership, an ongoing series of executive

coaching tips designed to help you be perceived in the workplace the way you

want to be perceived. I'm Tom Henschel, your executive coach, and today we're talking

about achieving authenticity. Jesse's boss wanted her to be more bold.

Jesse wanted that for herself too.

During one of our first conversations, she said,

one thing I've been doing to try to become more bold is to speak up sooner.

I see other people do it and I know it works.

But when I try it, I get completely self-conscious and awkward like I'm watching myself give a really bad

performance. It feels completely inauthentic to me. I don't think I can be bold if I'm feeling

phony. I don't think I can be bold if I'm feeling phony."

That comment from her began a conversation that lasted for several months about what it means

to be authentic.

Addressing her concern about being phony, I replied,

To me, that sounds like the self-consciousness that comes when you learn anything new.

New behaviors obviously can't feel as integrated as lifelong habits but

that awkwardness doesn't mean you're not being authentic you're just continuing

your development authentically.

She mulled that over and then said,

so I just need to be an authentic version of myself

that happens to speak up sooner.

She liked that.

...