Are You an Authentic Leader or an Authentic Jerk?

Perceiving a “holier than thou” attitude

makes others more vigilant about detecting

even the smallest error.

This typically doesn’t work. The more insecure we

are, the more likely others will pick up on our attempts

to protect our image.

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Instead of reassuring others of

our authenticity, our defensiveness makes people more

inclined to doubt it.

This is true even when we have fallen short of our val-

ues because external obstacles have prevented us from

acting in alignment with them. During her long tenure

at an organization with a strong macho culture, Celia

had witnessed minority groups at a disadvantage, but

her advocacy for fairness and more equal opportunities

had gone nowhere. When a new CEO whose values

aligned with ...