Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of WERC.
We don’t have a leadership crisis—we have an authenticity crisis. Across industries, employees aren’t disengaged because they lack direction or resources; they’re disengaged because they don’t believe their leaders. The growing gap between what leaders say and how they act has eroded trust in organizations everywhere. Gallup’s 2024 State of the Global Workplace report found that only 21% of employees strongly agree that their leaders are genuinely honest and ethical. A Gartner study echoed the concern, revealing that nearly 70% of employees believe their leaders fail to model the behavior they expect from others. That gap—between intention and perception—is what I call “The Authenticity Gap.”
Over the years, I’ve led large teams, coached executives, and researched the dynamics of leadership authenticity. The pattern is always the same: When leaders drift from their values, they lose credibility. When they realign words and behavior, trust and performance follow. Authenticity is no longer a soft skill—it’s a strategic advantage.
1. Know Yourself Before You Try To Lead Others
Authenticity begins with self-awareness. You can’t project what you don’t understand. The most trusted leaders I’ve studied know their story—what shaped them, what they believe, and how they show up under stress. Yet, research by Dr. Tasha Eurich found that while 95% of people think they’re self-aware, only 10%-15% actually are. That disconnect is where blind spots, miscommunication, and mistrust are born.
Leaders who make self-awareness a habit—through reflection, feedback, and coaching—tend to make clearer, calmer, and more values-aligned decisions. They respond instead of react. They connect instead of control.
Action Step: Schedule 30 minutes each week for reflection. Ask yourself, “What motivated my decisions this week? Where did I act from fear instead of conviction?” Then seek feedback from trusted peers or a coach to expand your perspective.
2. Clarify and Live Your Core Values
In moments of pressure, your true leadership identity reveals itself. As one executive told me during my doctoral research, “Values aren’t values until they cost you something.” Authentic leaders make decisions anchored in conviction, not convenience.
When you clearly define your core values—and live them publicly—you create alignment and trust. According to a 2025 Harvard Business Review article by Robert Glazer, leaders who define and communicate their values make faster, better, and more consistent decisions. Values act as an internal compass when external conditions get chaotic.
Action Step: Identify your three non-negotiable values and define how you demonstrate each one daily. Revisit that list before major decisions. Let your team see those values in action, not just in writing.
3. Build Relational Trust
My doctoral research reinforced what behavioral science has long shown: Trust mediates the relationship between authenticity and performance. You can’t fake trust. It’s built in drops and lost in buckets. As Warren Buffett famously said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”
Stephen Covey told me in an interview on my podcast that extending trust—especially early—can transform performance. He described how the new CEO of Hugo Boss extended trust to his top 100 leaders and asked for it in return. That shift helped them achieve a four-year goal in just two.
Research has shown that employees who strongly trust their leaders are both more likely to be engaged and more likely to stay. Authenticity isn’t sentimental—it’s measurable ROI.
Action Step: Be consistent—do what you say you’ll do. Be vulnerable—admit mistakes without excuses. Extend trust, and ask for it back. Small acts of transparency compound into organizational trust.
4. Lead With Purpose and Presence
The most authentic leaders I’ve interviewed don’t see leadership as control—they see it as stewardship. They model calm in chaos, clarity in confusion, and compassion in conflict. They know that people don’t follow titles; they follow trust.
Brené Brown calls vulnerability “the courage to show up when you can’t control the outcome.” Purpose and vulnerability together create meaning and connection. When leaders connect their daily actions to a deeper “why,” performance becomes sustainable.
Action Step: Start each day with a grounding question: “How will I lead with clarity, compassion, and courage today?” Small rituals like this build intentionality and presence into your leadership rhythm.
When leaders integrate authenticity into their daily rhythm, culture transforms. Transparency replaces politics. Accountability replaces fear. Engagement replaces compliance. Gallup’s research shows that companies with highly trusted leadership outperform their peers by 20% in productivity and profitability.
Authenticity isn’t about image—it’s about integrity. It’s the courage to close the gap between who we say we are and who we truly are. In a time when leadership is often measured by performance alone, authenticity remains its most enduring competitive edge.