Authenticity, Identity, and Being Yourself at Work (HBR Work Smart Series)

1 Getting Comfortable Being Yourself at Work

by Lan Nguyen Chaplin

I’m a business professor who has visible tattoos, seven earrings, and, on any given week, purple, blue, or pink hair. I come into work later than others and leave early to pick up my kids. I take Zoom calls in a hoodie in my backyard. During the past few years, there’s been a lot of talk about what it means to be professional while presenting authentically. There’s also been a lot of encouragement around bringing our full selves to our jobs. We’re all aware of the benefits of being yourself at work: more life satisfaction, greater well-being, and higher levels of motivation, performance, and productivity.

Typically, though, being yourself while being taken seriously is ...