Photo credit: Success Magazine
“Authenticity requires a certain measure of vulnerability, transparency, and integrity.” – Janet Louise Stephenson.
1. Genuine people don’t try to make people like them.
They are who they are. They know that some people will like them and some won’t. And they are OK with that. It’s not as if they don’t care about whether or not people will like them but simply that they’re not going to let that get in the way of doing the right thing. They’re willing to make unpopular decisions and to take unpopular positions if that’s what needs to be done.
Since they aren’t desperate for attention, they don’t try to show off. They know that when they speak in a friendly, confident, and concise manner, people are much more attentive to and interested in what they have to say than if they try to show that they are important. People catch on to your attitude quickly and are more attracted to the right attitude than what or how many people you know.
2. They don’t pass judgement. They are open-minded, which makes them approachable and interesting to others. No one wants to have a conversation with someone who has already formed an opinion and is not willing to listen.
3. They forge their own paths. They don’t derive their sense of pleasure and satisfaction from the opinions of others, which frees them up to follow their own internal compasses. They know who they are and don’t pretend to be anything else. Their direction comes from within, from their own principles and values. They do what they believe is the right thing, and they’re not swayed by the fact that somebody might not like it.
4. They are generous. They are unfailingly generous with whom they know, what they know, and the resources they have access to. They want you to do well more than anything else because they’re team players and they’re confident enough to never worry that your success might make them look bad. In fact, they believe your success is their success.
5. They treat everyone with respect. Whether interacting with their biggest clients or servers taking their drink orders, genuine people are unfailingly polite and respectful. They understand that no matter how nice they are to the people they have lunch with, it’s all for nought if those people witness them behaving badly toward others. They treat everyone with respect because they believe they’re no better than anyone else.
6. They aren’t motivated by material things. They don’t need shiny, fancy stuff in order to feel good. It’s not that they think it’s wrong to go out and buy the latest and greatest items to show off their status, they just don’t need this to be happy. Their happiness comes from within, as well as from the simpler pleasures – such as friends, family, and a sense of purpose – that make life rich.
7. They’re trustworthy. People gravitate toward them because they know they can trust them. It is difficult to like someone when you don’t know who they really are and how they really feel. Genuine people mean what they say, and if they make a commitment, they keep it. You’ll never hear a truly genuine person say, “Oh, I just said that to make the meeting end faster.”
8. They’re thick-skinned. They have a strong enough sense of self that they don’t go around seeing offence that isn’t there. If somebody criticizes one of their ideas, they don’t treat this as a personal attack. There’s no need for them to jump into conclusions, feel insulted and start plotting their revenge. They’re able to objectively evaluate negative and constructive feedback, accept what works, put it into practice, and leave the rest of it behind without developing hard feelings.
9. They put away their phones. They focus all their energy on the conversation. Their genuine interest in other people makes it easy for them to ask good questions and relate what they’re told to other important facets of the speaker’s life.
10. They aren’t driven by ego. They don’t make decisions based on their egos because they don’t need the admiration of others to feel good about themselves. Likewise, they don’t seek the limelight or try to take credit for other people’s accomplishments. They simply do what needs to be done without saying, “Hey, look at me!”
11. They aren’t hypocrites. they practice what they preach. They don’t tell you to do one thing and do the opposite themselves. That’s largely due to their self-awareness.
12. They don’t brag. They are confident with their accomplishments, but they also realize that when you truly do something that matters, it stands on its own merits, regardless of how many people notice or appreciate it.
Conclusion: Genuine people know who they are. They are confident enough to be comfortable in their own skin. They are firmly grounded in reality, and they’re truly present in each moment because they’re not trying to figure out someone else’s agenda or worrying about their own.
Source: Forbes Magazine
