Authenticity is often described as being genuine, honest and undisputed, as opposed to being false or fake. In psychology, this is referred to the attempt to live your life in accordance with your inner self, your absolute core, rather than external pressures or conditioning.
Authentic can also be termed as the value of being real and believable, not resorting to manipulation or misrepresentation. This implies that actions and words are congruent with the beliefs and values of the person, and people are who they claim to be, or how they appear to be.
People who are authentic, generally do not act how they believe they should act or say what they should say, but rather do what they believe in and say what they want to, bringing to the fore their skills, nature, experience, and wisdom.
What does a higher score mean?
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You are authentic and do only what you believe to be true to you. You are attuned to your inner self and strive to align your actions with your thoughts and feelings. You say what you mean and mean what you say.
What does a lower score mean?
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You are not averse to using an alternate persona to meet your ends, keeping goal top of mind rather than authenticity. While you may be attuned to your inner core and true self, you conform to the social expectations and act as you believe is expected.
To nurture your Authenticity:
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Really try to understand who you are and what motivates you, define your principles and your values and adhere to them in all respects. Don’t hide who you are because you feel it will be unpopular or disliked. Keep an open mind when others are also displaying their authentic selves, embrace the dissimilar characteristics, try to learn from them or open up to new perspectives.
Use this checklist for self-evaluation
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Do you consider yourself self-aware?
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Do you trust your intuition?
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Are you clear on what you believe in and stand by it?
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Do you feel like you are conflicted between what you say and what you do?
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Do you strive to be liked by everyone?
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Are you open to feedback from others?
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Do you keep an open mind when meeting people dissimilar to you?
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Can you keep track of when you feel you are being inauthentic and then cultivate change?
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