Authentic. Who I really am. The REAL YOU. The REAL Me.

True Authenticity might be the hardest thing for us to do as leaders. Deep down, we constantly want to be someone else, act like someone else, talk like our favorite speaker, pray like our favorite pastor, be funny like the guy who is always making everyone laugh. You get the point. We are wired to improve, get better, constantly change, and keep moving.

We wear the same clothes, memorize the same lines, tuck our shirts in the same way, tilt our hat similarly, drink the same coffee, watch the same TV shows, and somehow think that someday we'll be just like the other leaders we admire and try to emulate.

It's difficult to find contentment in the real you. The struggle between where you are and where you want to be. Between the now and the then, the starting point vs the finish line. It's a constant tension. But reality is, ultimately at some point the real you will always appear. It has to. And it should.

So spend time working on the real you vs. someone else. Everyone around you needs the real you.