“Explain how being authentic and present will lead to better results. Why is that so powerful? Why is it enough?
~ A confused client

One of my clients challenged me with this question some weeks back, and I’ve been working on developing a good answer! Here’s where I’ve come to so far–I’d love to hear what you might add.

Humans are social animals.

Even the most introverted of us need occasional interaction with other people. We need to be seen, we want to be known, we want to matter.

One of the most powerful actions you can take to love someone is to listen to them deeply without interrupting. I’ve never given myself over to listening to someone without noticing that they grew calmer and more secure, and I grew in my compassion and sensitivity toward them.

When I experience that kind of authentic listening, particularly in a group working toward a common goal, I feel less like I need to protect myself. I can trust that the team will keep me safe. I can take risks, offer more of myself, and even risk making mistakes. In other words, I can offer more to the team when I feel seen, known, and safe.

When we don’t experience that we belong or that our team has our back, we put significant energy into keeping ourselves safe. We manage other people’s perceptions of us, maintain CYA files, and justify our actions and decisions. All that activity is lost productivity–it’s like a tax on our ability to get things done and leaves us feeling anxious and defeated.

Teamwork makes the dream work.

As everyone on the team starts having these experiences of love, connection, and safety, a flywheel starts spinning in a positive direction. We can store energy so that when we hit a bump–whether from external circumstances or someone on the team making a mistake–that stored energy can keep us moving until we can arrive at the next opportunity to add energy to the flywheel.

On the other hand, if the group’s experience is every person for themselves, then when there’s dishonesty, hypercriticism, hurtful language, or activity, the flywheel slows down. With no stored energy, any bump or misunderstanding can set the whole team out of kilter, and you lose significant productivity.

Finally, this is doubly important if your team needs creativity to do its work or solve challenges. Creative work thrives in an environment of trust. Artists collectives, tic-toc houses, writer’s groups, and research labs are all environments where the group creates safety to try new things–even things that might fail.

What did I miss or leave out? How have you seen authenticity and presence boost your people’s and your team’s performance?