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AN ANALYSIS OF THE STUMBLING BLOCKS AND ENABLERS
TOWARDS ACHIEVING AUTHENTICITY FOR MBA AND EMBA
STUDENTS
A Thesis
presented to
The Graduate School of Business
University of Cape Town
in partial fulfilment
of the requirements for the
Masters of Business Administration Degree
by
Liezel Lombard
December 2009
Supervisor: Professor Kurt April
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to thank Professor Kurt April for his invaluable support, input and guidance throughout this research process.
To Kent, thank you for your endless understanding, love, patience and support. To Martin and Monica, thank you for always encouraging and believing in me.
This thesis is not confidential. It may be used freely by the Graduate School of Business.
I certify that except as noted above the thesis is my own work and all references used are accurately reported.
Signed:
Liezel Lombard
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1. I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is to use another’s work and pretend that it is
one’s own.
2. I have used the APA convention to citation and referencing. Each contribution to, and
quotation in, this report from the work(s) of other people has been attributed, and has been
cited and referenced.
3. This assignment is my own work.
4. I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone to copy my work with the intention of
passing it off as his or her own work.
Signed : _________________________
Name : Liezel Lombard
Subject: Research Methodology
Assignment: Research Report
Due Date: 11th December 2009
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An Analysis of the Stumbling Blocks and Enablers Towards Achieving Authenticity for MBA
and EMBA Students
ABSTRACT
This research evaluates the various stumbling blocks and enablers towards achieving authenticity
for MBA and EMBA students. The researcher was provided with a body of Communication,
Leadership and Learning assignments, which was analysed through the use of open coding and
axial coding. The researcher used grounded theory and content analysis, during which various
family codes emerged. These were used to devise a model detailing the stumbling blocks and
enablers of authenticity.
Keywords: authenticity, self-awareness, leadership, conformance, society, trust, relationships,
morality, values, reflection, spirituality
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CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 7
1.1 RESEARCH AREA AND PROBLEM ................................................................................. 7 1.2 RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND SCOPE ............................................................................ 8 1.3 RESEARCH ASSUMPTIONS AND ETHICS .................................................................... 8
2. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................ 9
2.1 DISCUSSION ......................................................................................................................... 9 2.2 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................... 24
3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .................................................................. 25
3.1 RESEARCH APPROACH AND STRATEGY .................................................................. 25 3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN, DATA COLLECTION METHODS AND RESEARCH
INSTRUMENTS .................................................................................................................. 26 3.3 SAMPLING .......................................................................................................................... 27 3.4 RESEARCH CRITERIA..................................................................................................... 27 3.5 DATA ANALYSIS METHODS .......................................................................................... 30
4 RESEARCH FINDINGS, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION ...................... 32
4.1 RESEARCH FINDINGS ..................................................................................................... 32 4.2 RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION .................................................................. 67 4.3 RESEARCH LIMITATIONS ............................................................................................. 72
5 RESEARCH CONCLUSIONS ...................................................................... 72
6 FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS ........................................................ 73
REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................... 75 APPENDIX – CONDITIONAL RELATIONSHIP GUIDE ......................................................... 80
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Key Concepts……………………………………………………………………………..25
Table 2: Sub-Codes of Enablers and Stumbling Blocks of Authenticity…………………………..33
Table 3: Sub-Codes of Self-Knowledge……………………………………………………………35
Table 4: Sub-Codes of Personality Traits and Behaviours…………………………………………41
Table 5: Sub-codes of Relationships……………………………………………………………….45
Table 6: Sub-Codes of Fear…………………………………………………………………………50
Table 7: Sub-Codes of Values and Morals…………………………………………………………53
Table 8: Sub-Codes of Influence of Others…………………………………………………………56
Table 9: Sub-Codes of Coping Mechanisms………………………………………………………..59
Table 10: Sub-Codes of Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality…………………………………...60
Table 11: Sub-Codes of Balance……………………………………………………………………62
Table 12: Sub-Codes of Diversity…………………………………………………………………..63
Table 13: Sub-Codes of Institutions, Organisations and the Workplace…………………………...65
Table 14: Sub-Codes of Money and Material Goods………………………………………………66
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: "The Person-Centred Conception of Authenticity…………………………………………9
Figure 2: The Chain of Evidence Concept………………………………………………………….26
Figure 3: Breakdown of Family Codes of Authenticity…………………………………………….34
Figure 4: Interrelatonsip Diagraph of Authenticity Family Codes…………………………………68
Figure 5: Researcher's Model of Stumbling Blocks and Enablers of Authenticity…………………70
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1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 RESEARCH AREA AND PROBLEM
The research problem is to determine what the enablers and the stumbling blocks are to achieving
authenticity for a group of MBA and EMBA students, with special emphasis on the context of
leadership. The research focuses on a number of student’s experiences and feelings about these
stumbling blocks and enablers for authenticity, and analyses their experiences of these.
The concept of authenticity is key to that of good leadership: “Authentic leadership links
assumptions, beliefs about, and actions related to, authentic self, relationships, learning, governance
and organization, through significant human values, to leadership and management practices that
are ethically and morally uplifting” (Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 208). This is substantiated by,
amongst others, Mader (2007) and George (2003). Sparrowe (2005, p .419) even goes as far as
saying that “[a]uthenticity - or, more precisely the lack thereof - lies near the heart of the crisis of
confidence in contemporary corporate leadership”. Hence, this research is important in order to
understand what enables or prevents people, especially those in management, or aspiring to be in
management and leadership positions, to live and lead authentically. Particularly in the context of
MBA and EMBA students, who are in, or are preparing for, leadership positions, it is important to
research this question more fully from a lived/situated-experience perspective in order to provide
more insight on how to live more authentically.
The researcher was provided with a number of MBA Communication, Leadership and Learning
assignments from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business, as well as a number
of Executive MBA and MBA Leadership assignments from the Rotterdam School of Management.
Students were asked to write about authenticity and to provide a literary definition, as well as their
experiences of personal stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity. Of these, 210 assignments
were written in 2007 and 2008, and are analysed in more depth in subsequent sections of this
report. According to Grabet (1998, as cited in Delattre, Ocler, Moulette and Rymeyko, 2009, p. 36)
it is “standard behaviour to link exploration with a qualitative approach”. The research is based on
a qualitative grounded theory methodology, with the ultimate aim of creating situated-experience
theory on authenticity and is therefore exploratory in nature.
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1.2 RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND SCOPE
Within the greater research topic, the following research questions will be explored. How can
authenticity be defined? What are the main stumbling blocks to achieving authenticity for MBA
and EMBA students? What are the main enablers of achieving authenticity for MBA and EMBA
students? Are there stumbling blocks and enablers which are common to all individuals? Are there
any patterns that emerge in terms of stumbling blocks or enablers?
There is a vast body of literature on authenticity which can be drawn on for the purposes of this
research. The 210 assignments each contained an academic definition of authenticity. These
definitions were loosely and manually grouped into various themes, and the six themes that
emerged the most frequently are as follows: Authenticity and Trust, Authenticity and Self-
Awareness, Authenticity and Relationships, Authenticity and the Perception of Others, Authenticity
and Leadership, and Authenticity and Balance. A more comprehensive literature review, based on
these themes, is detailed in subsequent sections. Through qualitative analysis, the stumbling blocks
and enablers were coded and grouped by means of content analysis.
1.3 RESEARCH ASSUMPTIONS AND ETHICS
It is assumed that the MBA and EMBA students were provided with the same instructions for
writing the assignments. However, since the assignments both contained the relevant information
regarding the definitions, stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity, it can be assumed that
there will be no impact on the outcome of the research in this regard. The amount of duplication
contained in the different assignments, particularly in terms of the definitions of authenticity and
the literature review of stumbling blocks and enablers, could impact the findings of the analysis,
where students quote the same authors, resulting in bias towards certain authors. However, since
the material provided is from two different universities in two different countries, as well as two
different years, the possibility of this occurrence should be mitigated. As this research does not
make use of a questionnaire, and all data has been received, assumptions about issues such as
response rate and the possible impact of not meeting expected response rates do not apply in this
instance.
Diener and Crandall (as cited in Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 132) have broken ethical issues down into
the following areas: “whether there is harm to participants, whether there is a lack of informed
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consent, whether there is an invasion of privacy; whether deception is involved”. In terms of “harm
to participants”, the confidentiality of all individuals who wrote the assignments is maintained by
the sanitization of names and personal references in all quotes and analyses. The authors of these
assignments were issued with a consent form containing the following statement, circling whether
they give permission for their assignments to be used (April, 2008):
I hereby, therefore, DO / DO NOT (circle choice) give permission to Prof. Kurt
April to research trend data and key areas of re-design or enhancement to the
framework above, in pursuit of a more robust and empirically-based understanding
of the human condition through research, and subsequent publication for debate.
In cases where an author circled “do not”, the assignment was not used for the purpose of this
research.
Where authors have given permission for their assignments to be used for research purposes, or
have not chosen to circle the “do not” option, a reasonable assumption can be made that they have
given “informed consent”, have not been “deceived” and have also not had their privacy “invaded”.
However, in order to take the ethical principles into account, the Ethical Clearance form has been
submitted.
2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 DISCUSSION
A literature review involves “the stages of: scanning, making notes, structuring the literature
review, writing the literature review, and building a bibliography” (Rowley & Slack, 2004, p. 31).
This is the process that has been followed in this research. The literature review for this proposal
commenced by reviewing the 210 assignments for the various definitions of authenticity, and is
further elaborated on below.
One of the most commonly found definitions of authenticity is that of Hodgkinson (1991, p. 130, as
cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 207), who defines authenticity “as being true to one’s own set
of values, whatever they may be. Authenticity, then, is the submission to the discipline of
‘whatever morality exists within’”. Another author who would agree with this definition is Handler
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(1986, p. 3), who states that authenticity “has to do with our true self, our individual existence, not
as we might present it to others, but as it ‘really is’, apart from any roles we play”. This is one of
the main arguments of authenticity, which is in essence being true to oneself and one’s values. The
second argument of authenticity is the concept of being true to oneself within the framework of the
greater common good (K. April, personal communication, August 6, 2009). The latter is the view
held by Charles Taylor, who sees authenticity as a “picture of what a better or higher mode of life
would be, where ‘better’ and ‘higher’ are defined not in terms of what we happen to desire or need,
but offer a standard of what we ought to desire” (Taylor, 1991, p. 16 as cited in Bartlette, 2008, p.
32). According to Bartlette (2008, p. 32), this “is contrary to the version of authenticity most
commonly used today, which might be summarized as ‘do what seems or feels right to you and you
alone’. Taylor’s authenticity is different; it is an adherence to a standard outside of ourselves, to a
set of higher ideals”.
This concept of adhering to a standard ‘outside of ourselves’ bears resemblance to that of authentic
transformational leadership. Bass and Steidlmeier (1999, p. 185-186, as cited in Price, 2003, p. 70)
state that authentic “transformational leadership provides a more reasonable and realistic concept of
self - a self that is connected to friends, family, and community whose welfare may be more
important to oneself than one’s own”. This is the belief that a person cannot be authentic in
isolation and is inextricably linked to the greater community. They further state that authentic
transformational leaders are “true to self and others” (Bass & Steidlmeier, 1999, p. 185-186, as
cited in Price, 2003, p. 70). According to Price (2003), this does not necessarily mean that values
of leaders will be those of their followers, as they may fail to “recognize the values advocated by
authentic transformational leaders as reflecting their interests” (Price, 2003, p. 70). According to
Krishnan (2003, p. 346), “Burns (1987) considered morality an essential aspect of transformational
leadership, most subsequent authors, however, have treated transformational leadership as being
unrelated to ethics and morality”.
Although not referring to transformational leadership, Bogue (1994, p. 13, as cited in Duignan &
Bhindi, 1997, p. 207) agrees that morality is an integral part of leadership, and argues that “honour,
dignity, curiosity, candour, compassion, courage, excellence, service” are “design ideals” of “a
venture in moral philosophy”. These values or ideals form part of the moral leadership that he
likens to a “call to honour” which is a “vision of what constitutes right action” (1994, p. 13, as cited
in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 207). Bogue’s argument seems to concur with Taylor’s view that
values cannot be important on the basis that they are a particular leader’s values, or “simply
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because they are freely chosen” (Lowney, 2009, p. 36). He argues “[w]hich issues are significant, I
do not determine. If I did, no issue would be significant. But then the very ideal of self-choosing as
a moral ideal would be impossible” (Taylor, 1991, p. 39, as cited in Lowney, 2009, p. 36). This
view is also reinforced by other authors: authentic leaders “are described as having developed the
moral capacity to judge issues, explore dilemmas from multiple angles, and identify ways to
address issues without being perceived as disingenuous” (Avolio & Gardner, 2005; Avolio &
Luthans, 2006; Luthans & Avolio, 2003, as cited in Jensen & Luthans, 2006, p. 651). Burns (1978,
as cited in Krishnan, 2003, p. 346) defines moral leadership as “emerging from, and always
returning to, the fundamental wants, needs, aspirations, and values of the followers”.
However, not all authors would agree with this view. When referring to more traditional
definitions of authenticity, such as that of adhering to “whatever morality exists within”
(Hodgkinson, 1991, p. 130, as cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 207), this does not mean that
one’s convictions have to be “ethical or positive in order to be authentic” (Endrissat, Müller &
Kaudela-Baum, 2007, p. 208). They merely need to be aligned to one’s behaviour according to
Endrissat, Müller and Kaudela-Baum (2007).
As people change over time, their values could also change. This is reinforced by Cass (1998, p.
331) who states “[a]uthenticity is a process rather than a state”. Similarly, Tannenbaum, Margulies,
Massarik and Associates (1985, p. 399, as cited in Schor, Kane & Lindsay, 1995, p. 55) define
authenticity as “being true to oneself in the moment and in relation to the full realization of one’s
potential over time”, concurring with Cass’s view (1998, p. 331) that it is a process that does take
time. Kernis (2003, p. 1) states that “[a]uthenticity can be characterized as the unobstructed
operation of one’s true, or core, self in one’s daily enterprise. I argue that authenticity has 4
components: awareness, unbiased processing, action, and relational”. The concept of awareness, or
more particularly, self-awareness, and the relational, or relationship component, are addressed in
the various sections below.
These are varied and even conflicting views of authenticity, and in the subsequent sections,
definitions of authenticity will be explored further. However, one definition that seems to
incorporate many of these aspects is a construct of authenticity that incorporates the self and the
greater society and its influence (see Figure 1). Barrett-Lennard’s construct involves “consistency
between the three levels of (a) a person’s primary experience, (b) their symbolized awareness, and
(c) their outward behaviour and communication” (Barrett-Lennard, 1998, p. 82, as cited in Wood,
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Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p. 386). The first level of primary experience consists of
“[a]ctual physiological states/emotions/deep level conditions” which contrasts with the second
level, consisting of “[c]onscious awareness of physiological states/emotions/cognitions” (Wood,
Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p. 386). The mismatch of these, and the extent to which
“the person experiences self-alienation between conscious awareness and actual experience
composes the first aspect of authenticity” (Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p.
386). Similarly, the second aspect of “[a]uthentic living” involves the “congruence between
experience as consciously perceived and behaviour” (Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph,
2008, p. 386). This is in line with the concept of being true to one’s values and acting out on these
values. The third aspect is “the extent to which one accepts the influence of other people and the
belief that one has to conform to the expectations of others… [or] accepting external influence”
(Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p. 386). These three aspects form the “tripartite
person-centred view of authenticity” (Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p. 386).
This definition, particularly when viewed in the context of the MBA and EMBA students, seems a
more holistic one in comparison to various other authors mentioned in this research.
Figure 1: “The person-centred conception of authenticity”
Source: Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008, p. 386
One of the most important factors in being true to one’s values and oneself is that of knowing what
these values are, and who the self is. This knowledge is inextricably linked to the concept of self-
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awareness. Although this has already been touched on in Barrett-Lennard’s construct (1998, as
cited in Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis & Joseph, 2008), a further exploration follows below.
2.1.1 Authenticity and Self-Awareness
Mader states this concept of authenticity in a basic form, and believes that authenticity is “[i]n a
nutshell, transparent self-awareness” (2007, p. 74). He states that this is a continuous evaluation of
how values are informed by experiences (Mader, 2007). George, Sims, McLean & Mayer (2007, p.
130) echo this and acknowledge that “[a]uthentic leaders work hard at understanding and
developing themselves”. This links back to Cass’s (1998) definition of authenticity of being a
process, something that can change over time. Knowing oneself also includes knowing and
acknowledging weaknesses. Marshall and Heffes (2004, p. 10) state: “[a]uthentic leadership…is
about: being your own person; having your own unique style; stewardship; being aware of your
weaknesses; and developing as a leader”.
Self-awareness can be defined as follows: “when people are self-aware their consciousness is
focused on their thoughts and feeling, their personal history, their body, or other personal aspects of
themselves” (Duval & Wicklund, 1972, as cited in Vorauer & Ross, 1999, p. 417). This concept is
further divided into two parts, namely private and public self-awareness (Vorauer & Ross, 1999).
The former refers to “a focus on one’s inner thoughts, feelings, and motives, whereas public self-
awareness reflects a concern with how one is viewed by others” (Fenigstein, Scheier & Buss, 1985;
Scheier & Carver, 1983, as cited in Vorauer & Ross, 1999, p. 419). The view of private self-
awareness seems to be the one most associated with in terms of knowing oneself as described by
George, Sims, McLean & Mayer (2007) and Schor, Kane and Lindsay (1995), whereas the public
self-awareness is closely linked with impression management (Roberts 2005).
Mader (2007) links transparency and self-awareness in the context of authenticity. His description
of transparency claims that leaders “practicing their values and principles openly, is the foundation
of long-term effectiveness” (Mader, 2007, p. 74). Similarly, Vorauer and Ross’s study (1999) also
links transparency and self-awareness. However, their study shows that “increased self-awareness
was associated with increased feelings of transparency” and they state that people “feel transparent
when they sense that another person can discern their true attributes from their remarks and
behaviour…and that his or her judgements of their traits will be congruent with their own”
(Vorauer & Ross, 1999, p. 415).
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In terms of communicating authentically, Crowley (2004, p. 93) states that “[s]elf-awareness and a
strong relationship between the parties are needed to move from casual socializing to authentic
communication”, and that authentic communication can be “practiced”. She goes on further to state
that “half of communicating authentically is to be mindful of what we say and how we say it”
(2004, p. 97), which again points to the fact that being aware of oneself is vital in order to be
authentic.
However, being self aware, acknowledging weaknesses and understanding oneself is not a complete
description of authenticity for some authors. Schor, Kane & Lindsay (1995, p. 55) describe
authenticity as “being with, understanding and acting from one’s feelings and inner truth in the
moment and in an ongoing process of self-discovery”. The idea of acting from one’s “inner truth in
the moment” is linked closely to Donahoe’s definition, who sees authenticity as “maintaining a
sense of self no matter where you are” (as cited in George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007, p. 137).
Although theoretically plausible, this argument is somewhat weak in terms of applicability in
reality, and this concept of acting on one’s feelings, no matter what the situation, or where one
might be, is one that many find difficult to put into practice. This is where the need for balance is
addressed.
2.1.2 Authenticity and Balance
There are many factors of authenticity that require balance. One of these is the balance between
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. In order to discover one’s authentic leadership, according to
George, Sims, McLean and Mayer (2007, p. 135), “the key is to find a balance between your
desires for external validation and the intrinsic motivations that provide fulfilment in your work”.
Many leaders measure their terms of success against external validations instead of intrinsic
motivations (George, Sims, McLean & Mayer 2007), in spite of the fact that intrinsic motivations
“are congruent with your values and are more fulfilling than extrinsic motivations” (George, Sims,
McLean & Mayer, 2007, p. 136).
One of the contexts in which it is often most difficult to strike a balance in with regards to
authenticity, is that of the workplace: “a challenge for leaders is one of reconciling the interests of
the individual with those of the organisation” (Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 205). This difficult
balancing act of authentic leadership in the workplace that leaders should aspire to, is defined by
May, Chan, Hodges and Avolio (2003, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn, Buckley & Brown,
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2005, p. 1397) as follows: “[t]his capacity for awareness, determination and dependability to
remain true to oneself and aligned with the organization’s genuine mission, while passionately
enacting organizational vision, can be conceptualized broadly as authentic leadership”. This is no
doubt not an easy feat to achieve.
Badaracco (1992, p. 77, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn, Buckley & Brown, 2005, p. 1404)
confirms this notion of balance by stating “the moral dilemma of management must be resolved
through balancing acts – through decisions and actions that meet, as best they can, the conflicting
claims of different spheres of responsibility”. Two of these spheres of responsibility are divided
into personal and representative spheres by Barnard (1958, p. 6, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn,
Buckley & Brown, 2005, p. 1400). He states that personal responsibility refers to “the character of
individuals”, whereas representative responsibility “refers to acting in the official role” (Barnard,
1958, p. 6, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn, Buckley & Brown, 2005, p. 1400). When these two
interact there is “tension between the interests of the individual and the interests of the organisation.
Resolution of this tension in favor of organizational interests represents loyalty to the firm”
(Barnard, 1958, p. 6, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn, Buckley & Brown, 2005, p. 1400).
Hodgkinson (1991, as cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997) would argue that it is not always possible
to act according to “one’s inner truth in the moment”. “[B]ecause of the often poor fit between
personality and role in our organizations, the degree of ‘authentic engagement’ of the personality
with the formal role is an open question and a continuing concern” (Hodgkinson, 1991, p. 70, as
cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 205). Often this is most evident where there is pressure to
conform to society, or the organisation’s concept of professionalism. This can be seen as similar to
Barnard’s concept of loyalty to the firm (Barnard, 1958, p. 6, as cited in Novicevic, Davis, Dorn,
Buckley & Brown, 2005, p. 1400). Hewlin (2003, as cited in Roberts, 2005 p. 700) illustrates this
well: “[o]ne’s ‘true self’ or authentic self portrayal is not always consistent with external standards
of professional competence and character. In order to gain certain social and professional benefits,
individuals often suppress or contradict their personal values or identity characteristics for the sake
of meeting societal expectations of professionalism”.
Endrissat, Müller and Kaudela-Baum (2007, p. 215) therefore propose that “personal and
organizational values should either be compatible or, organizational norms…should value diversity
so that employees dare to express their views”. However, although leaders can aspire to work in
organisations that are either compatible with their values, or value diversity, realistically, this
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cannot always be the case for all individuals. Kernis (2003, p. 14) looks at this slightly differently,
and states that society’s and the individual’s values are incompatible and that the focus should be
on the processes that lead to “behavioural selection”, not only whether authenticity is reflected in
behaviour or not. He states that in this instance, authenticity is “reflected in awareness of one’s
needs and motives and an unbiased assessment of relevant evaluative information. In some cases
the resulting behaviour may also reflect authenticity, but in other cases it may not” (Kernis, 2003, p.
15). In short, a certain component of authenticity might be operating, where another does not, but it
still is an indication of authenticity (Kernis, 2003). This is a more realistic and achievable concept
of authenticity than that espoused by Donahoe (as cited in George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007,
p. 137) of being authentic “no matter where you are”.
Another area in which it is difficult to find this balance is that of managing people within the
organisation. Goffee and Jones (2005, p. 88) describe the difficulty leaders face of finding a
“balance between expressing their personalities and managing those of the people they aspire to
lead or at least influence“. According to Goffee and Jones (2005), there is a way to try to address
this, namely by choosing which parts of oneself to reveal to whom. Although this is no easy task,
Goffee and Jones (2005, p. 88) state that great leaders “seem to know which personality traits they
should reveal to whom and when”. However, this is something that some find difficult to reconcile
with the concept of authenticity (Goffee & Jones, 2005), and which seems to be almost in contrast
to concept of authenticity by leaders such as Donahoe (as cited in George, Sims, McLean & Mayer,
2007). Managing the perceptions of others is key to knowing which parts one should reveal of
oneself, while trying to remain authentic.
One of the most difficult balancing acts in trying to achieve authenticity is that of balancing values
and actions or behaviours. The better the balance between being true to one’s core, and the actions
one takes, the more authentic one is. “Authenticity refers to the degree of congruence between
internal values and external expressions. In other words, it is the extent to which an individual acts
in accord with the true self, and it involves owning one’s persona experiences, thoughts, emotions,
needs, wants, preferences or beliefs” (Harter, 2002, as cited in Roberts, 2005, p. 699).
2.1.3 Authenticity and the Perception of Others
Goffee and Jones (2005, p. 88) state that “authenticity is a quality that others must attribute to
you…a person cannot be authentic on his or her own”. This definition seems to vary a great deal
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from the definitions of authenticity that require developing self-awareness, self-discovery and
oneself (Mader, 2007; Schor, Kane & Lindsay, 1995; Marshall & Heffes, 2004). Endrissat, Müller
and Kaudela-Baum (2007, p. 208) concur with Goffee and Jones (2005) in that they see authenticity
not as “a personal innate quality, but as a characteristic attributed to leaders by others”. However,
they deviate slightly from Goffee and Jones’ (2005) interpretation of the factors needed to create
authenticity. Where Goffee and Jones (2005) state that a leader’s words and deeds need to be
consistently aligned to establish authenticity, Endrissat, Müller and Kaudela-Baum (2007, p. 217)
argue that this is “not necessarily a reliable indicator of a person being true to herself” and that it is
a “necessary, but not a sufficient condition for authenticity”. They argue that leaders might be able
to act a part that is not of their conviction (Endrissat, Müller and Kaudela-Baum (2007). Jensen
and Luthans (2006, p. 649) take it into a more organisational context and claim that a leader
deemed authentic “is one who is perceived as striving to create a transparent, future-oriented, and
associate-building organization”.
In essence, leaders do have some control of managing this perception of others. Roberts (2005, p.
687) defines the perceived professional image as “an internalized, global representation of many
people’s current impressions of an individual, across interactions but within a specific professional
context”. Leary and Kowalski (1990, as cited in Roberts, 2005, p. 687) describe impression
management as having three components: “(1) monitoring – becoming aware of others’
perceptions; (2) motivation – desiring to change others’ perceptions; and (3) construction –
enacting a persona in an effort to change others’ perceptions”. This would seem to be in contrast
with the concept of authenticity as being “true to oneself” (Hodgkinson, 1991, p. 130, as cited in
Duignan & Bhindi, 1997), particularly the third component of constructing a persona. However,
Roberts (2005) explains that impression management is likely to succeed or not, based on the
credibility and authenticity of the leader. When one presents oneself “in an inauthentic and
noncredible manner…one is likely to experience negative consequences on well-being,
relationships, and performance”, whereas when one presents oneself authentically, it results in
positive outcomes (Roberts, 2005, p. 699-700). Therefore, she makes the argument that even
though one can present an image to others, it should be based on one’s own values and feelings
(Roberts, 2005).
According to Goffee & Jones (2005), there are two parts to managing this perception: leaders have
to ensure their actions match their words, and they need to “present different faces to different
audiences” (Goffee & Jones, 2005, p. 89). Therefore, it is still important to remain authentic,
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however, one should choose wisely which aspect of one’s personality should be shown to a specific
group. When doing this, authentic leaders also need to know how much they need to “conform to
social and organizational norms…to create just enough distance from the norms so followers will
perceive the leaders as special and attractive” (Goffee & Jones, 2005, p. 93). Cirucci (2000) also
advocates this concept of cultivating slight eccentricities that enable the leaders to stand out, but to
do so authentically. In order to know how much they need to conform to these norms and what to
present to which audience (Goffee & Jones, 2005), the leader’s ability to read and know his or her
audiences, and therefore his or her ability to build relationships, is very important in this aspect, as
will be detailed below.
2.1.4 Authenticity and Relationships
One of the reasons it is important to show different aspects of one’s true personality to different
audiences, is the fact that people can sense inauthenticity in most cases. Roberts qualifies this by
stating that authenticity can “enhance the quality of the individual’s relationships, while
inauthenticity can detract from relationship quality” (Roberts, 2005, p. 701). This is further
substantiated by Cashman and Walsh (2000, p. 5) who state that authenticity “is the life force of
relationships – and the true voice of the leader”. Conversely, Duignan and Bhindi (1996, p. 201)
find that the relationship between authenticity and relationships is reversed: “[a]uthenticity is not
only a quality of the leader but it is also a product of relationships and interrelationships”. Mader
(2007, p.74) even goes so far as to say that authentic leaders tend to have “many good friends
because they rely on relationships. They tend to lead lives integrated with family and community”.
Relationships can also be described in terms of connectedness. Fullan (1993, p. 80, as cited in
Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 204) mentions the concepts of “inner and outer learning”. The “inner
learning” starts “within ourselves” and the “outer learning…is about connectedness”. He goes on
to say that “our connections must be more balanced, more authentic, more to the total person”
(Fullan, 1993, p. 80, as cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 204) and that we as leaders need to
build connections or relationships as a vital part of learning and growth.
Taylor (1991, p. 33 as cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 200) concurs with this view and argues
“no one acquires the languages needed for self-definition on their own…the genesis of the human
mind is…not ‘monological,’ not something each accomplishes on his or her own, but ‘dialogical’”.
Giddens (1991, as cited in Endrissat, Müller & Kaudela-Baum, 2007, p. 215) elaborates on this by
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stating that authentic behaviour is developed “through reflexive awareness by the individual in the
interaction with others”. This view is also supported by Endrissat, Müller and Kaudela-Baum
(2007, p. 215) who state that authenticity should not be seen as a “stable concept but rather as a
dynamic concept that is developed in relationships with others”.
In terms of helping leaders to achieve authenticity, George, Sims, McLean and Mayer (2007, p.
135) state that “[a]uthentic leaders build extraordinary support teams to help them stay on course”,
who provide “affirmation, advice, perspective, and calls for course corrections when needed”.
They argue that even the greatest leaders need good relationships in order not to lose their
authenticity, and that when they can rely on someone unconditionally, “they are more likely to
accept themselves for who they really are” (George, Sims, McLean and Mayer 2007, p. 136).
Polzer, Milton and Swann (2002, as cited in Roberts, 2005, p. 702) concur by stating “authenticity
is also critical for developing high-quality relationships with workgroup members. Group
functioning…is related to the extent to which group members see others in the group as others see
themselves”.
Kernis has a similar viewpoint and states that relational authenticity involves “endorsing the
importance for close others to see the real you” and that it is a “selective process of self-disclosure
and the development of mutual intimacy and trust” (Kernis, 2003, p. 15).
In a broader sense, Doorewaard and Benschop (2003, p. 276) argue that authenticity is “a culture-
related phenomenon…their authenticity is always moulded and shaped by the ‘mores’ of the
society they live in and the organizations they work in”. They therefore indicate that society, and
therefore relationships in society, influence an individual’s authenticity (Doorewaard & Benschop,
2003).
Trust is an integral part of relationships, as well as a part of authenticity. Luke (1998, as cited in
Fairholm & Fairholm, 2000, p. 103) captures this connection as follows: “[t]rust, essential in
interpersonal relationships, is based not only on the confidence and predictability of the actions of
others, but also on the moral integrity and goodwill of another”. This concept of trust in the context
of authenticity is elaborated on below.
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2.1.5 Authenticity and Trust
One of the essential ingredients in relationships is trust. James (2001, as cited in Darwish, 2006, p.
34) describes trust as follows: “[e]xtending trust is the exposure of vulnerability. It is a leap of faith.
If trust is violated, the other party will limit their future exposure. If trust is confirmed, greater
loyalty and commitment are like to occur”. Effective leaders need to confirm, or earn, the trust of
others in order to become authentic: “[a]uthentic leaders earn the allegiance of others not by
coercion or manipulation but by building trusting relationships” (Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 206).
As with relationships, there is an interplay between authenticity and trust, which is illustrated by
George, Sims, McLean & Mayer (2007, p. 129): “[p]eople trust you when you are genuine and
authentic”. Crowley (2004, p. 98) believes that authenticity is a component of trust, not a way of
fostering trust: “trust has several components: competence, reliability, consistency, caring,
authenticity, and familiarity”, whereas Pine II and Gilmore (2008. p. 20) state that authenticity
comes from “thought and action”. The action in this instance refers to the fact that “being
trustworthy, honest, and compassionate focuses one on behaviour towards others” (Pine II &
Gilmore, 2008, p. 20).
Xavier (2007, p. 349) concurs with George, Sims, McLean & Mayer’s (2007) view that trust is built
through authenticity. He states that two of the core interpersonal skills a leader needs are integrity
and ethics. He goes on to explain that he or she “builds trust with others through own authenticity
and honest communication, follows through on commitments, shows consistency among principles,
[and] demonstrates sound business ethics” (Xavier, 2007, p 349). Darwish (2006, p. 34) has a
similar view and states “[a]uthenticity and honesty are great qualifiers for establishing a foundation
for trust”.
Mader (2007, p. 74) elaborates on the concept of trust: “if we get it right, the personal authenticity
aspect of leadership essentially defines ‘trust’…we don’t necessarily mean we agree or even have
the same values. We mean we know who these people are and that they will consistently act for the
welfare of the organization, according to their best judgement”. As mentioned, Price (2003) and
Burns (1978, as cited in Krishnan, 2003) are also proponents of this view, that the leader will do
what is best for the followers, even though their values might not be the same as those of the
followers.
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Although authors such as George, Sims, McLean & Mayer (2007) and Xavier (2007) argue that
trust is built through being authentic, there are more concrete ways for leaders of ensuring that trust
is built up. One of these is holding people accountable and thereby not betraying trust themselves:
“[w]e build trust on known, predictable, and continuing mechanisms that let others know what
unprofessional or unethical conduct is and by punishing it when it occurs. When leaders are not
willing to be clear and hold members accountable, they betray trust” (Fairholm & Fairholm, 2000,
p. 104). They also suggest understanding what staff need, and ensuring responsiveness to those
needs, as well as creating a culture of co-operation and open communications, amongst others
(Fairholm & Fairholm, 2000).
Dietz and Den Hartog (2006, p. 558) break trust down into three parts: “trust as a belief, as a
decision, and as an action”. The first part is a set of beliefs “which lead one to assume that the
other party’s likely action will have positive consequences for oneself” (Dietz & Den Hartog, 2006,
p. 558). The second part is the “decision to actually trust the other party” (Dietz & Den Hartog,
2006, p. 559) and lastly, the “action of trusting another is at best only a likely consequence of the
decision to trust; it is by no means guaranteed” (Dietz & Den Hartog, 2006, p. 560). This is a
complex process, which is echoed by Lewicki, McAllister and Bies (1998, as cited in Dietz & Den
Hartog, 2006, p. 564) in the following way: “the formation of a trust belief about another party, and
the decision to trust them or not, requires sophisticated processing of huge amounts of often-
contradictory information”. Precisely because of these huge amounts of information that people
need to process in order to trust leaders, the more transparent and authentic the leaders are, the
easier it is to make this decision. This definition of trust by Dietz and Den Hartog (2006) seems to
be a comprehensive, applicable definition, particularly in the organisational context, which can be
fraught with hidden agendas, and which MBA and EMBA students are often exposed to.
2.1.6 Authenticity and Leadership
Authenticity in the context of leadership has been touched on in various sections above and a great
deal of literature has been written on authentic leadership. There are various definitions of
authentic leadership: “[a]uthentic leadership implies a genuine kind of leadership – a hopeful, open-
ended, visionary and creative response to social circumstances, as opposed to the more traditional
dualistic portrayal of management and leadership practices” (Begley, 2001, as cited in Begley,
2006, p. 570).
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Being ethical or moral are key parts of leadership for many authors: “[a]uthentic leadership is
therefore grounded in the understanding or interpretation of observed or experienced valuation
processes, as well as, in ethical decision-making processes” (Begley, 2006, p. 575). May, Chan,
Hodges and Avolio (2003, p. 253, as cited in Sarros, Cooper & Hartican, 2006, p. 684) also state
that “authentic leaders […] see themselves as the ‘moral standard bearer’ for their organizations,
demonstrating consistently high standards of ethical conduct”. Duignan & Bhindi (1996, p. 199)
state the importance of leaders having a stand on moral issues: “to become an authentic leader, it is
important to know where one stands on important moral and professional issues and then act
accordingly”. Avolio, Gardner, Walumbwa, Luthans and May (2004, as cited in Jensen & Luthans,
2006, p. 648) state that authentic leadership is a “basic root construct that creates conditions for
higher trust, helps people to build on their strengths and be more positive, to broaden their thinking,
to add value and a sense of what is right to their decisions, and to improve the overall performance
of their organization over time”.
Rokeach (1979, as cited in Turner & Mavin, 2008, p. 380) define values as “lasting beliefs that
certain modes of conduct are more desirable than others…with authentic leaders guided by values
oriented towards what is ‘right’ and ‘fair’ for all stakeholders”. In contrast to the authors
mentioned above who propose that ethical and moral conduct is a key part of leadership (Begley,
2006; May, Chan, Hodges & Avolio, 2003, as cited in Sarros, Cooper & Hartican, 2006; Duignan
& Bhindi, 1996; Avolio, Gardner, Walumbwa, Luthans & May, 2004, as cited in Jensen & Luthans,
2006), some argue that an integral part of leadership is that leaders need to live by their own values,
and not what is considered to be ethical or moral, although the leader’s own values could be both.
Shamir and Eilam (2005, p. 3, as cited in Turner & Mavin, 2008, p. 378), for example, state that
leadership is “an eudaimonic activity for authentic leaders in that they are true to one’s self and
their personal life activities are congruent with their deeply held values”. Some argue that the
values that leaders live by are not necessarily ethical or moral, but that they live by them because
they are based on their own experience. Shamir and Eilam (2005, p. 397, as cited in Turner &
Mavin, 2008, p. 380) state “authentic leaders are originals not copies, they hold their values to be
true, not because these values are socially or politically appropriate but because they have
experienced them to be true”. (Turner & Mavin, 2008, p. 380) reinforce this idea and state “[t]he
values and convictions of authentic leaders are highly personalized through their lived experiences,
experienced emotions and active process of reflection on those experiences and emotions”
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Schwarz (1994, as cited in Turner & Mavin, 2008, p. 380) defines values as being “expected to
vary on a continuum anchored at one end by self-enhancement success centred values and at the
other self transcendence system centred values”. He further defines the self enhancement values as
“values of achievement, pursuit of personal success, power, dominance over others, personal
gratification, hedonism” and self transcendence values as: “benevolence, concern for immediate
others and universalism concerned with the welfare of people” (Schwarz 1994, as cited in Turner &
Mavin, 2008, p. 380). This description of values ties in with Cass’s (1998) view that authenticity is
a process, and that therefore values can change over time, and with the idea of values being linked
to experience (Turner & Mavin, 2008).
According to Laub (1999, as cited in Joseph & Winston, 2005, p. 9), servant leadership “promotes
the valuing and development of people, the building of community, [and] the practice of
authenticity”. Cirucci (2000) agrees that valuing people, or recognition, is one of the key parts of a
leader aiming towards achieving authenticity, as is telling the truth. However, Cashman and Walsh
(2000, p. 5) see authenticity in the context of leadership from a different perspective. They state
that authenticity “is the foundation for sustaining our leadership. But authenticity is more than just
telling the truth. It is the congruence of our inner and outer person. It means we know our
strengths and weaknesses, and we dare to be vulnerable with ourselves and with others”. Cashman
and Walsh (2000, p. 5) therefore imply that authenticity sustains leadership, whereas Laub (1999,
as cited in Joseph & Winston, 2005, p. 9) argues that leadership promotes authenticity.
Cashman and Walsh (2000) mention being vulnerable with regards to authenticity. George, Sims,
McLean and Mayer (2007, p. 134) also believe that vulnerability plays a big role in authenticity:
”as they [examine themselves], leaders become more humane and willing to be vulnerable”, which
leads to knowing their “authentic selves”. However, being vulnerable can also lead to
inauthenticity in some cases. Crowley (2004, p. 97) states that “hidden agendas are defensive
messages we send for protection when we’re not feeling good about ourselves…[and they]
typically emerge when we’re feeling upset or vulnerable”. These hidden agendas are “’by their
very nature, inauthentic…the act, the face we put on to show others” (Crowley, 2004, p. 96). She
goes on to say that these agendas can be identified and managed, in order to “consciously shift to a
new way of looking at things” and to understand the damaging effect of inauthentic communication
(Crowley, 2004, p. 97).
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Finally, Marshall and Heffes (2004, p. 10) summarise the key points of being an authentic leader as
follows:
The five dimensions of authentic leadership include: understanding your purposes
(why would I follow you?); practicing solid values; leading with your heart (passion
for the business); establishing connected relationships (built on trust); self-discipline
in getting results (deliver results, both short- and long-term).
2.2 CONCLUSION
The literature reviewed on authenticity related to self-awareness, balance, the perception of others,
relationships, trust and leadership expanded on many of the definitions stated in the 210
assignments. There is a clear indication that there are various schools of thought in terms of
authenticity, some of which contradict each other. However, some of the key concepts discussed in
this review were those of being true to one’s values and being aware of these, that authentic
leadership requires acting morally and for the greater good, and the congruence of thought and
action. A summary of the key concepts and authors is depicted below.
Key Concept Author Being true to one’s values Hodgkinson 1990; Handler, 1986 Being true to oneself within the framework of the greater common good
Taylor, 1991; Bogue, 1997
Transformational leadership Bass & Steidlmeier, 1999 Adhering to inner morality Hodgkinson, 1990; Endrissat, Müller &
Kaudela-Baum, 2007 Authenticity as a process Cass, 1998; Tannenbaum, Margulies,
Massarik & Associateds, 1985 Authenticity incorporating self and society
Barrett-Lennard, 1998
Transparent self-awareness Mader, 2007; Duval & Wicklund, 1972; Vorauer & Ross, 1999
Recognising strengths and weaknesses Marshall & Heffes, 2004 Knowing oneself George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007;
Schor, Kane & Lindsay 1995 Authenticity and Balance George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007;
Duignan & Bhindi, 1997; May, Chan, Hodges & Avolio, 2003; Badaracco, 1992; Goffee & Jones, 2005
Congruence between words and deeds Harter, 2002
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Authenticity and Perception Goffee & Jones, 2005; Endrissat, Müller & Kaudela-Baum, 2007; Roberts, 2005; Leary & Kowalski, 1990
Authenticity and Relationships Roberts, 2005; Fuller, 1993; Taylor, 1991; Endrissat, Müller & Kaudela-Baum, 2007; George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007; Kernis, 2003
Authenticity and Trust Luke, 1998; James, 2001; Duignan & Bhindi, 1997; George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007; Xavier, 2007; Mader, 2007; Dietz & Den Harto, 2006; Lewicki, McAllister & Bies, 1998
Authenticity and Leadership Begley, 2006; May, Chan, Hodges & Avolio, 2003; Duignan & Bhindi, 1996; Avolio, Gardner, Walumba, Luthans & May, 2004; Shamir & Eilam, 2005; Laub, 1999; Cashman & Walsh, 2000
Table 1: Key Concepts
3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 RESEARCH APPROACH AND STRATEGY
Schutz, (1967, as cited in Shaw, 1999, p. 65) notes that the “qualitative paradigm recommends that
researchers observe human behaviour and action as it occurs in ‘mundane’ everyday life”. The
experiences of everyday stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity of 210 people, as detailed in
the Communication, Leadership and Learning assignments, as well as the Leadership assignments
of various MBA and EMBA students were analysed and coded within this research. The words in
these assignments record some of their feelings, behaviour or action. According to Bryman and
Bell (2007, p. 731), “[q]ualitative research usually emphasizes words rather than quantification in
the collection and analysis of data”. In this research, these words were coded, which is an
indication that the research is thus qualitative.
Bryman and Bell (2007, p. 14) mention that “an inductive strategy of linking data and theory is
typically associated with a qualitative research approach”. According to Thiétart (1999), inductive
logic “makes it possible to go from individual observation to general terms” (as cited in Delattre,
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Ocler, Moulette & Rymeyko, 2009, p. 36). Delattre, Ocler, Moulette and Rymeyko (2009, p. 33)
also state that the “main objective of qualitative research is to create a methodology for
approaching, understanding, analysing and explaining management phenomena at a social or
company level”. In this case, the research is focused on understanding and analysing the
phenomena of the stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity for students largely at management
level. These stumbling blocks and enablers are very much the experiences of individuals, which
were coded into more general terms during the research process. Hence, the approach of this
research is inductive in nature. Chinn and Kramer (1999, as cited in Elo & Kyngäs, 2008, p. 109)
reinforce this flow from individual cases to more general terms: “[a]n approach based on inductive
data moves from the specific to the general, so that particular instances are observed and then
combined into a larger whole or general statement”.
3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN, DATA COLLECTION METHODS AND RESEARCH
INSTRUMENTS
The research design that was used is cross-sectional. Although this is traditionally understood to be
associated with research methods such as surveys (Bryman & Bell, 2007), it also uses methods like
content analysis, and can be defined as “the collection of data on more than one case (usually quite
a lot more than one) and at a single point in time in order to collect a body of quantitative or
quantifiable data in connection with two or more variables (usually many more than two), which
are then examined to detect patterns of association” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 55).
The 210 Communication Leadership and Learning, as well as the Leadership assignments, qualify
as the data collected, and Bryman and Bell (2007, p. 71) state that the typical form of a cross-
sectional design can “be based upon qualitative content analysis of a set of documents relating to a
single event”.
The various assignments were written specifically on the 12 seeds of the April² Framework (April
& April, 2007), one seed of which was authenticity, which although not an event, is a single topic.
In addition, even though the assignments were written over a period of time from 2007 to 2008, the
researcher received these at one point in time. Longitudinal research “warrants being dubbed
longitudinal when there is a concern to map change” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 71), which is not the
case in this research, hence the research design is described as cross-sectional.
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The traditional qualitative data collection methods, such as ethnography, interviewing, focus groups
or discourse analysis (Bryman & Bell, 2007) are not applicable to this research, as the researcher
was provided with 1,159 documents, mainly Communication, Leadership and Learning
assignments from the Graduate School of Business and Leadership assignments from the Rotterdam
School of Management, of which 210 of the most recent assignments were chosen as the data
sample. The researcher used these assignments as a basis for document analysis, which is “the
study of existing documents, such as public documents like annual reports…and formal letter, and
personal documents like diaries and photographs” (Ritchie & Lewis, 2004, p. 35, as cited in Burden
& Roodt, 2007, p. 14)
3.3 SAMPLING
The researcher was provided with a database of Communication, Leadership and Learning
assignments from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business, as well as
Leadership assignments of EMBA students from the Rotterdam School of Management. Although
a data population of 1,159 documents was provided by the researcher’s supervisor, some of which
were written as far back as 2004, the researcher chose to use a sample size of 210 of the most recent
assignments across both schools. According to Bryman and Bell (2007, p. 182), a non-probability
sample is “a sample that has not been selected using a random selection method”. In this case, due
to time constraints, and in order to complete an analysis of authenticity using the most current data
available, a non-probability sample has been chosen. The sample can further be defined as a
convenience sample, which is chosen “by virtue of its accessibility” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 197).
Documents whose authors expressly stated they did not give permission for their assignment to be
used for research purpose were omitted, as well as any documents that contained no relevant or
appropriate definitions, enablers or stumbling blocks of authenticity. These included assignments
and appendices. In addition, where a document was duplicated, it was omitted.
3.4 RESEARCH CRITERIA
Validity in terms of qualitative research refers to whether “you are observing, identifying, or
‘measuring’ what you say you are” (Mason, 1996, p. 21, as cited in Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 410).
LeCompte and Goetz (1982, as cited in Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 410) state that internal validity,
which determines whether “there is a good match between researchers’ observations and the
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theoretical ideas they develop” is usually a strength in qualitative analysis, because of the amount
of time spent with the group being interviewed or observed. Although the researcher did not spend
any amount of time with the research respondents / authors of the assignments, the types of
documents detail the respondent’s feelings in some detail, which should assist in resulting in a
match between observations and theory.
External validity refers to “the degree to which findings can be generalized across social settings”
(Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 410). This is a limitation of this particular research, as the findings
cannot be generalized across a broader population. However, some researchers have argued that
different criteria should be used to evaluate qualitative data instead of reliability and validity
(Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 411). According to Guba (1985) and Guba and Lincoln (1994), these are
“trustworthiness and authenticity”, and trustworthiness is further broken down into four criteria (as
cited in Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 411). The first of these is credibility, which refers to ensuring that
good practice is followed in terms of the research, and that the findings are reconfirmed by the
people who were studied (Bryman & Bell, 2007). In this particular research, this will not be the
case. Transferability refers to “rich accounts of the details of a culture” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p.
413) which will determine whether the findings can be transferable to other situations (Guba &
Lincoln, 1985, p. 316 as cited in Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 413). The assignments provide in-depth
accounts and details, hence the research should provide a great deal of transferability. The third
component is that of dependability, ensuring that “complete records are kept of all phases of the
research process” in order to allow peers to audit these and ensure that “proper procedures are being
and have been followed” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 414). All documentation has been saved
throughout the research process. April (2004) has created the concept of a “Chain of Evidence”
(see Figure 1) to illustrate the data analysis process. The saving of all documents would be a
component of the first step in the Chain of Evidence, namely “Organize Raw Data”, which includes
the cataloguing of documents (April, 2004, p. 103). Lastly, confirmability entails that the
researcher does not let personal values “sway the conduct of the research and findings deriving
from it” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 414). Due to the evidence presented in the assignments, which
has not been influenced in any way by the researcher, it can be assumed that the research will be
confirmable.
Authenticity refers to various criteria, including fairness, ontological authenticity and educative
authenticity (Bryman & Bell, 2007). Fairness refers to whether different viewpoints are
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represented adequately (Bryman & Bell, 2007). Since the researcher did not choose a specific
criteria other than recency for the assignments analysed, it can be assumed that fairness was used.
Ontological authenticity entails arriving at “a better understanding of [the member’s] social
milieu”, where educational authenticity refers to an appreciation of “the perspectives of other
members of their social settings” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 414). Due to the nature of the research,
there is a possibility that readers of this research could describe the research as ontologically and
educationally authentic.
Reliability can “be estimated through the coding of the original data. The evaluation of the
reliability of the research…thus consists in ensuring and verifying that the different coding
operations will be able to be repeated with the same results obtained” (Delattre, Ocler, Moulette &
Rymeyko, 2009, p. 35).
Through the use of ATLAS.ti1 software, it can be assumed that there is a possibility that these
coding operations will be able to be repeated to obtain the same results. The coding using ATLAS.ti
software forms part of the second step in the Chain of Evidence concept, “Create Code Framework”
(April, 2004, p. 103) which is illustrated in Figure 2 below.
1 1 ATLAS.ti software is described as follows: “ATLAS.ti is a versatile workbench for the qualitative analysis of large bodies of textual, graphical, audio, and video data. It offers a variety of tools for accomplishing the tasks associated with any systematic approach to unstructured data, e.g., data that cannot be meaningfully analyzed by formal, statistical approaches” (ATLAS.ti – the Knowledge Workbench, 2009).
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Figure 2: The Chain of Evidence Concept. Source: Adapted from April, 2004, p. 103
3.5 DATA ANALYSIS METHODS
Shaw (1999, p. 65) states that:
“the inductive analysis of qualitative data involves: the reading and re-reading of
transcripts and field notes (Easterby-Smith, Thorpe & Lowe., 1991); the use of codes
to bring order, structure and meaning to raw data (Strauss & Corbin, 1990); the
constant comparison of the codes and categories which emerge with subsequent data
collected and also with concepts suggested by the literature (Glaser & Strauss, 1967)
and, the search for relationships among emerging categories of data (Marshall &
Rossman, 1995)”
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This is the process that has been followed in this research through the use of grounded theory.
Grounded theory is “a methodology that has been used to generate theory where little is already
known, or to provide a fresh slant on existing knowledge. It is an interpretivist mode of enquiry
which has its roots in symbolic interactionism and as such language, gestures, expressions and
actions are all considered primary to the experience” (Goulding, 1998, p. 51-52). It is particularly
appropriate for researching stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity, as it is a methodology
“developed for, and particularly suited to, the study of behaviour” (Goulding, 1998, p. 56).
Glaser (1978, p. 36, as cited in Goulding 1998, p. 53) states: “Theoretical sampling is the process of
data collection for generating theory whereby the analyst jointly collects, codes and analyses the
data and decides what data to collect next and where to find it, in order to develop the theory as it
emerges. This process of data collection is ‘controlled’ by the emerging theory”.
The coding for this research has been done using ATLAS.ti software, which was further analysed
using content analysis. Open coding can be defined as “the analytic process through which
concepts are identified and their properties and dimensions discovered in the data” (Strauss &
Corbin, 1998, p. 101, as cited in Burden & Roodt, 2007, p. 15). The “key feature of all content
analysis is that the many words of the text are classified into much smaller categories” (Weber,
1990, Burnard, 1996 as cited in Elo & Kyngäs, 2008 p. 107).
After completion of the open coding, a conditional relationship guide was used to perform axial
coding for each of the 125 sub-codes identified during the open coding process. According to Scott
(2004, p.125), the Conditional Relationship Guide “contextualises the central phenomenon and
related the structure with the process by answering the investigative questions ‘What, When,
Where, Why, How, and with what Consequence’”.
Content analysis is the method used if “there is not enough former knowledge about the
phenomenon or if this knowledge is fragmented, the inductive approach is recommended” (Lauri &
Kyngäs, 2005, as cited in Elo & Kyngäs, 2008, p. 109), which is the case in terms of stumbling
blocks and enablers to authenticity for MBA and EMBA students.
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4 RESEARCH FINDINGS, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 4.1 RESEARCH FINDINGS
Through the process of open coding, there were 125 sub-codes of stumbling blocks and enablers to
authenticity that emerged. These are listed in the table below:
conforming to the
expectations of others
meditation and reflection self-awareness openness in
relationships
organisations with
conflicting values to yours
shyness
knowing oneself
learning and education
being true to yourself
living out your true
values
fear of vulnerability taking risks
pleasing others sound values embracing
diversity family and
friends spirituality and
religion
the ability to adapt and
change
confidence contingent self-esteem
inability to be open about
one's feelings
inability to be true to self
putting up a facade
the struggle of maintaining
one's integrity
showing trust avoiding conflict
recognising strengths and weaknesses
role models seeking approval transparency
wanting to fit in awareness
congruence between words
and deeds
examining one's life story
expressing feelings
moral guidance
lack of reflection
lack of self-awareness
non-conformance
standing up for what you
believe in upbringing open-
mindedness
working in an environment conducive to expressing
values
being comfortable with your decisions
being compassionate
inability to listen
authentically
inability to trust
overcoming fear
knowing your purpose
repressing parts of oneself
strong sense of self
times of distress
tolerance of others self-deception
balancing extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation
being influenced
building strong support
networks
death of a loved one
fear of rejection self-discipline
honesty
knowing where you stand on
moral issues
lack of confidence
moving away from a
comfort zone
not knowing oneself
lack of passion
not telling the truth
revealing different
aspects of oneself
stealing the traits of others
telling the truth
associate with others who respect me
lack of role models
cultural diversity
feedback from others
focusing on positive traits
having low self-esteem
integrating one's life
lack of self-discipline
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making a positive
difference in the lives of
others
material wealth
not understanding one's purpose
reflection on the past
self-acceptance
living up to self imposed expectations
vulnerability working too much arrogance
being intolerant of
others
being passionate
mind is stronger than
body building up a
defense mechanism
denial doing what is right and fair
embracing being
different
fear of being judged
inability to ask for
assistance
fear of repercussions
hiding aspects of oneself
lack of inner vision
lack of meaningful
relationships
lack of purpose
inability to self regulate in a stressful environment
listening intently mindfulness
not being afraid of being
judged
participation in social networks
stewardship
incongruence between
words and deeds
strong intuition
appreciation of others
aversion to risk
avoiding situations that conflict with one's morals
balancing work and
social responsibilities
integrity
caring what others think
conscience and guilt
difficulty with examining one's past
experiences
escapism fear of conflict irreconcilable desires
fear of hurting others
fear of loss of income
fear of making mistakes
financial freedom freedom
Table 2: Sub-Codes of Enablers and Stumbling Blocks of Authenticity
Of these sub-codes, “conforming to the expectations of others” was mentioned fifty seven times,
which was the sub-code mentioned the most, with “meditation and reflection” being mentioned
thirty three times, and “self-awareness” being mentioned twenty seven times. There were 646
instances of enablers and stumbling blocks mentioned in the assignments.
These 125 sub-codes were grouped into twelve family codes: Self-Knowledge, Personality Traits
and Behaviours, Relationships, Fear, Values and Morals, Influence of Others, Coping Mechanisms,
Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality, Balance, Diversity, Institutions, Organisations and the
Workplace, and Money and Material Goods. The breakdown of the frequency of each of the sub-
codes mentioned is depicted below:
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Balance5%
Money and material goods2%
Coping mechanisms4% Fear
10%
Meditation, reflection and spirituality
5%Institutions, organisations
and the workplace3%
Personality traits and behaviours
19%
Relationships14%
Diversity3%
Values and morals11%
Self knowledge17%
Influence of others7%
Figure 3: Breakdown of Family Codes of Authenticity
The family codes, as well as the sub-codes are described in more detail in the following sections.
4.1.1 Self-Knowledge
The sub-codes contained in the family code of “Self-Knowledge” are cited mainly as enablers,
however, the lack of self-knowledge is often mentioned as a stumbling block of authenticity. The
table below shows the breakdown of the sub-codes contained in this family code. For certain sub-
codes, the excerpts from the Conditional Relationship Guide have been included below for
illustrative purposes.
Self-Knowledge Frequency
self-awareness 27
knowing oneself 17
being true to yourself 15
recognising strengths and weaknesses 7
awareness 6
examining one's life story 6
expressing feelings 6
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lack of self-awareness 6
knowing your purpose 5
strong sense of self 5
repressing parts of oneself 5
revealing different aspects of oneself 4
not knowing oneself 4
focusing on positive traits 3
not understanding one's purpose 3
self-acceptance 3
hiding aspects of oneself 2
lack of purpose 2
difficulty with examining one's past experiences 1
living up to self imposed expectations 1
open-mindedness 1
Total Count 129
Table 3: Sub-Codes of Self-Knowledge
4.1.1.1 Self-Awareness
Self-awareness appeared twenty seven times and was one of the most frequently mentioned sub-
code, and from the conditional relationship guide, this occurs in many varied situations. This is
illustrated with the following comment: “[d]uring tense moments, both in my previous job, and at
home during a domestic spat, I find that I refer to myself (internally) asking the question, ‘am I
being me? Is this who I am’… I find that by doing this, it provides me with the knowledge of the
fact that I am aware of my actions”.
What When Where Why How Consequence
Self-awareness When in a leadership
session In all situations The individual
was being filmed
The individual saw a lot of things he never realized about himself and tried to imagine being filmed and what it would say
about him
The individual could discover
more about himself`
This is an extract from the Conditional Relationship Guide, which illustrates how an individual
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discovered more about himself after being filmed, and became more aware of his actions.
Consequences for other individuals included not pretending to be anyone else, adjusting reactions
to the world, self-acceptance, and a change of outlook on life.
4.1.1.2 Knowing Oneself
This sub-code was mentioned seventeen times and occurred when people were re-assessing
themselves, or had experienced a change in their lives. One example is where a respondent joined
Narcotics Anonymous: “The turnaround came when I sat down with a sponsor, and started putting
my life story to paper…the lessons learnt from both were that the journey of discovery is not a one-
time event but rather a continuous life-long exercise”. Another individual joined the army: “[t]he
army exposed me to values and beliefs which I did not at all accept… This process of being aware
of what is and what is not important must have sparked off the start of questioning myself and the
things I stood for and believed in”.
The extract from the Conditional Relationship Guide elaborates on the quotes above with the
consequence of becoming more authentic. Other consequences included individuals being able to
be true to themselves, have a more meaningful life and starting to make the choice to be
themselves.
4.1.1.3 Being True to Yourself
This sub-code appeared fifteen times and although appeared in various situations, often appeared in
difficult times in the individual’s lives, where individual were forced to make extreme decisions. .
One such example is as follows: “At some point in my life I was faced with a dilemma to take or
save someone’s life. I did not pull an AK47 trigger because it was against what I believed in…I
was being true to myself”. This instance of “being true to yourself” is elaborated on in the excerpt
from the Conditional Relationship Guide below.
What When Where Why How Consequence
Knowing oneself When coming out of rehabilitation In all situations
The individual had to embark on a process to get to
know himself
The individual started writing down his life
story
The individual is closer to
becoming authentic
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What When Where Why How Consequence
Being true to yourself
When deciding to take or save
someone’s life In all situations
The individual did not want to go against what he
stood for
The individual did not shoot someone
The individual found deeper purpose and
meaning
4.1.1.4 Recognising Strengths and Weaknesses
This sub-code was mentioned seven times, as both stumbling block and enabler. The following
excerpt illustrates this: “I am bad at acknowledging my own personal shortcomings which results in
my bad self-clarity… [w]hen I fail at something I need to assess why I failed, rather than trying to
cover up the fact that I failed”.
4.1.1.5 Awareness
Awareness occurs mostly in situations where individuals are looking at their life in relation to their
surroundings: “First and foremost is awareness - I am in constant internal dialogue regarding the
impact of societal influences on my decisions and am careful to not underestimate their strength on
my thought processes”. This sub-code was mentioned by six individuals.
4.1.1.6 Examining One’s Life Story
This sub-code emerged six times and usually took place when individuals analysed their lives for a
specific reason. One of these did so while writing his CLL assignment: “When I look back and
examine the relationships of my parents I now realize that, although my father was the alcoholic, it
was my mother that was the dominant, controlling personality. I also now see how I use the same
techniques to try to dominate my wife”. The excerpt from the Conditional Relationship Guide
below shows how one individual was able to be more authentic through examining his life story.
What When Where Why How Consequence
Examining one’s life story
After the individual’s illness
In all situations The individual has a greater understanding of him/herself after the last few years
During the individual’s illness friends got to know him/her a lot better and the individual has looked back at this time
The individual is more authentic
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Other consequences of this sub-code were that individuals had defined their beliefs and that they
learnt more about themselves.
4.1.1.7 Expressing Feelings
This was both a stumbling block and an enabler for the individuals and was mentioned six times
and occurs in various situations. This is one example: “I see myself as a person, who is not at all
afraid to express her thinking even in the face of adversity”.
4.1.1.8 Lack of Self-Awareness
This sub-code was mentioned six times and is a stumbling block in all cases. When sitting with his
coach and explaining that he wanted to be the following situation emerged: “’I want to be an
engineer with an MBA, a successful businessman, wealthy, emotionally intelligent…’ – all the
things I thought were important to me. He sat and listened with interest and then asked me two
simple questions: ‘But who do you want to be?’... I was stunned to silence”.
4.1.1.9 Knowing Your Purpose
The sub-code of “knowing your purpose” was mainly an enabler and emerged five times. In one
case, an individual was pressured into choosing between engineering and medicine and wanted to
do neither and broached it with his father: “he didn’t know what I wanted, so we agreed that I
postponed my admission for six months, following that he and I traveled to the USA to find out if I
can do something else… I am glad that he did let me make my decision”.
4.1.1.10 Strong Sense of Self
This was mainly an enabler and was mentioned by five individuals, one of whom had been on a
journey to get to know himself: “By seeing a counselor, reading vast amounts of self help literature
including the Bible, regularly asking friends and family for constructive feedback, understanding
my addictions and learning to love myself…I have developed a strong sense of self”.
4.1.1.11 Repressing Parts of Oneself
Individuals who mentioned this stumbling block all related it to the communities or families they
were living in, and this sub-code appeared five times. One individual illustrates this as follows: “I
grew up with somewhat split personalities, only expressing my true extroverted personality when in
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the presence of my mother and being consciously very reserved and introverted when I was with
my father”.
The table above illustrates one individual’s experience of this sub-code. Other consequences
included not being authentic around the individual’s father, and adding a perspective on how the
individual approaches a problem.
4.1.1.12 Revealing Different Aspects of Oneself
Although similar to the previous sub-code, this was mentioned four times and appears mainly in the
work context: “I do not always feel free to be me…and tend to reveal different parts of myself to
different people”.
4.1.1.13 Not Knowing Oneself
This sub-code also appeared four times and is a stumbling block that occurs in the individual’s
personal lives: “To put it frank[ly], there is a hell of a lot of things that I do know much more about
than myself”.
4.1.1.14 Focusing on Positive Traits
This sub-code appeared three times and occurs in daily life: “By focusing on my positive traits I am
able to distinct myself from others around me and that is what makes me authentic”.
4.1.1.15 Not Understanding One’s Purpose
This is a stumbling block that emerged three times and appears mainly in the personal lives of
individuals. One individual illustrates this sub-code in the following way: “Ever since I was a child
I have held the belief that I wanted to have a career in finance and thus all of my jobs to date have
been in that field. However, I now realize that this is not what truly makes me happy and this need
to work in finance probably arose because my father worked in finance and I have been
subconsciously trying to emulate him”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Repressing parts of oneself
When in the hospitality industry
In all situations The industry is based on the belief that the customer is always right
The individual role-plays to please the clients
This repression contradicts the individual’s deeper persuasion of self-display
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4.1.1.16 Self-Acceptance
This is an enabler that emerged three times and is illustrated by the following comment: “I have
few things I do not like about myself; I like who I am… I do not choose to be me, I just am”.
4.1.1.17 Hiding Aspects of Oneself
“Hiding aspects of oneself” appeared twice as a stumbling block and is encapsulated in the
following excerpt: “Due to my ambitious nature, I normally try to hide my failures”.
4.1.1.18 Lack of Purpose
This sub-code was mentioned by two individuals as a stumbling block: “I have found that my lack
of purpose has meant that I behave very differently in different situations and I struggle internally
with the fact that I am very often not the same person from one day to the next”.
“Difficulty with examining one’s past experiences” and “living up to self imposed expectations”
were stumbling blocks that were mentioned by one individual each, whereas “open-mindedness”
was mentioned as an enabler by one individual.
4.1.2 Personality Traits and Behaviours
The family code of “personality traits and behaviours” is broken down as follows:
Personality Traits and Behaviours Frequency Confidence 9
inability to be true to self 8 inability to be open about one's
feelings 8 being compassionate 5
inability to trust 5 inability to listen authentically 5
lack of confidence 4 having low self-esteem 3
Arrogance 2
being intolerant of others 2 being passionate 2
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building up a defense mechanism 2 Denial 2
strong intuition 2 caring what others think 1
conscience and guilt 1 Shyness 1
lack of passion 1 self-discipline 1
lack of self-discipline 1 inability to self regulate in a
stressful environment 1 inability to ask for assistance 1
Total Count 67
Table 4: Sub-Codes of Personality Traits and Behaviours
4.1.2.1 Confidence
“Confidence” appeared nine times in the open coding and occurs in various different day to day
situations. This is illustrated with the following comment: “When something strikes me as
important, I will act strongly and with enormous amounts of self confidence and passion”. Some
individuals mention that they need confidence in order to be authentic.
What When Where Why How Consequence Confidence As the individual
started to believe in himself
In all situations The individual believed in himself more
The individual was able to start making their own decisions
The individual reached a new authentic frontier
The extract from the Conditional Relationship Guide shows how one individual reached a new
authentic frontier. Other consequences for the sub-code “confidence” were that individuals became
aware of their morals, stood up for what they believe in and became more and more of the same
person.
4.1.2.2 Inability to be True to Self
This stumbling block emerged eight times, mostly when dealing with others or facing a difficult
truth. One such example is illustrated with this comment: “One of the contributing factors that
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make[s] me unauthentic is that I am unable to accept my sexuality and never wanted anybody to
know about [it]”.
4.1.2.3 Inability to be Open about one’s Feelings
This code emerged eight times as a stumbling block mainly when dealing with family, friends or
work colleagues. One individual mentioned that she told her family not to attend her graduation,
even though she was extremely proud of her achievement: “I realise now that my lack of
genuineness in stating my real thoughts of having my family there made a gratifying achievement a
lonely moment in my life”. The table below details the consequence of another individual’s
inability to be open about his feelings. Other consequences include losing girlfriends and not
opening up.
4.1.2.4 Being Compassionate
“Being compassionate” was mentioned five times, mostly as an enabler for authenticity and mainly
occurs for individuals who feel the need to give something back to the community: “one of the
reasons I’m doing my MBA is to be able to give everything I can to South Africans and the world.
I would like to focus on education and really transform people’s lives”.
4.1.2.5 Inability to Trust
This stumbling block was mentioned five times and occurred in the individual’s private, as well as
work lives when individuals have been betrayed in the past. This is one illustrative example: “I
have been betrayed in life and therefore, find it hard to trust in people. It is usually after a long
while of interaction that I tend to trust certain people”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Inability to be open about one’s feelings
When dealing with certain friends
In all situations There is no real trust or intimacy in these relationships
The individual will only talk about topics like sport and hide his feelings
The individual is not being authentic
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4.1.2.6 Inability to Listen Authentically
This code appeared five times as a stumbling block, mainly in the individual’s personal lives, which
is illustrated by the following quote from a doctor, who thought he listened well in his professional
life: “it was always from the point of view of assessing someone else’s problems and coming up
with a solution. I find it very difficult to take a hermeneutic approach to communication.
According to my wife, I never listen to anything she says”.
4.1.2.7 Lack of Confidence
Four individuals mentioned this stumbling block, in various situations involving other people. One
individual mentioned how he feels in certain environments, particularly in large social gatherings:
“I do not have much confidence in myself and almost need to adopt another persona in order to feel
competent in some social situations”.
4.1.2.8 Having low Self-Esteem
This was mentioned three times as a stumbling block towards achieving authenticity. An individual
mentions how she had to endure this trait: “I have a low self-esteem and suffer from much
insecurity. I have gone through eating disorders, depression and only through much effort have
managed to lose my extreme shyness…I specifically have issues about my body and weight”. This
causes the individual to lose her sense of self worth. The extract from the Conditional Relationship
Guide illustrates this quote. Other examples of consequences of this sub-code include being
opened up to manipulation and making decisions that individuals did not want to make.
4.1.2.9 Arrogance
“Arrogance” was mentioned twice, both times as a stumbling block: “The final important stumbling
block to maximising my own authenticity is its expression as an overbearing, almost arrogant,
What When Where Why How Consequence Having low self-esteem
When in a situation in which the individual is insecure
In all situations The individual has esteem problems about her body and weight
The individual defers to a lesser image of herself
The individual loses her sense of worth and her authenticity
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always-right attitude, which leaves no room for others’ views and ways of being”. He mentions
that this leads to “strife, conflict and a loss of respect” for him.
4.1.2.10 Being Intolerant of Others
This stumbling block was mentioned twice in relation to dealing with others. One individual states:
“at times I can become intolerant of people and not give them the opportunity to make mistakes,
learn and grow. I have been criticised by people of being too impatient and wanting to control the
outcome of everything”.
4.1.2.11 Being passionate
“Being passionate” emerged as an enabler twice, and both individuals stated this when doing
something they really enjoyed, such as playing the piano or cooking food: “cooking is an
externalisation of the love I have for my friends and family and nothing is more fulfilling than
watching my guests enjoy a meal. When I cook, I cook with passion for the ingredients, the
method and the final outcome… Passion is the authentic me, magnified”.
4.1.2.12 Building up a Defense Mechanism
Two individuals named this as a stumbling block when dealing with others. One states: “I think
that [I] have many self defence mechanisms and masks that I use, especially with people that I do
not know as well as my work colleagues”. This had led to the individual developing another
personal “to fit in better with society”.
4.1.2.13 Denial
This stumbling block was also mentioned twice. This is illustrated with the following quote: “I
always find it hard to receive negative feedback from friends and family, I tend to push back on it
and get defensive”.
4.1.2.14 Strong Intuition
“Strong intuition” was mentioned twice as an enabler. One individual mentioned “I seem to always
let my heart or my gut determine the decisions that I make” whereas the other individual states: “I
do have a strong intuition which helps me to understand quickly what people want or expect or
what their real intentions are”.
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“Caring what others think”, “shyness”, “lack of passion”, “lack of self-discipline”, “inability to
self-regulate in a stressful environment” and “inability to ask for assistance” were each mentioned
by one individual as a stumbling block. “Conscience and guilt” emerged as an enabler, where an
individual quotes: “[t]o be placed in a predicament where I chose not to be Authentic to myself
would drown me in a pool of guilt. It is a matter that I would struggle to come to terms with. For
this reason, my guilt and conscience are [the] driving force behind my being Authentic”. Lastly,
“self-discipline” was mentioned as another enabler.
4.1.3 Relationships
This is one of the key family codes that contains stumbling blocks and enablers. These are depicted
in the table below.
Relationships Frequency Openness in relationships 21
Family and friends 10
showing trust 8 avoiding conflict 7
role models 7 upbringing 6
tolerance of others 5 building strong support
networks 4 death of a loved one 4
associate with others who respect me 3
vulnerability 3 lack of meaningful
relationships 2 participation in social
networks 2 listening intently 2
appreciation of others 1 lack of role models 1
irreconcilable desires 1
transparency 1 Total Count 88
Table 5: Sub-codes of Relationships
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4.1.3.1 Openness in relationships
This code appears mainly as an enabler and emerged twenty one times, in the context of both close
personal relationships, as well as working relationships. One individual describes this as follows
when he speaks about telling his fiancée something he is ashamed of: “I have become brave enough
to tell her about the time when as a sixteen year old I slapped my then girlfriend who had cheated
on me… I believe that revealing who I am will make my relationships more real because people
will be interacting with the real me”. The table below indicates another example of axial coding for
this sub-code. Other consequences of this code are being able to reflect, being able to express
oneself better and credibility.
What When Where Why How Consequence Openness in relationships
In her relationship with her mother
In all situations The individual is only truly open with her mother
The individual always holds something back in relationships with people other than her mother
The individual only has one authentic relationship
4.1.3.2 Family and Friends
Ten individuals mentioned “family and friends” as both enablers and stumbling blocks. One
example where this sub-code is mentioned as a stumbling block is as follows: “With my family I
behave in an opposite way. I am the youngest of three children… since I was young I have felt as if
I was standing in their shadow. I always tried to join in the discussions my parents and siblings
used to have during supper, but I was usually too young and ignorant to understand… I sometimes
tried to throw statements into the conversation, but the response would always be ‘he is still young,
forgive him’”.
4.1.3.3 Showing Trust
This sub-code emerged eight times as an enabler, both at home and at work. The following quote
illustrates this, where a young woman was given advice by her mentor in the workplace: “I was the
only female working with and managing about a hundred men. My manager and mentor, Richard
Jaure… sat me down on my first day and said to me, ‘child… the first and most important thing you
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need to do is gain trust with all these men’… I went out and did just that and I can attest I had the
most fulfilling working experience built on trust and mutual respect”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Showing trust When in
leadership positions
At work The individual had to manage a hundred men as a twenty one year old woman and her mentor told her to build up their trust
The individual gained trust with these men
The individual had the most fulfilling work experience based on mutual respect and trust
The table above shows the excerpt from the Conditional Relationship Guide for this individual.
Additional consequences for this sub-code include individuals being authentic to their ideals and
having a profound effect on family and friends.
4.1.3.4 Avoiding Conflict
“Avoiding conflict” was a stumbling block mentioned seven times, mainly in the context where
people were faced with difficult situations. One of these is highlighted here: “sometimes I have
acted against my inner belief just to avoid conflict. In arguments, I often concede defeat even when
I know I am right just to avoid conflict”. This leads in most cases to inauthentic behaviour.
4.1.3.5 Role Models
Seven individuals mentioned role models as enablers for authenticity and one individual describes
what her role model means to her: “I have a role model in my life who I regard as one of the more
authentic people I have ever met. Royal, a 62 year old grandmother, is by no means perfect, in fact,
quite the opposite, but she is real… I use her as my benchmark for authenticity”.
4.1.3.6 Upbringing
“Upbringing” was cited six times, and most of these instances were mentioned as enablers: “I
always had a very good and open relationship with my parents… They showed me… their
unconditional love and taught me to be honest, courageous, and authentic to achieve my goals”.
However, one individual experienced the opposite when having to live with his father and
stepmother after his parents’ divorce: “In this family I was not free or enabled to practise my inner
self”.
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4.1.3.7 Tolerance of Others
This sub-code was mentioned by five individuals, all in terms of being an enabler, as indicated
here: “I believe that I have a good ability to be tolerant of the imperfections of others and this is
largely due to the way in which I was brought up”. Another individual confirms this: “I would
always try and help somebody and understand their problems rather than losing my temper”. This
occurs in various different situations and usually leads to individuals being more authentic.
4.1.3.8 Building Strong Support Networks
Four people mentioned this sub-code as an enabler in different circumstances. This is illustrated by
one individual: “I rely, heavily, and contribute to, the support system that I’ve built around me. It
begins with my immediate family, foremost my parents and brother (particularly my mother) and
widens to include my aunt and cousin in Durban, my close group of girl friends who are scattered
around the world, yet available at a moment’s notice”.
4.1.3.9 Death of a Loved One
“Death of a Loved One” emerged four times, usually as an enabler. One individual describes how
her father had cancer and not much time to live: “I simply left my desk and affairs as they were,
flew to PE and spent the next six weeks at his bedside – a precious time that I will never regret.
This period confirmed my values a thousand-fold – I will truly kill for my family and those I love”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Death of a loved one
When the individual’s sister died
In all situations The death made the individual realize how little time there is on earth and how little time you have to be true to yourself
The individual found meaning out of the death to justify their extreme loss
The individual has realized they want to be authentic in the short time on earth
The table above shows another example of an individual’s experience of the death of a loved one.
Other consequences include the individual carrying neuroses into adulthood and being able to be
authentic.
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4.1.3.10 Associate with Others who Respect Me
Three people mentioned this as an enabler, one particularly when he went to university after a
tough time at school, where he did not fit in: “In the Engineering department, I met people who did
not view my geekiness as something strange that should be ridiculed but rather as something worth
recognising and even admired… Through this validation I was able to reinforce my self worth”.
4.1.3.11 Vulnerability
This sub-code is mentioned three times in situations where the individual is usually in a close
relationship with others that they trust: “I therefore consider vulnerability in meaningful
relationships as one of the most important enablers for authenticity. A meaningful relationship is
where I can be myself without wearing a mask and where I can ‘unpack’ experiences”.
4.1.3.12 Lack of Meaningful Relationships
Two individuals mentioned this as a stumbling block, one of whom illustrates this as he moved
from country to country for his career: “I have often moved on from life, which I have built up
temporarily with a girlfriend and circle of friends. I have left the partner behind, because it was the
right thing to do, and not because it felt right”.
4.1.3.13 Participation in Social Networks
This emerged twice as an enabler, and one individual describes this in the context of sport, when he
moved from being extremely competitive, to realising the value of just participating: “This internal
shift from winning to participation, is re-enforced in recalling messages from my old high school
principal, Jan Preuyt… [who] consistently emphasised that the value in competition is participation
and not victory”.
4.1.3.14 Listening Intently
“Listening intently” was cited twice as an enabler and one individual elaborates on this when
describing the disagreements he has with his father: “whereas before I was listening for the things I
did not want to hear I am now listening to understand”. This has led to him feeling he can become
more authentic.
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The other sub-codes in this family code were all mentioned once, with “appreciation of others” and
“transparency” listed as enablers and “lack of role models” and “irreconcilable desires” as
stumbling blocks.
4.1.4 Fear
Fear is a family code that encompasses mainly stumbling blocks, where individuals are afraid of
certain consequences that disable them from acting authentically. However, some, such as “moving
away from a comfort one” assist individuals in being more authentic. The breakdown is listed
below:
Fear Frequency fear of vulnerability 13
times of distress 5
fear of rejection 4 moving away from a
comfort zone 4 fear of being judged 2 fear of repercussions 2 not being afraid of
being judged 2
fear of conflict 1 fear of hurting others 1
fear of making mistakes 1 aversion to risk 1 overcoming fear 1 self-deception 1 Total Count 38
Table 6: Sub-Codes of Fear
4.1.4.1 Fear of Vulnerability
This sub-code was mentioned thirteen times as a stumbling block, in various situations including
family life, university, and at the workplace. One individual states the following: “Being away
from home makes me feel vulnerable, further being black in a white dominated class worsens my
already precarious position… The fear is that if I look more vulnerable then I am in trouble”. This
prevents him from being who he is, and blocks him in his learning. The table below is an example
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of how another individual experienced this fear. Other consequences include individuals resigning
and losing trust in who they are.
What When Where Why How Consequence Fear of vulnerability
When growing up as an inferior sportsman compared to his brother and going to boarding school
In all situations The events that happened to the individual led him to create an appearance of strength and control
The individual created an image of invulnerability
The individual was not true to himself
4.1.4.2 Times of Distress
“Times of Distress” emerged five times, interestingly mostly as an enabler. During his time in the
Armed Forces, one individual describes his experience: “I was pushed to the very limits of my
mental and physical abilities… It is only when you are completely emotionally drained and have
absolutely nothing left to give; no rank to hide behind; no physical stamina left to call upon; no
false bravado to get you through; no modern comfort to ease your suffering; starving and deprived
of sleep that you truly see the Authentic You”.
4.1.4.3 Fear of Rejection
This stumbling block occurred four times, mostly when dealing with other people: “The fear of
being rejected feeds my difficulty with trusting other people as I am afraid of being hurt”, which in
this case is as a result of drastically changing environments for this individual.
4.1.4.4 Moving Away from a Comfort Zone
“Moving away from a comfort zone” was raised by four individuals who were forced, or chose to,
leave their comfort zones. One individual describes his experience: “most of valuable lessons I
have learnt in my life have been from instances that moved me outside of my comfort zone, some
severely so… When the sheriff repossess[ed] our home and all we owned, I was forced to face the
reality that I was not defined by the possessions that I or my family owned, if this was the case I
was nothing and I refused to accept that”. This enabled him to become more authentic.
4.1.4.5 Fear of Being Judged
This sub-code appeared twice as a stumbling block and is illustrated as follows: “My fear of
judgement relates to what I fear others will think of me should I behave authentically and,
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therefore, possibly distinguish myself from a group… This fear relates to my social networking…
Therefore, there is a juxtaposition where I feel forced into compromising my authenticity in order
to maintain social credibility and not be judged by others”.
4.1.4.6 Fear of Repercussions
Two people highlighted this stumbling block, and one describes the situation where he overcame
this stumbling block: “When I bought out my business partner, I knew that the repercussions could
be severe but I felt that his decision-making ability was flawed and I did not wish him to cause
financial loss for my business”.
4.1.4.7 Not Afraid of Being Judged
This sub-code was also mentioned twice and this excerpt illustrates how one individual feels when
they were asked in an Entrepreneurship class if they had any advanced ideas and they mentioned a
teleportation transport system: “The hilarity in the class made it impossible for me to compare this
idea with the fact that mobile phones were as science fiction as a teleporting device, only 30 years
ago… At the end I was true to myself”.
The last sub-codes of “fear of conflict”, “fear of hurting others”, “fear of making mistakes”,
“aversion to risk”, “overcoming fear” “self-deception” were also mentioned once each. All were
stumbling blocks with the exception of “overcoming fear”.
4.1.5 Values and Morals
In the majority of cases, sub-codes belonging to this family code are enablers of authenticity, in that
the individuals are guided by their values and morals in various different ways. The sub-codes and
the frequency count are listed below:
Values and Morals Frequency living out your true values 14
sound values 13
standing up for what you believe in 6 being comfortable with your decisions 5
honesty 4
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knowing where you stand on moral issues 4
telling the truth 4 making a positive difference in the lives of
others 3 Doing what is right and fair 2
stewardship 2 avoiding situations that conflict with one's
morals 1 integrity 1
moral guidance 1 freedom 1
Total Count 61
Table 7: Sub-Codes of Values and Morals
4.1.5.1 Living Out Your True Values
This sub-code occurred in various situations and was highlighted fourteen times as an enabler. One
example is that of an individual who worked for Accenture and decided to resign: “I made the
difficult decision to leave the organisation based on the fact that the organisation principles were in
constant conflict with my values… I also found that being a consultant sometimes required me to
act in ways that were not always honest in order to please the client and make money for the
organisation”. The consequence is that she now works for an organisation that is in line with her
values.
4.1.5.2 Sound Values
Thirteen individuals mentioned sound values as an enabler. The context of this sub-code is varied,
but includes family life, upbringing and religion. Quotes that illustrate this are: “My strong family
values, religion and sense of morality prevents wavering of values or compromising integrity” and
“I now dare to live by my own values and principles”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Sound values When in the navy At work The individual
was taught that honour, loyalty, integrity and dignity were key values
The individual believes his ability to be an authentic leader is based on his sound values
This has guided the individual through tough decisions
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The table above shows an individual’s experience of having sound values. Other examples of
consequences for this sub-code include individuals appearing arrogant and preventing individuals
from compromising their integrity and core values.
4.1.5.3 Standing Up for What You Believe In
This code emerged six times as an enabler, mostly in all situations. One individual describes it as
follows: “An enabler for me is not being afraid to voice my opinion or thoughts and have courage
to stand up to my beliefs.”
4.1.5.4 Being Comfortable With Your Decisions
Five people mentioned that “being comfortable with your decisions” was an enabler for them: “I
need to realise that when I make decisions, on what to study or who to date, I am the one who has
to live with these decisions, not my family or my friends. I have to make decisions that sit well with
me”.
4.1.5.5 Honesty
This sub-code was mentioned four times in a general context and one of the examples listed is as
follows: “I would list my honesty, particularly when it comes to recogni[sing] my weaknesses and
my ability to learn from past experience. My capacity of talking directly to others looking straight
at their eyes, combined with a distinct level of courage to report the truth…enable me to maintain
my authenticity”.
4.1.5.6 Knowing Where You Stand on Moral Issues
This enabler emerged four times in various situations, such as the following one: “I chose not to
engage in activities such as smoking and drinking which were then the only way of becoming
accepted into friendships”. The consequence for this person was that they did not allow these
influences to affect their authenticity negatively.
4.1.5.7 Telling the Truth
“Telling the truth” was mentioned four times as an enabler and one individual relates his experience
of this: “In my community, stealing is punishable by death by public thrashing and roasting if the
masses get hold of you before the police… I consequently grew up telling the truth and portraying
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myself as I truly was, even if that meant losing out on the things I treasured most or exposing
myself to unknown dangers”.
4.1.5.8 Making a Positive Difference in the Lives of Others
Three individuals raised this sub-code as an enabler to their authenticity: “An example of my
authenticity is my commitment to volunteering at the Red Cross. This was motivated by an intense
desire to make a difference in the lives of others”. The result of this is that the individual has
fulfilment in their lives.
4.1.5.9 Doing what is Right and Fair
This sub-code was cited twice as an enabler, with one individual stating: “The dedication to justice
and fairness is deeply rooted in my heart. Encountering situations of which I disapprove demands
expression of my open and honest opinion. The positive reaction towards my actions by
environment is further incentive to be authentic”.
4.1.5.10 Stewardship
“Stewardship” was raised in the context of leadership for both individuals who mentioned this sub-
code. One stated: “I agree that leadership is about servanthood, I have been in leadership capacities
since I was in high school and came to realise that it was more tedious than I previously envisioned
of leaders whom I had seen as bosses who only give orders”.
“Avoiding situations that conflict with one’s morals”, “integrity”, “moral guidance” and “freedom”
were all mentioned as enablers by one individual each.
4.1.6 Influence of Others
This family code relates on the whole to stumbling blocks to authenticity where individuals are
influenced in different ways. The various sub-codes are listed below:
Influence of Others Frequency conforming to the expectations of
others 57 pleasing others 13
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contingent self-esteem 9 Wanting to fit in 7 seeking approval 7 non-conformance 6
stealing the traits of others 4
being influenced 4 feedback from others 3
Total Count 110
Table 8: Sub-Codes of Influence of Others
4.1.6.1 Conforming to the Expectations of Others
This stumbling block was mentioned fifty seven times and is the one sub-code mentioned the most
times in all the documents that were analysed. This sub-code occurred in all situations, including
at work, at university, when growing up, in the family context, in relationships, sexuality and in the
community.
This sub-code displays various examples of when individuals felt pressure to conform to what was
expected of them, with the result in the majority of instances that the individuals could not be true
to themselves. One individual relays how he was forced by his father, who was a Professor, into
studying something that he did not want to: “I realised that my interests lay in business. However,
due to the intense pressure from my father, I was forced to pursue a Medical degree with the
intention of eventually entering the health fraternity”. Another individual describes how he was
forced to conform to the expectation of others when he was homosexual: “I grew up in a home
where the only affirmation I could get was by being the perfect child. This involved getting the
best marks in school…and most importantly pretending to be heterosexual. I was unable to be
authentic because I had fitted myself into a social category to please my mother… It was the most
painful thing having to be inauthentic when I knew the authentic me was gay”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Conforming to the expectations of others
When forced to obtain a masters degree
In all situations The individual wanted to have a certain status among his cousins
The individual went through a tough time achieving this
The individual thinks he might be under the illusion that he is in control
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The table above illustrates another individual’s experience in conforming. Other examples of
consequences of this sub-code include selling out, a painful inauthentic existence and the individual
does not practice what they preach.
4.1.6.2 Pleasing Others
“Pleasing others” was mentioned by thirteen individuals as a stumbling block in various different
circumstances. One of these was where an individual stated: “My desire to please everyone and
always be the ‘perfect person’ is my flawed sense of role in that it disables me from really being
myself. For example, if I have problems, I don’t really want to bother others with it and try to put
up a happy face and start denying my own feelings”. The consequence of this was that more
negative feelings were created and this had led to her suffering from bulimia in the past.
4.1.6.3 Contingent Self-Esteem
Nine individuals mention this sub-code as stumbling blocks, and one illustrates this as follows:
“Throughout my life I have been measured against my older sister, Mienkie, who is quite simply
more intelligent, more beautiful, more socially adept and more disciplined than me. This has made
me feel misaligned with myself because I am continuously trying to achieve something which is not
based on my own goals and aspirations”.
4.1.6.4 Wanting to Fit In
This sub-code was mentioned seven times as a stumbling block. One individual pretended to be
Namibian when he was South African at university and states: “[I] passed myself off as a
Namibian… Though my rouge worked, and led to my acceptance as a foreigner it led to my utter
confusion and unhappiness”.
4.1.6.5 Seeking Approval
Seven individuals named this as a stumbling block, both in their personal lives and at work, as is
the case with this individual: “my actions are very often focused purely on achievement and the
resultant recognition. This single minded pursuit of recognition from my peers and superiors leads
me to conduct myself in a manner which is less than authentic”.
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4.1.6.6 Non-conformance
Non-conformance appeared six times in the documents, as an enabler. One example that illustrates
this is where an individual states: “I have never been one to take the easy way out…I believe
strongly in being a non-conformist… Conformity was never a condition for love in my household”.
4.1.6.7 Stealing the Traits of Others
Four individuals reported this sub-code as a stumbling block: “I also fall into the trap of pretending
to be somebody else by copying certain aspects of somebody I was impressed by”.
4.1.6.8 Being Influenced
“Being influenced” was also mentioned by four individuals as a stumbling block. One individual
mentions how he was forced into a leadership role for the benefit of others: “I was volunteered to
be an administrator for a group of chess coaches for my provincial chess team. I did not choose to
become the administrator because I was merely interested in coaching”. This resulted in the
individual doing a poor job.
4.1.6.9 Feedback from Others
This sub-code was mentioned three times and one individual writes: “When my parents told me off
when I was younger, I found it difficult to accept what they had to say and move on from it, and
similarly my team leader in my current role commented that I am very defensive to criticism in the
workplace”.
4.1.7 Coping Mechanisms
This family code refers mainly to stumbling blocks that were identified as means for individuals to
deal with their specific situations. The sub-codes are detailed below:
Coping Mechanisms Frequency putting up a facade 8 not telling the truth 4
escapism 1
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mind is stronger than body 1 the ability to adapt and
change 1 Total Count 15
Table 9: Sub-Codes of Coping Mechanisms
4.1.7.1 Putting up a Façade
This stumbling block is mentioned eight times in various circumstances. This individual describes
himself in the workplace: “In the end I could hardly identify the real me. In every work situation I
built a façade to which I can relate the demands of the new project”. This resulted in the individual
not letting people know who he is. This is illustrated below. Other examples for consequences of
this sub-code include wasted energy and suppression of the individual.
What When Where Why How Consequence Putting up a façade
When working in a new project
At work The individual wanted to appease the organization
The individual put up a new façade with each project
The individual did not let people know who he was
4.1.7.2 Not Telling the Truth
Four individuals mention this sub-code as a stumbling block and one mentions how he grew up
without a father, but lied about it: “I would lie to my primary schoolmates about my father… I used
to tell my schoolmates things about my father that were non-existent. Even though I knew that
lying is wrong I still made up stories about my father because I wanted my friends to accept me”.
4.1.7.3 Escapism
This was mentioned by one individual who became withdrawn and silent: “I can suffer from
escapism. I think my teenage years taught me this trait”.
4.1.7.4 Mind is Stronger than Body
One individual mentioned this as a stumbling block, where she mentions her mind conquers her
body: “my belief of eating healthy can suppress my taste-buds in recognising which foods my taste-
buds enjoy”.
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4.1.7.5 The Ability to Adapt and Change
This was also mentioned by one person, but as an enabler: “this is the heart and soul of my
‘authentic self’: Being able to adapt and change my personality, leadership style, level of self
awareness etc. to suite the moment and the purpose, in order to achieve my goal and ultimately
develop and grow myself”.
4.1.8 Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality
This family code represents mainly enablers, and the sub-codes are listed below:
Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality Frequency
meditation and reflection 33 spirituality and religion 10
lack of reflection 6
reflection on the past 3 mindfulness 2
lack of inner vision 2 Total Count 56
Table 10: Sub-Codes of Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality
4.1.8.1 Meditation and Reflection
This sub-code was mentioned thirty three times and is the second most mentioned sub-code. It is
an enabler in the majority of instances and occurs in a range of settings, including at work and in
the individual’s personal lives. One individual finds this in nature: “I have found that my quiet time
comes when I participate in road running or cycling, as well as finding that walks in the Table
Mountain National Park (or any open fields) focus my mind on being reflective, thinking about
myself, my loved ones, how I am fitting into the world around me, am I really happy doing what I
am doing”. According to the conditional relationship guide, the consequence of most of these
instances is that the individuals know themselves better over time.
What When Where Why How Consequence Meditation and reflection
When trying to find a life calling
In all situations The individual realized he was not happy
The individual started an MBA
The individual understood himself better
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The table above shows another example of an individual experiencing meditation and reflection.
Other examples of consequences include individuals finding themselves, learning about themselves,
aligning their values and being true to themselves.
4.1.8.2 Spirituality and Religion
Ten individuals named this as a stumbling block or enabler. One individual mentions: “I had many
material pos[sessions] but my life… still felt empty. When I became a Christian I understood my
purpose was to follow God and serve him and others”. Another individual sees it as a stumbling
block and refers to her ‘Jewish guilt’: “I was raised in a Jewish household… I sought this societal
approval during my school years and hence feel like I compromised my own beliefs”.
4.1.8.3 Lack of Reflection
This was seen as a stumbling block by six individuals: “I have rarely spent time determining why I
act in certain ways and a lack of clarity around my purpose combined with difficulty in creating
deep relationships have affected my ability to project my authentic self”.
4.1.8.4 Reflection on the Past
This sub-code emerged three times, and this is one example: “I believe it is very important to learn
from our past mistake[s] to be able to grow. An enabler for me to be authentic is to see how I was
unauthentic in the past and work towards the other direction in future”.
4.1.8.5 Mindfulness
“Mindfulness” appeared twice as an enabler: “My discussion with Lisa allowed me to exercise
mindfulness while eating… I hope that through regular practice of mindfulness, I will learn to still
my mind so as to enhance my appreciation of the present”.
4.1.8.6 Lack of Inner Vision
Two individuals mentioned this sub-code as a stumbling block. One illustrates this as follows: “I
find that I have difficulty in focussing on my inner self. I am unsure what questions… I need to be
asking and whether I can be truly honest to myself”.
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4.1.9 Balance
This family code is represented by both stumbling blocks and enablers and is broken down into the
following sub-codes:
Balance Frequency congruence between words and deeds 6
balancing extrinsic and intrinsic motivation 4
integrating one's life 3 balancing work and social
responsibilities 1 incongruence between words and deeds 1
the struggle of maintaining one's integrity 1
Total Count 16
Table 11: Sub-Codes of Balance
4.1.9.1 Congruence between Words and Deeds
This sub-code appears six times and is an enabler. One individual explains this as follows: “I
sincerely believe that actions speak louder than words… I strive to maintain a consistency between
what I say and do”. The extract below shows the consequences of this enabler. Other examples are
that individuals gain credibility as a leader that they feel genuine.
What When Where Why How Consequence Congruence between words and deeds
When managing the feelings of others
In all situations The individual wants to become authentic/original
The individual wants to develop their emotional intelligence to be able o think and say and act what he feels is right
The individual believes he will become more authentic this way
4.1.9.2 Balancing Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation
Four people have highlighted this sub-code. An individual speaks of living in Johannesburg and
the effect this has on extrinsic motivation: “growing up and living in Johannesburg, it’s easy to get
caught up in the materialism hype- bigger paycheques equals bigger house, bigger car and a more
extravagant lifestyle. As result of this, you tend to lose a grip of who you are”.
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4.1.9.3 Integrating One’s Life
This sub-code emerged three times and one individual comments on his difficulty in achieving this:
“I think I have been out of balance in profession [and] education versus my family life”.
4.1.9.4 Balancing Work and Social Responsibilities
Only one person highlighted this as a stumbling block: “I need to strike a balance between
managing my own professional schedules and tasks… and my social responsibilities so that the
legitimate expectations of my family are also effectively catered for”.
4.1.9.5 Incongruence between Words and Deeds
This sub-code was mentioned by one individual: “I often tend to behave in conflicting ways, in that
sometimes my words to not reflect my actions”.
4.1.9.6 The Struggle of Maintaining One’s Integrity
One person cited this as a stumbling block where he mentions “the ever present battle I have with
maintaining my integrity… I can also relate to my first three years in recovery, and the amount of
times I had relapsed, due to the fact that I entered recovery purely as a means to please family and
management”.
4.1.10 Diversity
This family code is comprised of the following sub-codes:
Diversity Frequency embracing diversity 11
cultural diversity 3 embracing being different 2
taking risks 1 Total Count 17
Table 12: Sub-Codes of Diversity
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4.1.10.1 Embracing Diversity
Eleven individuals highlighted this sub-code as an enabler. One individual illustrates this concept:
“When it comes to respect for diversity, to live and work in South Africa is indeed a blessed
opportunity… I’ve found that a culture of respect for diversity encourages me to be as authentic as I
can be”. The table below shows another instance of axial coding. Other examples of consequences
include individuals growing and becoming better leaders.
4.1.10.2 Cultural Diversity
“Cultural Diversity” emerged three times, and this individual describes how it is a stumbling block
for him being Chinese and working in the West: “as children in a small Chinese community,
humility and respect were core values that were instilled in us…But working with six other western
individual[s] the same age as me quickly taught me that I needed to change… as humility and acute
respect was being interpreted as weak and resulted in me being walked over”.
4.1.10.3 Embracing being Different
Two individuals identified this sub-code as an enabler, one of whom mentions: “One of my
enablers is that I love being different, unconventional and hate conforming”.
4.1.10.4 Taking Risks
“Taking risks” was mentioned by one person as an enabler: “Looking back on my life, the times
I’ve felt truly authentic have been when I’ve taken the risk and believed in myself”.
What When Where Why How Consequence Embracing diversity
When choosing a university
At university The individual wanted to be in a group of diverse people
The individual chose to do his MBA in another country at UCT because of the diverse group of people
The individual got to know his authentic self better
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4.1.11 Institutions, Organisations and the Workplace
This family code represents stumbling blocks and enablers and is detailed below:
Institutions, Organisations and the Workplace Frequency
organisations with conflicting values to yours 18
learning and education 17
working in an environment conducive to expressing values 6
working too much 3
Total Count 44
Table 13: Sub-Codes of Institutions, Organisations and the Workplace
4.1.11.1 Organisations with Conflicting Values to Yours
Eighteen individuals mentioned this as a stumbling block and one of these was in the navy, where
his values did not match that of the organisation: “My compounding disillusionment with the navy
reached a limit when I was ordered to commission a substandard Midshipman who had failed
continuously throughout the year. I reached a point where further justification to stay in the navy
would mean the almost complete deconstruction of what it meant to be me”. This resulted in the
individual leaving the navy.
4.1.11.2 Learning and Education
“Learning and education” was mentioned seventeen times, mostly as an enabler, although there
were some instances of this sub-code being a stumbling block. An example of this sub-code being
an enabler is elaborated on by one individual: “For every year I have studied I have unearthed a
new aspect to m[y] personality that I was previously unaware of, as if education is part of the spade
that is excavating the essence of Gary. It pushes boundaries and challenges beliefs, always holding
me up to a new exacting standard”. The table below shows another individual’s view on learning
and education. Other consequences were learning moral lessons, individuals validating themselves
and gaining courage to stand up for what they believe in.
What When Where Why How Consequence Learning and education
When losing their father
In all situations The individual believed their future lay in education
The individual worked extremely hard at school
The individual learnt moral and religious lessons
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4.1.11.3 Working in an Environment Conducive to Expressing Values
This sub-code emerged six times as an enabler. One individual described his situation: “At this
moment in my current working environment it is easy for me to live and apply my personal
strengths and values”.
4.1.11.4 Working Too Much
Three people noted that this was a stumbling block for them and one of them described a situation
where one of his friends was in a car accident in which his fellow passenger was killed, and the
friend was jailed. The individual’s mother asked him to join his friend’s family for moral support,
although they needed both moral and financial assistance: “So she asked me to accompany her to
their house to give them moral support. I did not make it because there was something major
happening in my company that I couldn’t afford to miss. Nevertheless, I offered some money just
to clear my conscience”. The result was that the friend’s family wanted the moral support and
refused the money.
4.1.12 Money and Material Goods
The family code “money and material goods” consists of mainly stumbling blocks and is detailed as
follows
Money and Material Goods Frequency material wealth 3
financial freedom 1 fear of loss of income 1
Total Count 5
Table 14: Sub-Codes of Money and Material Goods
4.1.12.1 Material Wealth
This sub-code was mentioned three times as stumbling blocks: “The pursuit of material wealth and
buying ‘things’ may stop me from pursuing another line of work that might be more fulfilling but
does not pay as much as my current job”. The table below illustrates the consequence of this sub-
code.
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What When Where Why How Consequence Material wealth When living life In all situations The individual
becomes distracted by wealth
The individual loses sight of who he is
The individual is not authentic
4.1.12.2 Financial Freedom
This was mentioned as an enabler by one individual who moved out of an expensive house to a
cheaper property: “This will give me some flexibility so that I am not tied to my paycheck and can
explore other career options that may not be as financially rewarding but more spiritually
rewarding”.
4.1.12.3 Fear of Loss of Income
Conversely, this sub-code was cited by one individual as a stumbling block: “Another hindering
problem in my life has been that of poverty resulting in my great fear of income loss if I behave out
of cord with the powers that pay my salary”.
4.2 RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
The researcher took the twelve family codes and created an interrelationship diagraph in order to
answer the question ‘how are the different family codes of authenticity interlinked?’. This was
achieved by taking each family code, for example Fear, and deciding whether it influenced the
following family code, for example Balance, or whether Balance influenced Fear. If Fear
influenced Balance, an arrow was drawn pointing away from Fear and the arrow head would point
towards Balance. The inverse would also be true. Once this exercise was completed with all
twelve family codes, a count was done of the number of arrows pointing away from each family
code, and towards each family code. The family codes with the majority of arrows pointing
outwards were labelled as drivers, those with the majority of arrows pointing towards the code were
outcomes, and those in the middle were labelled as links. This resulted in Fear, Coping
Mechanisms, Relationships and Balance emerging as the outcomes and Values and Morals,
Personality Traits and Behaviour, Money and Material Goods and Institutions, Organisations and
the Workplace emerging as links. The drivers of authenticity are Meditation, Reflection and
Spirituality, Influence of Others, Self-Knowledge and Diversity.
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Figure 4: Interrelationship Diagraph of Authenticity Family Codes
The family code Self-Knowledge, and more specifically the sub-code, “self-awareness” can be
related back to the definitions of authenticity of Mader (2007), George, Sims and McLean (2007) as
well as Marshall and Heffes (2004). Individuals practiced this self-awareness in many different
situations, including when they were experiencing tense moments, when embarking on an MBA, in
a marriage, in leadership positions and when moving overseas: “I have developed a large degree of
self-awareness and personal insight since moving away from home over eight years ago”. The
family code of Personality Traits and Behaviours can be linked to this, as traits such as “shyness”
and “having low self-esteem“, which are sub-codes, are intricately linked with knowing oneself.
Here, individuals make statements such as “one of my major weaknesses is shyness” and “[w]hen I
make a decision I often ask the opinion of friends and family, this causes me to second guess the
initial decision I made and subsequently a decision that I did not want to make”. It could be argued
that the family code of Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality are also linked to the concept of self-
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awareness. This was the experience of one student: “[m]editative practice has been cited by many
authors as a useful tool… I have used this technique extensively and have found it’s application
hugely beneficial in ‘quietening’ my mind and allowing a more acute self-awareness and therefore
improved authenticity”. Religion as an enabler occurred when people converted or when it was a
key part of their upbringing. However, in one case this is the opposite: “I consider myself a
spiritual person, driven that way mainly by the rejection of religion”.
Although the family code Money and Material Goods and its sub-codes did not appear in the initial
literature review, individuals did mention that these had an effect on their authenticity and were
stumbling blocks to achieving authenticity. One individual states: “We have become too distracted
in the riches of the world that we lose sight of what is important and who we are”. This view is
similar to Reisert’s essay on Authenticity, Justice, and Virtue in Taylor and Rousseau (2000,
p.327), where he states: “Rousseau shows us how inequalities of wealth, power, status tempt us to
define ourselves in terms of these external goods rather than in terms of our intimate relationships
and commitment to worthwhile ideals”.
Many individuals commented on the fact that their places of work were a stumbling block to their
authenticity. Some mentioned that their managers asked them to engage in illegal, dishonest or
unethical tasks: “the director to whom I report into often requests that I and my colleagues conduct
business by employing dishonesty”. Others stated that they felt they needed to conform to the
company culture in order to impress their managers, to climb the corporate ladder, get a deal signed
or to be politically correct: “[t]he dogmatic and paternalistic culture on the mines determined how I
behaved because I wanted to appear to be politically correct”. One individual describes how he had
to retrench 700 employees and he had to break the news to those concerned: “I took the cold,
business approach to sharing the difficult news with individuals. It felt easy at the time, but it was
not long before I started questioning my inappropriate approach to others”. Although the individual
might not have had a choice in having to retrench his staff, perhaps his choice could have been
expressed in the way he worded his delivery of the news. This is in line with Jackson’s findings,
who states: “The manner in which people are terminated, including the kind of words used to
communicate the firing and the specific ways the day’s events transpire, are of great significance in
terms of perceptions of meanness and cruelty, on one hand, or kindness and compassion, on the
other” (Jackson, 2005, p.318).
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Relationships, whether in the context of family and friends, role models, social networks or the
workplace had a profound effect on authenticity. In the context of leadership at work, many
individuals expressed the need to be open: “Leaders who are genuine and open to their followers
will share a greater connection in values than those leaders who are highly persuasive”. This ties in
with the literature review conducted, particularly with Kernis’ view (2003) “endorsing the
importance for close others to see the real you”. Influence of Others is a family code that contains a
number of stumbling blocks that refer back to Relationships, particularly the argument that
Doorewaard and Benschop (2003, p.276) make, that states individuals are “moulded and shaped by
the ‘mores’ of the society they live in”. This is highlighted by many individuals, one of whom
states: “I feel that my girlfriend at the time of my Fathers sequestration was a negative influence on
my authenticity… Being aware that others have an impact on my choices, by either their advi[c]e or
actions, will enable me to isolate their choices and actions in my mind and then analyse them before
making my decisions”.
The family code Balance ties into the concept of George, Sims, MacLean and Mayer (2007) of
balancing intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. It is also reinforced by Duignan and Bhindi (1997)
who describe the difficulty of reconciling organisational and individual interests. This can be taken
one step further to include balancing and integrating all aspects of life: “in essence I realised that
though providing for one’s family is a noble cause integrating one’s own goals an[d] aspirations in
the process is also important to be authentic”.
Values and Morals are an integral part of many definitions of authenticity, such as that of
Hodgkinson (1991, p. 130, as cited in Duignan & Bhindi, 1997, p. 207), who defines authenticity
“as being true to one’s own set of values, whatever they may be”. This family code of Values and
Morals is cited as an enabler by many students: “Having studies military leaders extensively at the
Military Academy and having to lead sailors for 13 years, I believe that my ability to become a
truly authentic leader is based upon my sound set of values”.
The concept of the family code of Fear is not described in the literature review conducted at the
start of this research process, which is described by many students as a stumbling block towards
their authenticity: “[t]he fear of conflict appears to originate from the need for acceptance”. The
family code of Coping Mechanisms also cannot be directly linked to the literature reviewed,
however, sub-codes such as “not telling the truth” and “putting up a façade” are the polar opposite
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of what authors such as George, Sims, McLean and Mayer (2007, p. 129) advocate: “[p]eople trust
you when you are genuine and authentic”.
Diversity as a family code consisted primarily of enablers, but does not tie directly into the
literature reviewed prior to the analysis of the documents. However, for many students it is a key
component of authenticity and one describes how he chose his university: “[t]he GSB offers such
an enabling environment to live the authentic self. You meet people from different regions and
different walks of lie. They all serve to offer different insights and perspectives to your own. In
the process you get to know your authentic self, where and what you truly stand for, because
everything you believe in, is continuously challenged and explored”.
In order to understand better how the drivers, links and outcomes obtained in the interrelationship
diagraph were interlinked, the researcher created a causal loop diagram, which was the refined into
the model below. This model depicts the researcher’s understanding of the relationship between
stumbling blocks and enablers of authenticity.
Figure 5: Researcher’s Model of Stumbling Blocks and Enablers of Authenticity
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4.3 RESEARCH LIMITATIONS
Since the researcher only used 210 assignments, this is a limited number and is a convenience
sample. This was used due to the limited time in which his research could be conducted. Mullen,
Pathé, Purcell & Stuart, (1999, as cited in Nielsen & Einarsen, 2008, p. 266) state that “as
convenience samples cannot be regarded as representative for a larger population, the external
validity of such samples may be low and the findings highly skewed”. Bryman and Bell (2007, p.
203) also state that even with probability sampling, “any findings can be generalized only to the
population from which that sample was taken”. Since the sample has been chosen on the basis of
the 210 most recent assignments, the findings for the MBA and EMBA students of the Graduate
School of Business and Rotterdam School of Management cannot be generalised to a greater
student population or a greater population in general.
Similarly, in terms of grounded theory limitations, the theories “pertain to the specific social
phenomenon being researched and not to a broader range of phenomena” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p.
591). In addition, content analysis is limited in that the researcher will interpret the findings to
some extent, as it is “almost impossible to devise coding manuals that do not entail some
interpretation on the part of the coders” (Bryman & Bell, 2007, p. 321).
The researcher also experienced various challenges during the research process. This included the
researcher’s limited knowledge of Atlas.ti software, which led to the researcher making the mistake
of moving the document that was being coded to another folder, thereby corrupting the hermeneutic
unit.
5 RESEARCH CONCLUSIONS
The overall aim of this research was to analyse the stumbling blocks and enablers towards
achieving authenticity for MBA and EMBA students. In order to accomplish this, the researcher
received a number of Communication, Leadership and Learning assignments written by MBA
students at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business, as well as by EMBA
students of Erasmus University’s Rotterdam School of Management. After conducting a literature
review on the topic of authenticity, these assignments were analysed using grounded theory.
During the process of open coding, 125 sub-codes were identified. The researcher then used axial
coding, through the use of a conditional relationship guide, to further analyse these sub-codes.
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These sub-codes were grouped into twelve family codes: Self-Knowledge, Personality Traits and
Behaviours, Relationships, Fear, Values and Morals, Influence of Others, Coping Mechanisms,
Meditation, Reflection and Spirituality, Balance, Diversity, Institutions, Organisations and the
Workplace, and Money and Material Goods.
Through using an interrelationship diagraph, it was established what the key drivers, links and
outcomes of authenticity were. When relating this to the initial literature review, it emerged that
the family codes of Relationships and Balance were in fact two of the sub-headings in the literature
review. In addition, “trust” and “self-awareness”, which were two other sub-headings in the
literature review, were identified as sub-codes in the analysis, thereby clearly reinforcing and
enhancing the literature review conducted. Leadership was also a key element within the analysis,
although it did not emerge as a sub-code. The one area of exception is that the literature review
also focused on Perception, which did not emerge from the analysis of the assignments.
The count of the sub-codes within the family code of Self Knowledge is one hundred and twenty
nine, whereas the count of the sub-codes within the family code Influence of Others is one hundred
and ten. These are the two highest counts of sub-codes in this analysis, hence these family codes are
the biggest influencers of authenticity. All family codes contain both stumbling blocks and
enablers, hence it is difficult to state what the main stumbling blocks and what the main enablers
are. However, the majority of sub-codes contained in the family code Self Knowledge are enablers,
and the majority of the sub-codes in the family code Influence of Others are stumbling blocks,
hence Self Knowledge is the main enabler, and Influence of Others is the main stumbling block
towards achieving authenticity for MBA and EMBA students. There are no individual stumbling
blocks or enablers that are common to every individual, and in terms of patterns, it emerged that
certain sub-codes were a stumbling block for one individual, and an enabler for another.
6 FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS
Despite the fact that there were limitations to this research, there are a number of possible
implications of this research for practising managers. This research contained the essays of both
MBA and EMBA students. The average age of an MBA student at the University of Cape Town’s
Graduate School of Business is 30 years, and the average number of years work experience is over
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three years (Ryan, n.d.), whereas the average age of an EMBA student at the Erasmus Rotterdam
School of Management is 34 years, and the average number of years work experience is eight years
(Schouten, 2009). Since there is a difference in the average age of an MBA student and an EMBA
student, as well as a difference in the average number of years’ work experience between these two
groups, it would be interesting to conduct an in-depth study to see how the enablers and stumbling
blocks change over the course of a manager’s life.
Similarly, since the data analysed is from two countries, South Africa and the Netherlands, a further
comparison could be made of which family codes and sub-codes are most influential in terms of
enabling authenticity in each country. This study would need to take the different political and
socio-economic factors into consideration and provide recommendations for each country.
An interesting exercise would be for companies to use these findings, based on a model derived
from the analysis, to create awareness programmes as a component of leadership development
training initiatives, and to assess the impact that this has on the individuals concerned.
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APPENDIX – CONDITIONAL RELATIONSHIP GUIDE
Conditional Relationship Guide for Authenticity
What When Where Why How Consequence
Appreciation of others
When the individual would run
projects and marketing activities
At work
To improve team morale and
because his boss had made him
feel good when he recognized the
individual
By expressing appreciation through a
simple email Increased morale
Arrogance When dealing
with subordinates
At work Due to the
individual’s high self-esteem
By the individual feeling he/she is right
This leads to decreased tolerance
for others
Arrogance When trying to
maximize authenticity
In all situations
It allows the individual to express his authenticity completely
By displaying an always right attitude and
leaving no room for the views of others
This leads to strife, conflict and loss of
respect
Associate with others who respect
me
During time spent at work and time spent
with family and friends
In all situations
In order not to take on others’
negative judgements of the individual
By demanding respect from colleagues at work
and by the individual surrounding himself
with friends and family who respect and love
him/her
The individual can truly be him/herself
Associate with others who respect
me
When looking for a job with a
company which fit the individual’s
identity
At work
For the individual to be who he/she truly
was
By choosing the right company to work for
The individual feels comfortable
to be who he/she us
Associate with others who respect
me
The individual found people
who respected him at
university in his Engineering
class
At university
People viewed the individuals “geekiness” as
worth recognizing and
admiring
The individual could express his passion
The individual got positive
reinforcement which reinforced his/her self-worth
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Aversion to risk
When confronted
with an uncertain situation
At work and in a personal setting
To get a friendly or respectful
response from the other person
The individual takes on an inauthentic persona
The individual has been unable to display his/her
authentic persona
Avoiding conflict
When dealing with people the individual does not know well
In all situations
The individual had a very
conservative upbringing not conducive to challenging
authority
The individual does not want to be perceived as
offensive
The individual has not been authentic in these situations
Avoiding conflict In any
confrontational situations
In all situations To passively resolve conflict
The individual would avoid any confrontation
The individual is losing out on
getting his point across or
influencing decisions
Avoiding conflict In subtle, insidiuous situations
In all situations
It is easier for the individual to chuckle non-committally
The individual chuckles non-committaly instead of asserting authenticity
This results in a condition of
“empty character”
Avoiding conflict In arguments
When the individual was a child and now that they are an
adult
To please other people
The individual concedes defeat even when he/she
knows they are right
The person acts against his/her
beliefs
Avoiding conflict When dealing with his/her
manager At work
The individual wants to preserve
the peace
The individual fails to express their true
feelings
The individual is not as genuine as
they thought
Avoiding conflict In dealing with others In all situations
The individual’s family always
avoided conflict, so did his/her
Apostolic Society
The individual kept feelings to him/herself
This results in awkward situations
Avoiding conflict
In relationships with the
individual’s family
In all situations
The individual is unable to express
his feelings towards his brother who
caused his life to
By the individual becoming an introvert and not expressing his feelings to his parents and brother after the
life-changing incident
The individual’s personality
changed to being an introvert
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change
Avoiding situations that
conflict with one's morals
Situations which seriously clash with the individual’s
morals
In all situations
For the individual to live
his/her life according to what he/she
believes is right
The individual would vocally appeal what he/he believes to be
right
The individual can act according to his/her morals
Awareness
When the individual
regards societal influences on his decisions
In all situations
In order for the individual not to
underestimate the strength of these societal
influences
The individual has constant internal
dialogue about this
The individual is more aware of how
his thoughts are influenced by
society
Awareness
When the individual
looks at what is happening with
his/her life
In all situations
Once the individual
understands what is happening in
his/her life, he/she can reflect
accordingly
The individual knows how he/she views
his/her surroundings
He/she can have enough time to reflect and act accordingly
Awareness
When on the path to
becoming more authentic
In all situations
In order for the individual to get
closer to authenticity
Through the individual setting time aside each
day to reflect and become more aware of emotions and thoughts
The individual can process these
thoughts constructively
Awareness
When looking at values and
principles, thoughts and emotions and
contexts in which the
individual finds him/herself
In all situations
In order for the individual to
show a more true representation of
him/herself
By practicing awareness
It can help enhance the authenticity
seed for the individual
Awareness When acting in the moment In all situations
In order for the individual to realize that
he/she can be what he/she wants to be
Through realizing that authenticity is a process
that takes time
It helps the individual
reconcile who he/she is and who he/she wants to be
Awareness When making
progress towards
becoming more
In all situations In order t make progress in terms
of becoming
Through the individual listening to his/herself
The individual can reflect his/her feeling in an
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authentic more authentic appropriate manner
Balancing extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation
When the individual
interacts with others
In all situations
To enable the individual to get
closer to his/herself
By practicing this with close friends and family
It would enable the individual to differentiate
between his/her belief and those of
others
Balancing extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation
Living in Johannesburg, it is easy to get
caught up in the materialism
hype
In all situations
The individual has started
questioning what his/her life purpose is
The individual has looked at ways of
improving including volunteering and
mentorship programmes
The individual hopes to achieve
balance
Balancing extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation
When the individual is in
the face of recognition, achievement
and performance evaluations
At work In order to
become more authentic
Through increased self awareness
The individual hopes to become more authentic
Balancing extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation
Every day In all situations In order to
enable authenticity
By the individual finding this balance
The individual will be more authentic
Balancing work and social
responsibilities
When taking care of his
family In all situations
In order to cater for the
individual’s family’s
expectation
By managing professional schedules
and task and the individual’s social
responsibilities
The individual can manage his own
dreams to achieve positive results
Being comfortable with your decisions
When the individual is
making decisions on what to study or who to date
In all situations The individual has to live with
the consequences
The individual makes decisions that sit well
with him/her
The individual can become more
authentic
Being comfortable with your decisions
In any decisions the
individual takes
In all situations
In order for the individual to
remain true to her/himself
By asking him/herself if they would be proud of
their decision
If the answer is yes, he/she would
be true to him/herself
Being comfortable with your At the end of In all situations The individual
reviews and The person asks
whether they were true The individual becomes more
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decisions each day reflects on the choices he/she
made
to themselves consistent and authentic
Being comfortable with your decisions
When the individual
wants to test his/her
authenticity
In all situations To test how
authentic he/she is
The individual evaluates symptoms such as moodiness,
nightmares and conscience
The individual can re-align him/herself
with their authenticity
Being comfortable with your decisions
When faced with conflict or when meeting someone for the first time
In all situations
The individual hates the feeling of walking away from someone
and asking “why did I say that?”
By the individual choosing to behave in a
way comfortable to him/her
In order for the individual to become more
authentic
Being compassionate Every day
In all situations and in South
Africa
The individual would like to
transform people’s lives
The individual wants to go the extra mile to help
people
The person can listen more to his
intuition and therefore become more authentic
Being compassionate
When looking at the
increasing economic gap
in society
In all situations The individual feels empathy
The individual thinks about suffering and even tries to avoid
seeing it
The individual can act on it in a more
significant way
Being compassionate
Within the individuals
career and life In all situations
The individual naturally
empathises with others
The individual focuses on others and takes their
point of view into account
This has led to success in the
workplace from his/her staff
Being compassionate
When balancing
making a profit and personal importance
In the workplace and other situations
The individual cares so much about others
The individual empathises with others
The individual gets to know others
easily, but can also sometimes not strike the right balance for the
workplace
Being compassionate
In leadership positions In the workplace
People are guided by their
heart
By empowering the people they lead to make a difference
They become better leaders
Being influenced The individual has lost his/her
way in their
In the workplace The individual is easily influenced
The individual is influenced and changed
by others and
This has led to the individual being
inauthentic at times
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career experiences
Being influenced
At the time of the individual’s
father’s sequestration
At home
The individual has allowed himself to be
influenced
The individual has allowed himself to be
influenced by his girlfriend in a negative
way
This has led to the individual acting in an inauthentic way
Being influenced
Drawing assumptions and passing premature judgement
In all situations
The individual does not make decisions based
on his own information
The individual bases thoughts and actions on people that he does not
affiliate with
This leads to inauthentic behaviour
Being influenced When in the chess team In all situations
The individual was volunteered
to be an administrator when he only
wanted to coach
The individual administered poorly
because he wanted to coach
The individual was not authentic
Being intolerant of others
When interacting with
others In all situations
The individual strives to
maintain high standards of performance
The individual expects the same standard from
those around him
The individual can be seen as
offensive and inauthentic
Being intolerant of others
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual is impatient and
wants to control everything
The individual does not give others the
opportunity to grow and make mistakes
The individual does not act
authentically
Being passionate In life In all situations
The individual has a passion for
everyone in his/her life, love and everything
they do
The individual displays his/her innermost self relating to the things
they do
It is the individual’s
authentic self, magnified
Being passionate When playing the piano At home The individual
feels exhilarated Through playing the
piano The individual is more authentic
Being true to yourself
In all circumstances In all situations
The individual creates loving atmospheres
Being consistently true in all circumstances
The individual can be more authentic
Being true to Every day In all situations This resonates with the
Honest self assessment The individual becomes more
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yourself individual authentic
Being true to yourself Every day In all situation
The individual feels it is very
important
Through self-knowledge
The individual becomes more
conscious
Being true to yourself
When being the “Best Man” In all situations
The individual wants to be truer
to himself
Through being the person you would want
with you on your wedding day
The individual becomes a better
friend, husband and person
Being true to yourself Every day In all situations
It is a motivating factor for the
individual
Through fighting to be authentic at all times
In order to be more authentic
Being true to yourself
When interacting with
family and friends
In all situations People will love the individual for
who he is
Through being around those who are closest to
him
The individual becomes more
authentic
Being true to yourself
When dealing with people In all situations
The individual does not pretend to be someone he
is not
The individual acts like “what you see is what
you get”
The individual becomes more
authentic
Being true to yourself
When trying to know who you
are In all situations
You cannot be authentic if you don’t know who
you are
The individual must figure out who he is
The individual will become more
authentic
Being true to yourself
When deciding to take or save someone’s life
In all situations
The individual did not want to go against what
he stood for
The individual did not shoot someone
The individual found deeper purpose and
meaning
Being true to yourself
After being in denial and having a
breakdown
In all situations The individual felt he/she was
dying inside
The individual moved to Cape Town and
expressed themselves
The person has become more
authentic
Being true to yourself
All aspects of life In all situations
The individual had an
apprehension to be themselves
The individual made a conscious choice to live
more authentically
The individual is living more
authentically
Being true to When moving from Pretoria
In all situations There was almost nobody that the The individual The individual
became truer to
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yourself to Stellenbosch individual knew there
reinvented herself herself
Being true to yourself
When starting university At university
The values of people were
different to those he knew in high
school
By not being ashamed of being smart
The individual became authentic
Being true to yourself
When truly understanding what takes us
to a higher level of meaning
In all situations
The individual takes pleasure in what they value
most
The individual peals away the rubble that his
life is built on
The individual experiences
moments of joy when being authentic
Being true to yourself
During walks of life In all situations
The individual believes some people make a
lasting impression
The individual believes the foundation of
relationships is genuine individuality and that
people are fascinated by stereotypes
This leads to more complexity
Building up a defense
mechanism In society In all situations
In order to prevent people
from getting too close
The individual built up an “entrance control”
This makes the individual less
authentic
Building up a defense
mechanism
When with others In all situations
The individual is private and
closed
The individual has developed a superficial, arrogant, materialistic persona to fit in better
with society
This has led to the individual feeling
alienated and disconnected
Building strong support networks Every day In all situations
To have people who understand
what the individual is
going through
By staying close to family and building
friendships
The individual is more able to be
authentic
Building strong support networks
In relational orientations In all situations The individual
values openness
Growing up in a strong family and being open
in relationships
The individual is more authentic
Building strong support networks In relationship In all situations
The individual believes a
support team should provide
corrective action
The individual’s wife provides him with
hones feedback as to whether his actions
accord with his values
The individual receives valuable information about
himself
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and principles
Building strong support networks
When building a team At work
The individual would not be
able to do their job without the
team
The individual built a team and they created
trust
The groups is a strong support
network in and out of work
Caring what others think
During time spent in Tokyo In all situations
The individual is constantly loaded
with thoughts about themselves
The individual keeps thinking what others
might think of him/her
The individual does not reach his/her
goals
Confidence When
practicing authenticity
In all situations The individual relates this to
their upbringing
The individual believes in being a non-
conformist
The individual fights for what they
believe in and is more authentic
Confidence Most situations In most situations
The individual felt they no
longer need to pretend to be someone else
The individual is open about liking being an
engineer
The individual has a stiff spine in most
cases
Confidence When being vulnerable
In most situations
The benefits of being confident and authentic outweigh the risks of being
vulnerable
The individual needs to be vulnerable
The individual will be more authentic
Confidence When living life In all situations
The individual believes living authentically
takes courage in making choices
The individual believes one must have
confidence to stand by one’s conviction and not betray oneself for
transient rewards
The individual believes one can
become more authentic in this
way
Confidence
When making the decision to leave behind friendships based on
questionable moral
behaviours
In most situations
In order for the individual to become more
authentic
Breaking off key friendships
The individual can now stand up for what they believe
is right
Confidence Most of the time In the social and
professional The individual
has become more The individual is open to his family about his
The individual has become more and more of the same
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environment open values person
Confidence
When something strikes the
individual as important
In all situations
The individual has lots of passion for
something they think is
important
The individual will react strongly when
something is important to them
The person is very aware of their
morals
Confidence In everyday situations In all situations The individual
matured
The individual lives by their own values and
principles
The person is more authentic
Confidence
As the individual started to believe in himself
In all situations The individual
believed in himself more
The individual was able to start making their
own decisions
The individual reached a new
authentic frontier
Conforming to the expectations of
others In class At university
The individual is afraid of
sounding stupid
The individual does not comment in class
The individual is unable to be really
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Comparing the individual with
their sister
In the family environment
The individual turned into the diplomatic type
The individual worked hard to make people
comfortable
The individual became the
diplomatic type
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When creating a fictitious
persona In all situations
The individual thinks the world has expectations
of him her
By exaggerating the individual’s
achievements
This has failed the individual time and
again
Conforming to the expectations of
others
The individual becomes
absorbed into the
expectations
In all situations It is easier to cope with
The individual describes himself in
terms of roles prescribed by society
This results in inauthenticity
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When being true to oneself In all situations
The individual did not stand up
to her beliefs
The individual strangled their authenticity
The individual compromises their
authenticity
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When latching onto other
people’s beliefs In all situations
The person thought they had
a better perception of the world than others
By thinking material things made the
individual what they were
The individual became unhappy
and deceived themselves
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Conforming to the expectations of
others
When growing up in a mostly white school as
a mixed race child
In all situations The individual wanted to fit in
The individual took on behaviours, values and
beliefs of others
The individual was not authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
In the ultra-competitive workplace
where cronyism is rife
At the workplace The individual
wants to achieve career success
The individual believes one has to connect with
the right people
The individual does not always act authentically
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When confronted
with choices of what you want to do and doing
what others expect
In all situations
Sometimes what the individual wants clashes
with what society wants
The person does not way what they want to
say
The individual is then submerged by
organizational structures
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When following a generally
accepted view that is against
the individual’s own
In all situations
The individual lacks courage to see their personal
worth
By taking the path of least resistance
The person becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When needing to know what other people
think
In all situations
The individual needs to know
what others think or expect of
him/her
The individual conforms to what others
think
This limits the individual’s ability
to be authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When the individual is
forced to compromise to
outside influences
In all situations
The individual is strongly
influenced by parents and
religion
The individual chooses to accept certain
influences
The individual sometimes “sells
out”
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When forced to obtain a
masters degree In all situations
The individual wanted to have a
certain status among his
cousins
The individual went through a tough time
achieving this
The individual thinks he might be under the illusion
that he is in control
Conforming to the expectations of
When going through a
In personal situations
The individual was worried
about his
The individual was thinking about others
The individual was authentic at work
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others divorce children, religion and society and what they would
think
instead of himself but not at home
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When pressured to
succeed
In an organizational
context
The pressure is reinforced by the reward structure
Individuals succeed by conforming to the
values of the organization
The individual becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Growing up in a family of extremely successful
people
In all situations
The individual’s father exerted
immense pressure
The individual conformed to his
father’s wishes and studied medicine
The individual became less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Being gay and not being able
to be open about it
In all situations The individual
wanted to please his mother
The individual tried to be the perfect child
The individual had an incredibly
painful inauthentic existence
Conforming to the expectations of
others At all times In all situations
The individual always feels obligated to
conform
The individual only lets people see what they
want to see and creates illusions
The individual is not authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When faced with choices In all situations
The individual chooses the path
of least resistance
The individuals actions are based on people
other than those true to himself
The individual becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When disagreeing
with his father At home
The individual wanted to
maintain the high opinion his father
had of him
The individual would not questions his
father’s comments
The situation affected the individual’s authenticity
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Being a woman in a technical
field
At work
The individual wants to be successfule
The individual does not show emotios, as men
do not either
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When growing up in a small
town
In all situations
The individual’s parents were
highly respected and he did not
want to rock the
The individual wanted to maintain his parents’
reputations
The individual became less
authentic
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environment boat
Conforming to the expectations of
others
In the MBA orientation programme
At university
The individual had to play drums even though it is
against his values and culture
The individual had to play drums not to be
rude
The individual conformed to the expectations of
everyone and went against his own
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When conforming to
“acceptable behaviour”
In the workplace
The individual does not want the
negative consequences of not behaving this
way
The individual does not speak his mind
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When in an environment
where there is pressure to conform
In all situations
The pressure forces the
individual to deny her own
values
The person acts as if she believes in the dominant
culture
The person becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When faced with peer, work
and financial pressure
In all situations It takes too much
courage not to conform
The individual does things against his nature
The individual is not authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When doing what is right, but not right
for the individual
In all situations The individual
feels more relevant
The individual went to university and got a
degree and works in a corporate
The individual does not do what is right
for him
Conforming to the expectations of
others Day to day In all situations
The individual becomes too
absorbed in daily life that he/she
conforms
The individual just accepts what others
think
The individual is inauthentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When with a social group In all situations
The individual is not true to
herself
The individual drinks, swears or takes the
Lord’s name in vain
The individual does not practice what
they preach
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When the individual has
to take on a role as a leader
In the work situation
The individual is trying to fill the role he believes
the situation dictates
The individual is not “being different”
The individual is less authentic
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Conforming to the expectations of
others
Being a wife and mother In all situations
The individual was brought up to believe the husband is the
head of the household and
should be served
The individual tries to fulfil the role of perfect
wife and mother
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When wearing a mask to suit his/her boss or
colleagues
In the work situation
The individual wants to impress
the boss to advance more
easily
The individual wears a mask to impress their boss and colleagues
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When there s pressure to
compromise values
In all situations, but particularly
work
The individual feels pressurized
The individual feels one does not always tell or hear the truth in sales
presentations
The individual becomes
inauthentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When acting because of
pressure from society
In all situations
The line is too fine between
acting and compromising
The individual acts as if nothing happened when family comes over if he has just had a fight with
his wife
The individual becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When pleasing others
In all situations, but especially at
work
The individual wants to please
others
The individual leaves his/her self at home when going to work
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When faced with pressure In all situations
The individual believes
expectation from society distracts
his vision
The individual is not living the life he wants
to live
The individual is not as authentic as
he wants to be
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When trying to preserve the
peace In all situations
The individual wants to be
perceived in line with others
The individual does not express his true feelings
to his manager
The individual ends up not expressing
himself authentically
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When having certain roles In all situations
Certain behaviour is
expected in these roles
The individual does not always express his
feelings
The individual is less authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When using different
behavioural
In all situations The individual
wants to be accepted
The individual hides their thoughts or
emotions
The individual cannot be true in their behaviour
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models
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When realizing you are in a
comfort zone In all situations
The individual becomes
absorbed into expectations
Not willing to accept the truth about oneself
The individual becomes less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When trying to be accepted In all situations
The individual does not want to
lose respect
The individual does not speak up about what he
believes in
The individual is moving further
away from his truth
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When having to agree with
clients At work
The individual had a duty to be at their beck and
call
The individual had to agree with clients without objection
The individual had a deep internal
struggle
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When having to play by the
rules At work
The individual made the job top
priority after being
unemployed for a year
The individual went against their will to
keep their bosses happy
The individual’s ability to be
authentic suffered a great deal
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When ‘playing along’
In all situations but particularly
at work
To achieve a business objective
The individual had to endure the company of people he did not like
The person has wondered how much it would
affect authenticity
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Wearing a mask At work
There was already a
perception of the individual, so
he/she perpetuated it
The individual wore a mask of being
dependable and stable
The individual became
emotionally drained and less
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When conforming to
family expectations
At home
The individual was gay and his family did not
want to accept it
The individual had to change his life and
break up with the man he loved
The individual became shaped by
his family
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When living a dual lifestyle In all situations
The individual wanted to be
seen as the hard partygoer
The individual drank and partied when
actually he wanted to remain fit, healthy and
achieve in sports
The individual was responsible for his
team losing and was not living authentically
Conforming to the expectations of
When meeting a girl that he
In all situations The individual does not want to
The individual would start a relationship and
The individual hurt others and was not
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others does not want a relationship
with
hurt others’ feelings
then run away from it and hide
authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When experiencing pressure from
the environment
In all situations
The individual sees others’
expectations as pressures
The individual wants to earn recognition and
conforms to that pressure
The individual has limitations over his free choice and is
not authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
Living in a small Indian
community in Kenya
In all situations
It is difficult not to live up to the expectations of the community
The individual just copied what other
companies were doing by implementing a
certain system
This caused the system not to work for the company as
it was different from the others
Conforming to the expectations of
others
By the individual
lying about his father
In social situations
The individual did not want to
be abnormal
The individual made up stories about his non-existent father to his
friends
The individual was not authentic
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When balancing
different roles In all situations
The individual wanted to be
taken seriously by her male colleagues
She had to adopt male characteristics
The individual suppressed her
values
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When forced into an
engagement
In the individual’s personal life
The individual succumbed to pressure from
family to become engaged
The individual eventually ended the
relationship
The individual disappointed his family but was
authentic in the end
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When dressing for a party In all situations
The individual is not comfortable when they are ‘different’ and
grew up in Paris where
appearances matter a lot
The individual will not go to a social event
without really thinking what to wear in order not to be too different
The individual feels part of a
group when they are not different
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When working in a law firm At work
The firm was very
conservative
The individual was not open and feminine
because it was frowned upon
The individual was inauthentic
Conforming to the expectations of
When growing up In all situations The individual
was brought up in a conservative
The individual lived by rules dictated by society
This cause internal turmoil and lost the
respect of those
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others Afrikaans family not conducive to
challenging authority
dear to him
Conforming to the expectations of
others
When the individual was
in the navy At work
The individual justified a course of action as long
as he did not have to
transgress his values
Through remaining in the navy
The individual became an
inauthentic leader
Congruence between words
and deeds
When aligning values and
action In all situations
The individual recognizes they
need to develop a moral platform
The individual aligns values like honesty and integrity with actions
The individual has created a moral and ethical platform for
life
Congruence between words
and deeds
When managing the
feelings of others
In all situations The individual
wants to become authentic/original
The individual wants to develop their emotional intelligence to be able o
think and say and act what he feels is right
The individual believes he will become more
authentic this way
Congruence between words
and deeds
When maintaining consistency
between what the individual says and does
In all situations
The individual believes that actions speak louder than
words
The individual abides by the law, treats people
with respect and aims not to discriminate
against others
The individual feels they are
genuine
Congruence between words
and deeds
When practicing leadership
In all situations
The person thinks actions
speak louder than words
If the individual expects her team to meet a
deadline, she will be the first in the office and
the last to leave
The individual has gained credibility
as a leader
Congruence between words
and deeds
In leadership situations In all situations
Otherwise people will not follow
the leader
Words and actions must be consistent
This will result in the individual
being accepted as a leader
Congruence between words
and deeds
When interacting with
others In all situations
Other people define
authenticity in the individual
The individual tries to be consistent in his
actions
The individual is seen to be authentic
Conscience and guilt When in a
conflict In all situations If the person
made the wrong choice, he would
The person thinks whether he wants to live with companionship or
The individual becomes more
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situation be drowned in guilt
whether he wants to be able to live with himself when making decisions
authentic
Contingent self-esteem
When driven by success In all situations The individual is
driven by success
The individual lets others define success
for him
The individual is not authentic
Contingent self-esteem
When living life In all situations
The individual is driven by external
evaluations of achievement
The individual has let this be a driving force in
his academic achievement
The individual was less authentic
Contingent self-esteem
When with others In all situations
The individual placed huge
emphasis on the opinion of others
The individual was someone he was not
The individual suppressed his
authenticity
Contingent self-esteem
When dealing with others At work
The individual is driven by
recognition
The individual rates recognition as his top
value
The individual realizes this may
jeopardize his authenticity
Contingent self-esteem
When living life In all situations
The individual finds contingent self-esteem in himself a lot
The individual bases his actions on pleasing
others
The individual does not act according to
his values
Contingent self-esteem
When going to medical school At university
The individual had always been a top achiever at markedly lower
standards and did not have
adoration from peers as a
measure of self-worth
The individual pretended to be
Namibian and started adopting African-
American mannerisms
The individual was confused and
unhappy
Contingent self-esteem
When going for aptitude
tests In all situations
The individual wanted to pursue a career that was
“suitable”
The individual did not want to believe his first aptitude and tried again
in the hope it would change
The individual realized he relies
too much on others
Contingent self-esteem
When climbing the corporate
ladder At work The individual’s
director asked him if he had
The individual let his contingent self-esteem
come to the fore
The individual resigned even
though he did a good job because
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rocks in his head he thought senior management did
not think so
Contingent self-esteem
When being compared to
her sister At home
The individual has a more beautiful,
intelligent and socially adept
sister
The individual tries to achieve goals that are
not her own
The individual is not authentic
Cultural diversity
When being part of a minority
eastern culture
In all situations
The differences between eastern
and western cultures are so
big
The individual displayed his values of humility and respect,
which was seen as weakness by the
westerners at work
The individual was ‘walked over’ and started wearing a
façade to overcome this
Cultural diversity
When returning to South Africa
as a black person after 12
years
In all situations The individual was seen as a
‘coconut’
The individual spoke, dressed and socialized with people the way he
had overseas
The individual has many burning
questions around authenticity
Cultural diversity When being in diverse groups In all situations
The individual is challenged on
when to open up and when to hold back in diverse
groups
The individual does not know how to judge
when to speak up or not
The individual is not being fully
authentic in these groups
Death of a loved one
When the individual’s father died
At home
The individual had to support
his family as the sole breadwinner
The individual could not think of marriage
even though he needed it
The individual could not be fully
authentic
Death of a loved one
When the individual’s father died
In all situations The individual would ‘kill for
family’
The individual just left work and spent the final six weeks at her father’s
bedside
This enabled her to be authentic
Death of a loved one
When the individual’s sister died
In all situations
The death made the individual
realize how little time there is on earth and how little time you
have to be true to yourself
The individual found meaning out of the
death to justify their extreme loss
The individual has realized they want to be authentic in the short time on
earth
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Death of a loved one
When the individuals’ brother died
In all situations
The individual had many
insecurities because his /her
parents spent more time with
his dying brother
The individual suppressed these
insecurities
The individual carried many unrecognized neuroses into adulthood and
could not really be authentic
Denial
When receiving negative
feedback from family and
friends
In all situations The individual
becomes defensive
The individual does not want to hear negative
criticism
The individual does understand himself better once he does
receive the feedback
Denial When unable to accept their
sexuality In all situations
The individual never wanted
anyone to know about their sexuality
The individual just denies their sexuality
The individual is not authentic
Difficulty with examining one’s
past
When trying to look back In all situations
The individual is very forward
looking
The individual prefers to focus on a bright
future
The individual realizes he/she might not be as
authentic as those who do look at
their past
Doing what is right and fair
In leadership positions In all situations
The individual wants to what is right even when
it is difficult
The individual hopes they can discipline their children even when it
will not be easy
The individual will be authentic
Doing what is right and fair
When living life In all situations
The individual has a strongly
developed sense of justice
The individual applies her sense of justice
fearlessly when required
The individual is true to herself
Embracing being different
When being different from
the herd In all situations
The individual was in one
relationships where he tried to
conform and became unhappy
Now the individual embraces being
different by only being himself
The individual is authentic
Embracing being different
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual loves being
different and hates conforming
The individual owns his experience and
expresses his thoughts and feelings and does the opposite of what
The individual is authentic
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others expect
Embracing diversity
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual has come a long way to get there
and wants to help others to do the
same
The individual wants to become a facilitator or a
coach
The individual becomes more
authentic
Embracing diversity
When choosing a university At university
The individual wanted to be in a group of diverse
people
The individual chose to do his MBA in another country at UCT because of the diverse group of
people
The individual got to know his
authentic self better
Embracing diversity
During and after studying In all situations
The individual had an
experience in the Dutch army that
sparked a question
The individual traveled extensively and read many philosophy and
spiritual books
The individual became more
authentic
Embracing diversity
When trying not to maintain a fixed mindset
In all situations The individual
does not want to get stuck
The individual reads, travels and embarks on academic programmes
The individual becomes more
authentic because his mindset is not
fixed
Embracing diversity
When reflecting on
life experience In all situations
The individual has had a
positive life experience
The individual has lived in many different
countries
This has allowed the individual to grow and to be
themselves
Embracing diversity
When dealing with others
from different backgrounds
At work
The individual believes in recognition
despite background
The individual fights for people to get recognized
based on their contribution, not their
background
The individual is a better leader
Embracing diversity
During a changing South
Africa At work
The individual hired different people from
different backgrounds in
his business
The individual has learnt more about
himself and about his relationships in a
diverse world without borrowing the values ot
others
The individual is more authentic
Embracing diversity When living
and working in In all situations The individual is
fortunate enough to be able to
The individual feels South Africa has a
culture of respect for
The individual is authentic
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South Africa work here diversity which allows him to be himself
Embracing diversity
When working in teams At work
The individual is genuinely
interested in other cultures
The individual uses these differences to be
more productive
The individual is more authentic
Embracing diversity
When choosing who to
surround herself with
In all situations The individual is curious about life
The individual surrounds herself with
people who are different to her and has many
diverse interests
The individual follows her true
heart
Embracing diversity
When moving around the
world In all situations
The individual has lived in
many different countries
The individual has embraced parts of many
different cultures and could learn a lot about
themselves through this
The individual’s authenticity is
based in different cultures
Escapism When growing up In all situations
The individual started
withdrawing because of the expectations of
others
The individual withdrew and became
silent
The individual is not authentic
Examining one’s life story
When writing the CLL
assignment In all situations
The individual was forced to look at his life because of the
assignment
The individual looked back and realized his
mother was domineering and that he was doing the same to
his wife
The individual is learning more about himself
Examining one’s life story
When journeying into
the past In all situations
The individual would like to
know where his journey is taking
him
The individual looks back at his life to learn
about himself
The individual is more authentic
Examining one’s life story
When being on the Narcotics Anonymous programme
In all situations The individual
had to tell his life story in NA
The individual sat down with a sponsor and put his life story down on
paper
The individual has defined his values
and beliefs
Examining one’s life story
When analyzing oneself
In all situations
The individual constantly thinks
about his authenticity
The individual tries to analyse his values and compare them to his
behaviour
The individual becomes more
authentic
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Examining one’s life story
After the individual’s
illness In all situations
The individual has a greater
understanding of him/herself after the last few years
During the individual’s illness friends got to know him/her a lot
better and the individual has looked back at this
time
The individual is more authentic
Examining one’s life story
When making career choices In all situations
The individual is grateful for the
choices they have made
The individual addressed certain
choices, particularly career-wise which have
allowed him/her to grow
The individual is following what
he/she really wants to do
Expressing feelings
When expressing
his/her ‘African-ness’
In all situations This is who the individual is
The individual sings a song that he/she is an
African
The individual is able to balance
intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation
Expressing feelings
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual is not a rational controller of
emotions
The individual always expresses what she
thinks
The individual can sometimes offend others, but is also
authentic
Expressing feelings
When dealing with people In all situations
The individual believes
motivation for authentic leaders
stems from difficulty in life
The individuals make use of these situations to give them meaning
The individuals discover their
passion
Expressing feelings
When with others In all situations
The individual’s display of
emotion is very high
The individual displays a lot of emotion
The individual can influence others
Expressing feelings
When dealing with others on the same level or on the level below him/her
In all situations The individual
feels comfortable with this group
The individual is not afraid to show his
incompetence and does not hide anything
The individual can be authentic with
these people
Expressing feelings
When dealing with others In all situations The individual is
too emotional
The individual lets her emotions direct
behaviour, no matter what the situation is
The individual is sometimes seen as something she is
not
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Family and friends When spending time with the
family In all situations
The family has changed the individual’s
values
The individual spends less time on the sports field and more with his
family
The individual realized that
winning is not everything but that participation and others values are
Family and friends When growing up In all situations
The individual’s parents instilled a
code of ethics into him/her
The individual has been taught values like kindness, respect,
consideration for others
The individual lves by his/her values
Family and friends When living
with grandparents
In all situations
The individual’s grandparents
taught values and how to make
choices without the influence of
others
The individual learnt how to make decisions
without being influenced too much
from his grandparents
This allowed them to be authentic
Family and friends
When parents respected the individual’s
wishes
In all situations
The individual’s father respected their choice of career change
The individual was empowered by his
parents to make his own decisions
The individual could be authentic
Family and friends When
socializing with family
In all situations
The family allows the
individual to practice his
Sunnah lifestyle
The individual implements the Sunnah lifestyle in his family
environment
The individual can be true to his
beliefs
Family and friends When ‘flying high’ In all situations
The individual’s parents remind her of her roots
The individual is reminded of where she
came from when achieving new things
The individual is more authentic
Family and friends When growing up In all situations
The individual’s family instilled
being true to self and others in the
individual
The individual was brought up strictly to be true to self and others
The individual is authentic in this
way
Family and friends When spending
time with family
In all situations
The individual’s siblings
overshadowed him
The individual withdraws when with
his family because they are all older and look
down on him
The individual is inauthentic with his
family
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Family and friends
When dealing with his
girlfriend’s child from
another man
In all situations The individual hates changing
diapers
The individual started changing diapers even though it went against
what he wanted
The individual thinks his values
might have changed
Family and friends
When his father told him
that he was homosexual
At home
The individual was extremely shocked by his
father’s admission that he was homosexual
The individual appreciated his father’s
authenticity after the initial shock
The individual’s family provides strong support to live out what he
believes in
Fear of being judged
When participating in social networks
In all situations
The individual is afraid of being
judged but wants to be part of a social network
The individual conforms to the network
because he wants to belong and is too afraid
of being judged
The individual does not always behave
authentically
Fear of being judged
When growing up In all situations
The individual has found it
challenging to deal with criticism
The individual avoids painful moments
The individual wants to learn to
deal with emotions
Fear of conflict When dealing with others In all situations
The individual wants to be
accepted
The individual is not true to himself in order
to avoid conflict
The individual is less authentic
Fear of hurting others
When wanting to be all things to all people
In all situations
The individual cannot be
himself when overly concerned
for others
The individual will not be himself in order not
to hurt others
The individual cannot be authentic
when in this context
Fear of loss of income
Growing up in extreme
poverty in a war torn jungle
In all situations
The individual does not want his
family to ever have to live the way he had to
The individual will conform to the
individual who pays his salary
The individual is not true to his inner
self and puts his family first
Fear of making mistakes
When growing up in the military
In all situations
The individual was verbally and
physically abused for
growing and learning from
mistakes
The individual would not want to make
mistakes
The individual is very tolerant of
others’ mistakes as a result
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Fear of rejection When wanting to be accepted In all situations
The individual wants to be accepted in
society
The individual compromises his
authenticity in order to be accepted
The individual is not authentic
Fear of rejection
When experiencing
drastically changing
environments
In all situations
The individual experienced
culture shock in their own culture and had negative
experiences
The individual built up defensive walls and
does not show their true self
The individual became less
authentic
Fear of rejection
When with others whose opinion the individual
values
In all situations
The individual does not want to lose their respect or feel the pain
The individual only offers one moment of vulnerability to test
others
The individual is not being authentic
Fear of rejection When in a social situation In all situations The individual is
afraid
The individual does not stand up for what he
believes in
The individual’s true self is emerged
Fear of repercussions
When buying out his
business partner
In all situations
The individual was terrified of
telling the partner but did
not want to make a loss
The individual told the business partner that he wanted to buy him out
The individual was able to be authentic by buying him out
Fear of repercussions
When making career choices In all situations
The individual is afraid of not
having financial security
The individual has made career choice that they did not really want
to make
The individual was not able to follow
their true path
Fear of vulnerability
When wanting to open oneself
up to others In all situations
The individual wants to be
inspirational and trusted
The individual wants to try and open up to
others
The individual wants to be more
authentic
Fear of vulnerability When at work In the workplace
The individual was afraid of
ridicule
The individual suppressed his/her
personality
The individual was not authentic at
work
Fear of vulnerability
When dealing with people the individual does not think have his interests at
In the workplace and on a
personal level
Being vulnerable makes the
individual feel weak
The individual always changes and has to try and remember what he
said
The individual is not being authentic
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heart
Fear of vulnerability
When being away from home and
being black in a class
dominated by whites
In all situations
The individual fears that if he is
vulnerable he will be in trouble
The individual is overly defensive
The individual is not being authentic
Fear of vulnerability
When growing up as an inferior
sportsman compared to
his brother and going to boarding school
In all situations
The events that happened to the individual led
him to create an appearance of strength and
control
The individual created an image of
invulnerability
The individual was not true to himself
Fear of vulnerability
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual was popular as a teenager and had
a misplaced sense of having a
reputation to uphold
The individual hides behind other people and
things to hide his vulnerability
The individual is not authentic
Fear of vulnerability
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual had a stiff upper lip upbringing
The individual hides behind a cool, passive
image
The individual is not authentic
Fear of vulnerability
When in a group that the
individual does not trust
In all situations The individual
wants confidentiality
The individual will not open up in a group like
this
The individual will not be authentic
Fear of vulnerability
When being attacked by
colleagues who were trying to create a divide
At work
The individual joined their
agenda because he did not want
to look vulnerable
The individual joined the others against what
he believed in
The individual resigned because it
was not what he stood for
Fear of vulnerability
When at an all boys high
school At school
The individual was often persecuted
The individual became quiet and introverted
The individual became inauthentic
Fear of When in syndicate
At university The individual felt he should be The individual became The individual was
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vulnerability groups able to answer all the questions that could be thrown
at him
stressed because of this not being authentic
Fear of vulnerability
When dealing with those
around him/her In all situations
The individual feels
vulnerability could render
them powerless
The individual tries to control the environment
as much as possible
The individual loses authenticity and trust in who
they are
Fear of vulnerability
When in relationships In all situations
The individual was dumped
when he was 13
The individual built barriers for himself
The image of the individual was
distorted
Feedback from others
When friends criticized the
individual In all situations
The individual wants to receive feedback about their personality and behaviour
The individual was stubborn in accepting it but tried to change later
The individual builds self
awareness through feedback
Feedback from others
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual wants to be more open to criticism but is not always
The individual becomes very defensive when
getting negative feedback
The individual is not authentic
Feedback from others
Growing up in a traditional
Chinese family In all situations
The individual was raised not to give or receive
feedback directly in the workplace
The individual would not simply give
feedback as is common in the US
The individual is not that open to
feedback
Financial freedom
When trying to cut down on costs with a
partner
In all situations
The individual wants to explore other options and not be tied to a
paycheck
The individual moved from an expensive
property to her partners’ mother’s property to cut
costs
The individual has more flexibility to
be authentic
Focusing on positive traits
When around others In all situations
The individual can distinguish himself from
others
The individual always smiles because he
knows he feels better
The individual becomes more
authentic
Focusing on positive traits
When growing up In all situations
The individual had a lot of
energy but his mother refused to listen to anyone who said he had
The individual believed his mother when she
said there was nothing wrong with him and that he was just like
Superman
The individual was able to be true to
himself
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ADD
Focusing on positive traits
When taking care to respect the authenticity
of others
In all situations To benefit society
By adhering to morals, values and ethics
Society benefits from consistent
adherence to these values
Freedom When making choices In all situations
The individual believes choices are dependant on their history and
upbringing
The individual believes they are free to choose but also that they are
bound by history
The individual is partly authentic
Having low self-esteem
When making decisions In all situations
The individual second guesses
their initial decision
The individual asks others for another
opinion
The individual ends up making
decisions they did not want to make
and therefore becomes
inauthentic
Having low self-esteem
When in a situation in which the
individual is insecure
In all situations
The individual has esteem
problems about her body and
weight
The individual defers to a lesser image of herself
The individual loses her sense of
worth and her authenticity
Having low self-esteem
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual is driven by a need
for validation
The individual agrees with others’ expectation
of them
The individual is opened up to manipulation
Hiding aspects of oneself
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual is ambitious and
wants to maintain an
image of success
The individual tries to hide failures instead of
asking for advice
The individual thinks failure is not
an option and is thus not authentic
Hiding aspects of oneself
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual struggles
between real change and
pleasing people
The individual only shows certain parts of
himself to certain people
The individual is still trying to figure
out who he is
Honesty When lying
about benchpressing
At school The individual
was embarrassed and lazy
The individual lied about his progress at
benchpressing
The individual was really embarrassed and was not honest
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Honesty
When telling her husband she was not
happy anymore
At home
The individual had overcome her pride and fear of failure
The individual told her husband that they needed to go their
separate ways
The individual is more true to herself
Honesty When dealing with others In all situations
The individual feels honesty means one is dedicated to
one’s values and principles
The person tries to be honest
The person is living according to
their values
Honesty When
recognizing weaknesses
In all situations The individual has the courage
to report the truth
The individual tells the truth and talks directly
to others
The individual is able to maintain their authenticity
Inability to ask for assistance
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual had to fight his own battles for many years that robbed him of
the skills to approach others
The individual lulls himself into thinking he
has it under control when he does not
The individual does not get the best out
of situations
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual does not express
how he feels because he is not
ready for the challenge it will
bring
The individual will hide his thoughts, anger,
sadness and frustration
The individual is not authentic
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When dealing with certain
friends In all situations
There is no real trust or intimacy
in these relationships
The individual will only talk about topics like
sport and hide his feelings
The individual is not being authentic
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When being a junior
employee At work
The organizational setting caused him to be quiet
The individual became completely reserved and
quiet
The individual was not authentic
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual is scared of hurting others or being
vulnerable
The individual is unable to reveal his feelings
and be frank
The individual is not authentic
Inability to be open about one’s When dealing In the
individual’s The individual cares so much
The individual is unable to be open with his
The individual loses girlfriends
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feelings with others personal life what people think of him that
he becomes closed up
girlfriends and the cannot get to know him
and is unable to be true to himself
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When in a relationship In all situations
The individual is very guarded at the beginning of
relationships
The individual does not open up in relationships
The individual does not open himself
up and is inauthentic
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When in relationships
In the individual’s personal life
The individual’s heart was broken by her boyfriend
The individual struggles to open up and becomes
aggressive when she feels she is
compromising too much
The individual cannot be fully
authentic
Inability to be open about one’s
feelings
When attending her graduations
In all situations
The individual trivialized her
achievements in order to be
modest
The individual told her family they did not need
to be there at the graduation
The individual won the top student but was lonely because nobody was with
her because she did not express how much it meant to her to her family
Inability to be true to self
When choosing what to study At university
The individual was too proud to
change his course
The individual studied computer science and worked in that field
even though he knew he was not being true to
himself
The individual was living a false
identity
Inability to be true to self
When rushing life away In all situations
The individual was too busy with life and
work to realize who he was
The individual was working, making deals
and catching planes that he did not have time to
reflect
His girlfriend of 3 years left him and
he was not authentic
Inability to be true to self
When dealing with his sexuality
In his personal life
The individual did not want to
accept his sexuality
The individual simply denied his sexuality and never told anyone about
it
The individual was inauthentic
Inability to be true to self
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual did not have a father figure
The individual blocked his own interests to
please others
The individual became inauthentic
Inability to be true to self When trying to
identify his In all situations The individual
does not know what his values
The individual will start to action for example
singing lessons to fulfil
The individual hopes to become more authentic in
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values are his artistic need this way
Inability to be true to self
When talking to a colleague In all situations
The individual asked a colleague
who she really was underneath all the material
goods
The colleague did not want to confront this questions and became
aggressive
The colleague remained
inauthentic
Inability to be true to self
When trying to meet
professional expectations
At the workplace The individual
does not want to be vulnerable
The individual put up a façade despite not
believing in his abilities as a senior manager
The individual could only be authentic with
people outside of his division
Inability to be true to self
When thinking when
something has happened, I
will be happy
In all situations
The individual is critical about
themselves and is constantly
worrying what others think
The individual thinks when they have
achieved their MBA or when their relationship is all that they want it to be, they will be happy. In fact, they are happy
already
The individual cannot just enjoy
who they are
Inability to listen authentically
In dealing with others
In his personal life
The individual finds it difficult
to take a hermeneutic approach to
communication
The individual does not listen, or only listens to
provide a solution
The individual is inauthentic in this
regard
Inability to listen authentically
When in conversations
with others In all situations The individual
gets bored
The individual thinks he knows what others are going to say and loses
interest in the conversation
The individual does not engage people
Inability to listen authentically
When in a one on one
situation In all situations
The individual believes in his
own techniques and does not
want to listen to those of others
The individual believes he is right and does not
want to accept other people’s suggestions
The individual does not value diverse opinions, which
could have strengthened the
solution
Inability to listen authentically
When talking to others In all situations The individual
loses focus
The individual loses focus and stops
listening to others
This is a deviating force with regards
to authenticity
Inability to listen When being youth
In all situations The individual tended to identify
The individual tried to see things from the
The individual learnt that meeting
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authentically chairperson at church
more with the group that had a
similar background to
himself
other group’s point of view
each other halfway is the only feasible
outcome
Inability to self regulate in a
stressful environment
When under intense
pressure In all situations
The individual does not know
themselves well and thinks there could be reasons for feeling like this in stressful
situations
The individual gets completely swept off her feet and cannot do
anything positive
The individual feels that she does not know herself well enough to be
authentic
Inability to trust When dealing with others In all situations
The individual has been failed many times in
the past
The individual struggles to trust people and let
go
The individual is not being authentic
Inability to trust When dealing with others In all situations
The individual has been betrayed
The individual is cynical and it takes
them a long time to trust certain people
The individual is not fully authentic
Inability to trust When dealing with her friend
In personal circumstances
The individual was betrayed by
her friend
The individual remains guarded and has not
forgiven her friend for what she did in high
school
The individual is inauthentic
Inability to trust When delegating In all situations
The individual is scared the people will not be able to fulfil the task
The individual struggles to delegate tasks to
others
The individual is less authentic
Inability to trust When in relationship In all situations
The individual was betrayed,
scarred and hurt in a previous relationship
The individual held back his feelings
The individual did not emotionally
connect with others
Incongruence between words
and deeds
When dealing with others In all situations The individual
finds it difficult The individual does not do what he says he will
The individual is not an authentic
leader
Integrating one’s life
When choosing a career path In all situations
The individual did not want to
study the degrees predetermined by
The individual asked his father if he could do something else and
The individual was able to integrate the need to provide for
his family with
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his father ended up on the MBA what he wanted to do in life
Integrating one’s life When at work At the workplace
The individual has a different
persona for work and at home
The individual is unable to integrate the two
different personas she has
The individual endures inauthentic
identities
Integrating one’s life
When choosing a life in the
sciences
At the workplace and with family
The individual chose science as a career so that he would not
have to focus on values
The individual cannot integrate his career with
his family life
The individual is less authentic
Integrity
When the class wanted to go shark cage
diving
In all situations The individual is against harming
animals
The individual refused to go shark cage diving because it goes against
what she believes in
The individual was able to be authentic
Irreconcilable desires
When becoming a
father
In his personal life
The individual wants to be a
great father, but also wants to
avoid responsibility
The individual will constantly have to make
a choice between the two
The individual feels he cannot be completely true to
himself
Knowing oneself When looking at himself In all situations
The individual has just ignored his authentic self
The individual does not know who he is
The individual is not authentic
Knowing oneself When looking at himself In all situations
The individual does not know
who he is
The individual wants to know who he is through reflection and by being
vulnerable
The individual is not authentic yet
Knowing oneself When coming
out of rehabilitation
In all situations
The individual had to embark on a process to get to know himself
The individual started writing down his life
story
The individual is closer to becoming
authentic
Knowing oneself When looking at him/herself In all situations
The individual was brought up
with strong values
The individual uses contemplative practices
to get to know themselves
The individual is able to remain true
to themselves
Knowing oneself When in the process of
In all situations Being in the army sparked the The individual started The individual is
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getting to know himself
question of what he believed in
reading and traveling able to be authentic
Knowing oneself When
embarking on the MBA
In all situations
The individual wanted to start the MBA for
external reasons and pursuit of
goals
By doing the MBA, the individual got feedback and time for reflection on how their life was
shaped
The individual got to know their true
self better
Knowing oneself
When meditating and
doing psychoanalysis
In all situations The individual
wanted to know himself better
The individual went through psychoanalysis
to get through childhood scars
The individual is more true to
himself
Knowing oneself When in certain
situations In all situations
The individual has a good self-
knowledge
The individual has the ability to adapt to the requirements of the
situation without losing his authentic identity
The individual is authentic
Knowing oneself When moving overseas In all situations
The individual was free from
always pleasing their father
The individual got to know themselves better
The individual was more authentic
Knowing oneself When growing In all situations
The individual has had the
chance to know themselves a bit better over the
years
The individual is often pensive and thinks
about life and death, themselves and others
This allows the individual to be more authentic
Knowing oneself
When remembering
where she came from
In all situations The individual
grew up in Soweto
The individual is proud of her heritage and what
she stands for
The individual knows herself and
is able to be authentic
Knowing oneself
When understanding what energises
her
In all situations The individual is
motivated by self-knowledge
The individual acknowledges what
parts of her personality are engaged in certain
situations
The individual is able to understand
herself better
Knowing oneself When starting
to explore himself
In all situations
The individual had always been
to scared to explore himself
The individual has started to get to know himself by shining a
light on himself
The individual is starting to make the
choice to be himself
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Knowing oneself When
reflecting on behaviour
In all situations The individual
understands their character
The individual knows their strengths and
weaknesses
The individual is able to have a more
meaningful and individual life
Knowing oneself
When in a relationship
with a younger man
In her personal life
The individual broke up three
times because of social pressure
The individual decided to listen only to herself
and stay in the relationship
The individual got to know herself
better through this experience
Knowing oneself When studying In all situations
The individual embarked on the MBA to find out
more about themselves
The individual is studying to find out what truly motivates
them
The individual is able to be more
authentic
Knowing oneself When making sense of own experiences
In all situations The individual had a traumatic
childhood
The individual is doing an MBA to rediscover
themselves
The individual will open up options
outside of engineering
Knowing where you stand on moral issues
When growing up In all situations
The individual’s mother taught them morals
The individual was taught that littering is
wrong and has accepted these teachings and learnt sound values
The individual is true to themselves
Knowing where you stand on moral issues
When speaking up against the
MD At work
The individual has a strong sens of what is right
and what is wrong
The individual explained to the MD
that certain actions were not right and that they
were not prepared to go along with them
The MD changed his mind and the
individual was able to be more authentic
Knowing where you stand on moral issues
When dealing with others In all situations
Morality is the core of the
individual’s soul
The individual voices his disdain against immoral behaviour
The individual is authentic
Knowing where you stand on moral issues
When going through their teenage years
In all situations
The individual had a strong
sense of right and wrong
The individual chose not to smoke and drink despite losing out on
acceptance in this way
The individual remained true to
themselves
Knowing your purpose
When going through his matriculate
year
In all situations
The individual was not
interested in pre-determined career paths
The individual stood up to his father and said he did not want to follow
the career path
The individual was able to be authentic
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Knowing your purpose
When becoming a Christian
In all situations
The individual had many
material things but still felt
empty
The individual became a Christian and his
purpose was to follow God and serve Him and
others
The individual was able to find his
purpose
Knowing your purpose
When a mentor gave advice In all situations
The individual realized he has everything to
give and nothing to lose
The individual stopped milking every situation for himself and started giving back to others
The individual has grown as a person
Knowing your purpose
When learning authentically In all situations
The individual wants to align
himself authentically
The individual wants to learn authentically to
find moral dimensions and their true purpose
The individual will have conviction of
his true self
Knowing your purpose In life In all situations To become an
authentic leader By knowing their
purpose The individual will be more authentic
Lack of confidence
When having a domineering
boss At work
The individual’s boss liked
exerting power over him until the individual
lacked all confidence
The individual consulted his boss about
every little thing
The individual was becoming a slave
to power and eventually resigned because he could not be true to his
values
Lack of confidence
In life in general In all situations
The individual is not assertive
enough
The individual has times when they have no confidence and do
not speak up
The individual cannot be authentic
Lack of confidence
When growing up In all situations
The individual has low self-
esteem and a fear of being hurt
The individual comes across as aggressive
because of their inner struggles
The individual is not being authentic
Lack of confidence
When in large social
gatherings In all situations
The individual acts in a way not aligned with their
beliefs
The individual adopts another personal to feel
comfortable
The individual is not authentic
Lack of inner vision
When deciding on career paths In all situations
The individual has so many varied wide
interests
The individual chose to combine some interests (business and science)
The individual has only now become a
step closer to overcoming his lack of vision
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Lack of inner vision In life In all situations
The individual is unsure what
questions need to be asked
The individual has difficulty in focusing on
his inner self
The individual has not managed to
achieve self-awareness
Lack of meaningful
relationships
When in relationships In all situations
The individual does not trust
others
The individual will not let himself be
vulnerable towards people
This results in not being authentic
Lack of meaningful
relationships
When moving on in his career In all situations
The individual moved around a
lot with his career
The individual used his career as a reason for not continuing with
relationships
The individual realized that he
acted inauthentically in is
decisions
Lack of passion When setting
goals and dreams
In all situations
The individual feels they have a lack of passion to
explore their authenticity
The individual believes they are capable to
make changes, but the do not because of a lack
of passion
The individual is not able to fulfil their potential
Lack of purpose When
searching for meaning
In all situations
The individual struggles with
the fact that they are not the same person every day
The individual has traveled, moved,
changed careers and studied to try to find it
The individual still has no direction
and is therefore not authentic
Lack of purpose When trying to
live authentically
In all situations
The individual thinks finding
their purpose is a deep process
The individual is still trying to find their
purpose
The individual believes they can be authentic while trying to find their
purpose
Lack of reflection In life In all situations
The individual has been used for
other people’s benefit
The individual has never given themselves
time for reflection
The individual is inauthentic
Lack of reflection
In the last two years and during the
MBA
In all situations The individual does not have
time
The individual does not reflect on himself
The individual is not authentic
Lack of reflection When in the workplace At work
The individual was so busy with operational tasks that they just fell
The individual just carried on working
The individual is not authentic
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asleep after work
Lack of reflection When asking
the meaning of life
In all situations
The individual experiences inner
conflict when they do
introspect
The individual avoids introspection
The individual feels lost
Lack of reflection In life In all situations
The individual wants to take
stock of himself more
The individual currently fools himself
The individual is not authentic
Lack of reflection When working At work
The individual is defined by a comfortable
organizational role
The individual did not make time to reflect and chose to go back to his
old job to fall into a familiar role
The individual was not being authentic
Lack of role models When working At work
The individual does not have a good support
network at work
The individual cannot get support from his
colleagues
The individual is not able to be an authentic leader
Lack of self-awareness
When not in the arts
environment In all situations
The individual is no longer in the
creative arts
The individual cannot express herself through
art anymore
The individual has fewer avenues to express herself authentically
Lack of self- awareness
When wanting to fit in In all situations
The individual is confused
between their true self and
public persona
The individual projects a public persona
The individual cannot be authentic
Lack of self-awareness In life In all situations
The individual has not been able
to define his values
The individual had no interest in the past to try
and find their values
The individual has not been able to be
authentic
Lack of self-awareness In life In all situations
The individual does not know a
lot about themselves
The individual went on a leadership course in
Mauritius
The individual is still trying to find out more about
himself
Lack of self-awareness When in a
session with In all situations The individual
realized that he knew what he
The individual tried to invent a person that the world would think was
The individual could not find
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his coach wanted to be but not who he
wanted to be
important meaning in his life
Lack of self-awareness
When in certain
circumstances In all situations
The individual is aware of others but cannot pay attention to her own processes
The individual let circumstances dictate the next move instead
of doing it herself
The individual was not able to be
authentic
Lack of self-discipline In life In all situations
The individual is struggling to
motivate themselves to do
anything
The individual has created a person he is
not happy with
The individual is not being authentic
Learning and education
When doing an MBA At university
The individual wants to learn
and grow
The individual chose to study
The individual is learning about herself in the
process
Learning and education
When living life In all situations
The individual gains
understanding
The individual acquires new knowledge
The individual can grow
Learning and education
When acquiring
authenticity In all situations
The individual believes one
acquires moral dimensions
through education
The individual embarked on an MBA
The individual is exploring their
being
Learning and education
When wanting to be authentic In all situations
The individual believes
education is the key to
enlightenment
The individual started and MBA and is
learning from classmates
The individual is leveraging their personal growth
Learning and education
When trying to overcome a
fixed mindset In all situations
The individual does not want to
get stuck
The individual reads, travels and studies
The individual expands his
exposure to new fields
Learning and education
When growing up In all situations
The individual believes it is a
value based process
The individual embraces learning and sees it as a means of
establishing values and morals
The individual is able to live by their
values
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Learning and education
When obtaining tertiary
education
At university It unearths new aspects of the
individual’s self
The individual wants to learn something new
every week and continue learning
The individual is able to know himself better
Learning and education
When doing the MBA At university
The individual saw it as a means to make money
The individual’s friend warned him not to lose
himself to money
The individual was careful not to fall
into the trap
Learning and education When at school At school
The individual feels the Dutch
education systems gave him space for free thinking
The individual became informed which
increased his self confidence
The individual was able to be more
authentic
Learning and education
When at university At university
School was constricting for the individual,
but tertiary education was
not
The individual could explore his being doing
the MBA
The individual became more
authentic
Learning and education
When experiencing
life In all situations
The individual has unlearnt some habits
The individual is always willing to try new
adventures
The individual will better himself
Learning and education
When validating
oneself In all situations
The individual feels genuine
when as a result of good
education
The individual continuously seeks
learning
The individual validates himself
Learning and education
When going through life In all situations
The individual has a lot more to
learn
The individual always learns
The individual develops his values
Learning and education
When going through life In all situations
The individual feels education
gives her a moral dimension
The individual has taught her to appreciate
books
The individual has been able to
explore the essence she s
Learning and education
When losing their father In all situations
The individual believed their future lay in education
The individual worked extremely hard at
school
The individual learnt moral and religious lessons
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Learning and education
When living life In all situations
The individual felt a duty to pass on education to
those less fortunate than
himself
The individual’s mind has been opened to the
hardship of others through the MBA
The individual is able to be more
authentic
Learning and education
When living life In all situations
Education gives the individual courage and prevents him from feeling inadequate
The individual sees education as the
foundation of his life
The individual has the courage to
stand up for what he believes in
Listening intently When talking to his father In all situations
The individual now listens to
understand
The individual listens by trying to understand
the other person’s thoughts
The individual can be more authentic
Listening intently When talking to others In all situations
The individual was a journalist so only asked
leading questions
The individual was only asking leading
questions until the point he could relate it to
himself
The individual was unable to get more
perspectives
Living out your true values
When being a child In all situations The individual
had few friends
The individual did not have sleep overs and
was isolated so was free from influences
The individual could easily live
out his values
Living out your true values
When growing up In all situations
The individual was taught the
principle of things
The individual even highlighted the
importance of living by his principles on his
MBA application form
The individual is able to be true to
himself
Living out your true values
When living life In all situations
The individual was brought up with a strong
focus on morals and ethics
The individual has been true to their morals even
under difficult circumstances
The individual is authentic
Living out your true values
When leaving Accenture In all situations
The individual felt they could
not live according to their
values in this organization
The individual left the company
The individual was able to live out their values at
another company
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Living out your true values
When working as a
bookkeeper In all situations
The individual could easily have
stolen money
The individual chose not to steal and live
according to his values
The individual was true to himself
Living out your true values
When practicing
being a muslim In all situations
The individual was allowed to
practice his beliefs
The individual could practice his values through the Quran
The individual was true to himself
Living out your true values
When working with the General Manager
At work
The individual was not going to compromise in
what he believed
The individual worked hard, and would give an honest assessment even
if it was to the individual’s detriment
The individual was able to be authentic
Living out your true values When working At work
The individual wanted to grow in the company
The individual pursued objectives that were against his values
The individual was unable to live out
his true values
Living out your true values
Telling his family he was
gay At home
The individual wanted to make choices based on internal criteria
The individual came out to his family
The individual was able to be more
authentic
Living out your true values When working In all situations
The individual tries to make
sure his words are consistent with his deeds
The individual does slightly tend to conform with behaviours at work
The individual still remains authentic
as he does not conform to the
degree that he loses authenticity
Living out your true values
When living life In all situations
The individual is motivated by his
love of being true to himself and living his
values
The individual sees his being true to himself as
a unique fingerprint which cannot be
replicated anywhere else
The individual hopes to be more
authentic
Living out your true values
When with others In all situations
The individual realized that he
wore masks with people
The individual is now aware that he is wearing
masks and questions why he does something
The individual hopes to become more authentic
Living out your true values
When working as a General Manager at a private renal care clinic
At work
The individual made a choice
between company profit and saving a life
The individual went against the board’s policy and treated a
patient on credit
The individual was true to his values
and beliefs
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Living out your true values
When living life
When at university
The individual wants to gain a higher level of contentment
The individual wants to make a concerted effort
to revisit and accept values that govern his
belief system
The individual will stay true to his
values and beliefs
Living up to self-imposed
expectations
When trying to fit in In all situations
The individual had a skewed
perception
The individual thought he was being crippled by the organization but realized it was he who
was imposing these expectations on himself
The individual took action and built
healthy relationships
Making a positive difference in the lives of others
When volunteering at the Red Cross
In all situations It gives the individual fulfillment
The individual volunteers for the Red
Cross
The individual makes an authentic contribution to the
lives of others
Making a positive difference in the lives of others
When in leadership positions
In all situations
People are interested in empowering
others
They desire to serve others
They are more authentic leaders
Making a positive difference in the lives of others
When making sacrifices In all situations
So that the lives of others may be transformed for
the better
The individual started Engineers for a
Sustainable World and gave up a big salary for
it
The individual is authentic
Material wealth When living life In all situations
The individual becomes
distracted by wealth
The individual loses sight of who he is
The individual is not authentic
Material wealth When living abroad At work
The individual wants to earn the
salary
The individual did routine work which they
did not enjoy because they earnt a lot
The individual was not being authentic
Material wealth When being an accountant In all situations
The individual likes material
things
The individual buys cars, ipods and a nice
house
This prevents him from doing another
job that is more fulfilling and which could allow him to be more authentic
Meditation and reflection
When meditating In all situations The individual
can increase self-
The individual uses this to “quiet” their mind
The individual is more authentic
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awareness
Meditation and reflection When in nature In all situations
The individual does not want to be the person she
thinks a man wants
The individual walks on the beach and will buy a
diary
The individual will be more authentic
Meditation and reflection
When applying for the MBA In all situations
The individual had to take a look and see
where their life is at for the
application essays
The individual realized they do not take enough
time to reflect
The individual is not as authentic as
they could be
Meditation and reflection
When in the daily routine In all situations
The individual starts to think about their life
during quiet times
The individual walks in open fields or runs or cycles and is able to
reflect
The individual is more authentic
Meditation and reflection
As often as possible In all situations
The individual can understand
his world through testing
assumptions
The individual tries to reflect as often as
possible
The individual becomes more
authentic
Meditation and reflection
When the individual’s
producer gave them a book
In all situations The space the book provided
felt safe
The individual had space to meditate by
using the book
The individual could find themselves
Meditation and reflection
When trying to find a life
calling In all situations
The individual realized he was
not happy
The individual started an MBA
The individual understood himself
better
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual wants to discover
the reasons behind his
actions
The individual reflects often
The individual knows himself
better
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
It allows the individual to test
assumptions
The individual tries to reflect
The individual will become more
authentic
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Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual wants to express herself and deal
with the past
The individual has a diary that she constantly
writes things into
The individual knows herself
better
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual wants to be authentic
The individual practices a lot of introspection
The individual becomes more self-
aware
Meditation and reflection
When in high school In all situations
The individual got to understand what they really
thought
The individual wrote in a journal
The individual became more
authentic
Meditation and reflection
In times of crisis In all situations
These situations force the
individual from his comfort zone
The individual is tested and challenged
The individual learns something
new about himself
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual can see whether his life is real
The individual keeps a journal
The individual understands
himself a lot better
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations It exposes his life
The individual has written a mini autobiography
It has led to the individual knowing
himself
Meditation and reflection
When on holiday In all situations
The individual has not made
time for reflection
The individual thinks about things during
holidays but would like to reflect a lot more
The individual will learn to align values then
Meditation and reflection
As often as possible In all situations
The individual tries to reconcile
words and actions
The individual tries self-reflect as often as
possible
The individual cannot reconcile
the differences and learns about
himself
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual wants to enhance his authenticity
The individual takes time out of his schedule
to reflect on his competency gaps
His authenticity is enhanced
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
To enhance authentic behaviour
The individual has a weekly reflection and a
gratitude journal
The individual is more authentic
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Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual does not practice
any reflection
The individual wants to start reflecting
The individual should become more authentic
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual must assess the
relevance of their values
The individual must take time out of their
busy lives
The individual should be more
authentic
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
We need to understand why we behave in a
certain way
The individual wants to take time out to reflect
The individual will be more authentic
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual wants to get to know himself
better
The individual wants to read biographies and
reflect
The individual will become more
authentic
Meditation and reflection
When in the East In all situations
The individual was brought up
in the East, where a lot of
reflection takes place
The individual reflects constantly
The individual is authentic
Meditation and reflection
When spending time alone In all situations
The individual feels this is of immense value
The individual will reflect on intricacies,
challenges and joy and then perhaps share these with those close to him
The individual is more authentic
Meditation and reflection After a breakup In all situations
The breakup prompted writing
in a diary
The individual wrote the diary which forced
her to reflect more deeply
The individual became more
authentic
Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual is looking for a
way out of the fight
The individual wants to reflect more
The individual hopes to live their authenticity with
serenity
Meditation and reflection
When living life At university
The individual wanted to be
more authentic
The individual took time, once a week, to reflect on experiences
The individual noticed that they
were a major contributor to
group discussions
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Meditation and reflection
When living life In all situations
The individual believes it is
important
The individual takes time out to reflect
The individual can be true to who he is
Meditation and reflection
When experiencing
negative thoughts or emotions
In all situations
The individual finds it beneficial
towards authenticity
The individual writes in a book and identifies
why they are feeling a certain way and to
identify whether there is something they can do
about it
The individual attains a greater
level of authenticity
Meditation and reflection
When sitting in the ‘holy chair’ In all situations
The individual wants to make meaning of his
world
The individual sits in his ‘holy chair’
mornings and evenings and thinks about what happened in the day
The individual can make sense of his
world
Meditation and reflection In daily life In all situations
The individual realizes it is important to
understand who we are
The individual reflects on this
The individual will become more
authentic
Meditation and reflection In daily life In all situations
The individual believes
reflection is a hindrance
The individual over-reflects and dwells on
the past too much
This prevents him/her from being
authentic
Mind is stronger than body When eating In all situations
The mind overpowers the
body
The individual decides her taste buds will not like certain food if it is
not healthy
The individual questions her
authenticity if her mind is not able to listen to her body
Mindfulness
When doing the
mindfulness exercise in
class
In all situations
The individual is not sure how many other
sensations the mind does not
allow their body to feel
The individual wants to practice mindfulness
and let their body experience the present
The individual hopes to become more authentic
Mindfulness When doing the MBA In all situations
The individual was skeptical
about mindfulness but
wanted to increase
The individual has attempted to set time
aside each day to practice this
The individual can step back and
reflect on their life
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awareness
Moral guidance When trying to stay grounded At work
The individual played out a power role
instead of being himself
The individual asked his brother for moral
guidance
The individual was able to use his
brother as a moral sounding board
Moving away from a comfort
zone
When in a comfort zone In all situations
The individual realizes his life
becomes robotic and void of stimulation
The individual decided to leave his comfort
zone and embark on an MBA
The individual will hopefully gain
more knowledge about himself
Moving away from a comfort
zone
When the sheriff
repossessed their house
In all situations The individual is forced to face his
demons
The individual faced the reality that he was not defined by his family’s
possessions
The individual was enabled to become
more authentic
Moving away from a comfort
zone
When on the EMBA In all situations
The individual was forced to
understand their reaction to new
stimuli
The individual had to mix with different personalities from different cultures
The individual’s awareness of self
was increased
Moving away from a comfort
zone
When the individual
thinks about settling down
At home
The individual wants to give his family stability
after moving four times
Having a stable upbringing for his
children while embracing change
People burn out with a lot of change
Non-conformance When choosing what to study In all situations
The individual wanted to prove to her family that
she was smart enough to get an
engineering degree
The individual stuck to what she thought was
right for her
The individual was successful
Non-conformance When being a teenager In all situations
The individual always
challenges himself to be
aware of who he is
The individual chooses not to smoke and drink
The individual is authentic
Non-conformance When growing up In allf situations
Conformance was not a
condition of being loved in
The individual is strongly non-conformist
The individual is able to be authentic
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the individual’s household
Non-conformance When living life In all situations
The individual relies on what he finds acceptable
in himself
The individual disregards how others
might see his behaviour
The individual is able to be authentic
Non-conformance When living life In all situations The individual is
very independent
The individual realized their happiness comes before pleasing others
The individual has freedom of choice
and can be authentic
Non-conformance When living life In all situations
The individual is honest in their
behaviour
The individual ‘walks the talk’ and is not
afraid to enter into a conflict with someone
they disagree with
The individual is authentic
Not being afraid of being judged When in class At university
The individual is not afraid to
speak up
The individual raised an idea in class about
teleportation
The class laughed at him but he stood true to his values
Not being afraid of being judged
When with family In all situations
The individual is not standing to judgement, she
knows her family will catch her if
she falls
The individual is not afraid of being herself
The individual is true to herself
Not knowing oneself
When living life In all situations
The individual does not feel that he knows himself
The individual believes his identity is dynamic and that he will never
fully know himself
The individual is on a constant quest
for authenticity
Not knowing oneself
After university In all situations
The individual realized those
people he admired were not always right or
successful
The individual realized he does not know
himself well
The individual was not able to be true
to himself
Not knowing oneself
When living life In all situations
The individual has been
grappling with the question of who they are
The individual feels society frowns upon
people who ‘just think’
The individual has realized that he wants to get to know himself
better
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Not knowing oneself
When moving commitment
from the private into the
public realm
In all situations
The individual realized he did
not know himself and does not
understand his motives
The individual started on a road to stop and look inside himself
The individual will project the most
accurate picture of himself once he
understands himself
Not telling the truth
When living life In all situations
The individual has considered
the ramifications of pushing the
truth
The individual sometimes is guilty of
this when filling in application forms but his saving grace is his
faith
The individual wants to examine
this part of himself more deeply
Not telling the truth
On a regular basis In all situations
The individual thinks it makes their life easier
The individual deceives himself
The individual is inauthentic
Not telling the truth
When creating images of ourselves
In all situations In order to gain sympathy
The individual’s wife’s friend lied about
growing up in a poor family
The person becomes
inauthentic
Not telling the truth
When telling schoolmates about a non-
existent father
In all situations In order not to appear abnormal
The individual told stories about a father
she did not have
The individual was inauthentic
Not understanding one’s purpose
When working on an
emergency radio project
At work
The individual did not
understand his purpose in the
job
The individual got too involved in the
technical detail and did not manage to keep a good overview of the
financial side
The company lost a lot of money
Not understanding one’s purpose
When embarking on a
career in finance
At work
The individual thought he
wanted to work in finance
because he was trying to emulate
his father
The individual realized this is not what makes
him happy
The individual fooled himself
Not understanding one’s purpose
When doing the MBA At university
The individual struggles to
understand his purpose
The individual cannot define a strategic life
plan
The individual only vaguely knows
where he wants to go
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Open-mindedness When living life In all situations
The individual wants to set
goals for dreams to emerge
The individual plans excessively for the
future
The individual realized this
inhibits her ability to live in the ‘now’
Openness in relationships
When in relationships In all situations
The individual is genuinely
interested in others
The individual lets others know that their
ideas are valuable
This consolidates the relationship
Openness in relationships
In her relationship
with her mother
In all situations The individual is only truly open with her mother
The individual always holds something back in
relationships with people other than her
mother
The individual only has one authentic
relationship
Openness in relationships
In his work experience At work
The individual believes it
creates openness and more tolerance
The individual is open and honest in explaining
who he is and why he reacts in specific ways
This creates an open atmosphere
Openness in relationships
When with friends In all situations
The individual gets to reflect on
life
The individual gets friends together for a
coffee or a glass of wine and nurtures friendships
The individual gets to reflect on his life
and theirs
Openness in relationships
When with others In all situations
The individual finds that trust results when he
is open
The individual finds trust comes when he is
open with friends, family or wife but
struggles to be completely open
The individual realizes if he is not open and trusting
of others, they will not trust him
Openness in relationships
When in leadership positions
In all situations
The individual believes
relationships are important in harnessing meaning
The individual believes in open relationships
and networks
This harnesses authenticity
Openness in relationships
When in leadership positions
In all situations
Leaders who are open share a
greater connection in values to their
followers
The individual prefers to follow Mandela, who is open, to Clinton, who
is persuasive
Followers will recognize
similarities with their leaders
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Openness in relationships
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual believes honesty is the cornerstone
of a good relationship
The individual is always open to others, showing
trust
This is an enabler for authenticity
Openness in relationships
When in a culture of
information sharing
At work
The information sharing grows
the competencies of all through
shared problem solving
The individual is open on a professional level
The business benefits
Openness in relationships
When with others In all situations
The individual can nurture
courage
The individual speaks his mind
The individual is able to be authentic
Openness in relationships
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual grew up with a strong family
bond
The individual is open and honest
The individual is able to be authentic
Openness in relationships
When interacting with
others In all situations
Telling the truth lets people about
the real individual
The individual told his fiancée about slapping his girlfriend who had
cheated on him when he was 16
The truth explains some of his behaviour
Openness in relationships
When interacting with
others In all situations
The individual believes healthy behaviours are
reinforced through feedback from significant
relationships
The individual gives of himself honestly and
deeply
The individual can improve his
authentic development
Openness in relationships
When in a relationship with her life
partner
In all situations The individual’s partner helped develop this
The individual discusses her day with
her partner
This allows her to surface emotions
and reflect on them
Openness in relationships
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual has genuine
interest in others
The individual is open and honest which
enables them to gain the trust of others
The individual is more authentic
Openness in relationships
When dealing with others In all situations Since dating his
wife he has become more
The individual can let his feelings go The individual can
express himself
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open better
Openness in relationships
When dealing with others At work
The individual thinks being
open is critical
The individual had an open door and did not
pretend to know everything
This gave her a lot of credibility
Openness in relationships
When dealing with family and friends
In all situations
The individual knows she can trust them and they will not
judge her
The individual is open and honest
The individual is able to be authentic
Openness in relationship
When growing up in a
community where lying
was unacceptable in the community
In all situations
The individual grew up where
lying was synonymous to stealing, which was punishable
by death by public thrashing
The individual tells the truth even if it means exposing himself and would be in pain if he
thought he was not giving all the facts
The individual has a high level of trust
in strangers
Openness in relationships
When in a relationship
with his wife In all situations
The individual does not open up easily, but when he does, nothing
is unturned
He has been completely open with his wife
She knows the authentic individual
Openness in relationships
When dealing with others At work
The team would confide in the
individual
The individual would go out of his way to
help his team
Trusting relationships were
built
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When developing leadership
At work
The individual is not sure whether he can develop leadership in authenticity
The individual has had conversations with his
manager
The individual is not sure whether he
can do this in the organization
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When ordered to commission a substandard Midshipman
who had failed continuously
At work
Staying in the navy would have
meant the complete
destruction of what it meant to
be that individual
The individual left the navy
He vowed to never again work in an environment that betrays his set of
values
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When dealing with
organizations At work
Challenging values is seen as
non-patriotic
The individual conforms by the rules so that they can keep their job or climb the
This results in stabbing oneself in the back and in a
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ladder lot of unhappiness
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When dealing with others At work
The individual wanted to live up to expectations
The individual has given in to pressure from her superiors
The individual was defined by her job
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When in the insurance industry
At work
The individual cannot express
themselves artistically in this
environment
The individual needs to try and work on their
artistic side
The individual is not being authentic
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When retrenching 700
people At work
The individual followed
management mandate
The individual told his staff in a cold business like way that they had
lost their jobs
The individual was inauthentic and had formed inauthentic
relationships
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When dealing with others At work
The individual has difficulty working in a constantly changing
environment
The individual wants consistent personal values that do not
change
The individual displays ‘false authenticity’
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When in a succession
battle at work At work
Both MDs have spoken about
retiring, which has caused the
more junior directors to go
off on a competitive
streak
The individual hides their authentic self in the hope of getting a
promotion
The individual becomes
inauthentic
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When working with people who flout dishonesty
At work This is ethically unacceptable
The individual does not enjoy working with
people like his dishonest director
This has undermined respect
for the director
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When playing the game At work
The individual was not raised to
do this
The individual has seen many advance at the expense of someone
else
These individuals are not always true
to themselves
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
In organizational
culture At work
The individual has a fear of
violating cultural norms
The individual makes decisions at work he would not normally make because that is what the organization
The individual is not authentic
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would want him to do
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When closing deals At work
The individual does not always have the courage
to say no
The pressure of closing deals does not always
allow people to think o their values and the
individual lets himself be dragged along
The individual is not authentic
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When unsure where one
stands morally At work
The individual works in an
organization that wants to succeed
at all costs
The individual is not sure of his ethical standing and is not
immune to the company goals
The individual cannot be an
authentic leader
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When in organisations In all situations
People can become
inauthentic, especially in
small communities
The individual believes eg people become more
religious than they would normally be
The individual is less authentic
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When having two separate spheres for
work and life
In all situations
People are trained from the outset that work and life should
be kept separate
The individual believes trying to remain
authentic to two value systems is stressful
People’s trust may falter
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When dealing with his boss At work
The individual had a need to
impress his boss
The individual expressed views or
ideas that were not his own
These actions compromised his
authenticity
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When in unsupportive environments
At work
The individual was the only
Western person and had minority
views on management
practices
The individual adopted local practices
The individual resulted in much lower authentic
behaviour
Organisations with conflicting values
to yours
When working in the mining
industry At work
The dogmatic and paternalistic
culture determined how the individual
behaved because they wanted to be politically
correct
The individual did not complain about hostel conditions and other things they were not happy about because they would have been
isolated
The individual was not authentic
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Overcoming fear When afraid In all situations
Fear is an underlying
current which limits the individual
The individual wants to justify the fear and decide whether to
ignore it
The individual hopes to be less
limited and reduce fear
Participation in social networks
When participating in
sports In all situations
Competitiveness causes
aggression, participation causes social
networks
The individual now has a family and has
stopped competing so aggressively
The individual can now appreciate
exercise and enjoying
participation without having to
win
Participation in social networks
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual found his place
in society
The individual practiced authenticity in social
networks like university and the workplace
The individual was able to be more
authentic
Pleasing others When dealing with others In all situations
The individual wants to keep the peace and enjoy
himself
The individual tells others what they want
to hear
The individual conforms to others
Pleasing others When living up to his father In all situations
The individual’s life has always
been overshadowed by
his father
The individual tried to live up to his father and had an panic attack at
16 due to fear of failure
The individual was not being true to
himself
Pleasing others When growing up In all situations
The individuals’ parents wanted
her to take ballet classes and was
afraid of disappointing
them
The individual did it but detested it from the
beginning in order to gain more love
The individual was not authentic to
herself
Pleasing others When
recovering from bulimia
In all situations
The individual did not want to bother others
with her problems
The individual put on a happy face and denied
her feelings
This created more unnecessary
negative feelings
Pleasing others
When contemplating
a career in music
In all situations
The individual feared failure and
parental disappointment
The individual gave up music and denied loving
music
The individual inhibited his authentic self
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Pleasing others When living life In all situations The world has
expectations
The individual questions whether they
want to please the world or themselves
The individual is not truly authentic
Pleasing others When dealing with others In all situations
The individual has an incessant need to please
others
The individual neglects his own wellbeing
The individual is not authentic
Pleasing others When his older brother failed an university
In all situations
The individual did not want to disappoint his
father
The individual did not like what he was
studying but carried on
The individual was not true to himself
Pleasing others
When interacting with
friends and family
In all situations
The individual will not say
anything if it can cause harm
The individual compromises and goes
with the flow
The individual is not always as
authentic as he would like
Pleasing others When dealing with others In all situations We have a need
to please The individual does
things to please others This leads to inauthenticity
Pleasing others When dealing with a boss At work
The individual has a fear of ridicule and
wants to be a part of the group
The individual does what the boss wants
instead of what he feels is right
The individual is inauthentic
Pleasing others When in relationships In all situations The individual
tried too hard
The individual did not express his feelings
clearly enough
The individual became frustrated
and moody
Pleasing others When his father died In all situations The individual
had to survive
The individual had to walk 5 km at night from
the elder brother’s house so that they
would not forget the elder one
The individual had to suppress his own feelings about his
father’s death
Putting up a façade
When dealing with others In all situations
The individual does this when surrounded by
dominating people or in an organizational
context
The individual plays a role
The individual is not authentic
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Putting up a façade
When working in a new project
At work
The individual wanted to
appease the organization
The individual put up a new façade with each
project
The individual did not let people know
who he was
Putting up a facade
When engaging in ‘impression management’
In all situations
This ensures people function
well in a specific environment
People create a valued professional image
This could lead to suppression of the
individual
Putting up a facade
When living life In all situations
The individual lost control in steering his
destiny
The individual assumes the role of victim
The individual wastes energy
Putting up a facade
When Chairperson for
a Representative
Committee
In all situations
The individual wanted to be
taken seriously by her male colleagues
The individual wore a façade of a hard-nosed
captain
The individual was not authentic
Putting up a facade
When living life In all situations
The individual does not know the reason for
this
The individual presents themselves to be better
than they are
The individual is not authentic
Putting up a facade
When in important meetings
At work
The individual wants to
counteract his inexperience
The individual dresses smartly, brings in a
leather folder and an expensive pen
The individual takes on a different
‘part’
Putting up a facade
When living life In all situations
The individual has a strong
narcissistic trait
The individual talked a lot about his successes and tried to make them bigger than they were
The individual compromised his
authenticity
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When living life In all situations
The individual has vivid feelings
when he is not authentic
towards himself
The individual knows his strengths and
weaknesses
The individual is able to be authentic
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When looking at oneself In all situations
The individual has a shadow
side they do not like to talk about
The individual does not like to evaluate his
weakness
The individual is on the right track
because he recognizes this
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Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When living life In all situations
The individual accepts
themselves
The individual expresses their feelings
with conviction but balances it with
consideration for those around them
The individual is more mature
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When living life In all situations
The individual has been through enough to know
who they are
The individual realized what they were about
The individual is authentic
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When living life In all situations
Sometimes others know the individual better than they know
themselves
The individual turns to people close to him for
advice
The individual can get to know
himself better
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When failing In all situations
The individual is bad at
acknowledging their own
shortcomings
The individual tries to cover up that he failed
rather than acknowledging it
This results in bad self-clarity
Recognising strengths and weaknesses
When living life In all situations
The individual believes
reflection is a tool for
authenticity
The individual should understand strengths and weaknesses as a
barometer to measure reactions
The individual can become more
authentic
Reflection on the past
When looking at authenticity In all situations
The individual believes there is
a lot they can learn from their
life
The individual reflects on his/her past
The individual can find his/her
authentic self
Reflection on the past
When living life In all situations
The individual discovered a void
in his/her life
The individual is not considering how events
have affected him
The individual can start discovering his authentic self
Reflection on the past
When on the path to
authenticity In all situations
The individual thinks it is
important to learn grow from
past mistakes
The individual sees how he was inauthentic in the past and moves in
the other direction
The individual can become more
authentic
Repressing parts When living in In all situations The individual believes
becoming who
The individual wants to get to know himself
better through
This will add another perspective
on how the
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of oneself society you are requires part invention
and part discovery
relationships and reflection
individual approaches another
relationship or a problem
Repressing parts of oneself
When with his father In all situations
The individual could not be
himself around his father
The individual expressed his extrovert personality around his
mother and became shy and introverted around
his father
The individual could not be
authentic around his father
Repressing parts of oneself
When a small-town
occupational therapist
In all situations
The individual had a perception of what a small
town expected of an occupational
therapist
The individual wore a day time mask at work
The individual was not authentic
Repressing parts of oneself
When growing up In all situations
The individual’s attempts to
express his inner personality were
violently reprimanded
The individual always acted like the perfect child, suppressing his
feelings and obeying his father
The individual was not authentic
Repressing parts of oneself
When in the hospitality industry
In all situations
The industry is based on the
belief that the customer is always right
The individual role-plays to please the
clients
This repression contradicts the
individual’s deeper persuasion of self-
display
Revealing different aspects
of oneself
When living life At work
The individual wants to look like a serious professional
The individual brings a smart folder into
meetings
The individual hopes he
counteracts his youthfulness
Revealing different aspects
of oneself
When in positions of leaderships
At work The individual wants to gain acceptance
The individual will reveal different aspects
of their character
The individual will be authentic
Revealing different aspects
of oneself
When with others At work
The individual feels they can connect more with people
The individual shows her responsible and thoughtful side, but
shows her fun side with men
The individual can connect more with
people
Revealing different aspects
When being a manager At work The individual
various aspects of his personality
The individual oscillates between
This allows the individual to be
intuitively
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of oneself appear as the situation demands
leader and subordinate authentic
Role models When living life In all situations
The individual’s role models have
helped them stand up for what
they believe in
The individual is authentic to his values
The individual is authentic
Role models When living life In all situations
The individual has been inspired by role models
The individual had a good mix of role
models that he could get advice from
The individual is more ethical
Role models When living life In all situations
The individual’s role models
taught him to never give up on
his dream
The individual listened to his authentic self
The individual became more
authentic
Role models When
practicing religion
In all situations
The individual these Muslim
icons have become a source
of inspiration
These role models stir curiosity and promote
Muslims in the mainstream media
The individual can be true to himself
Role models When going through an
illness In all situations
The role model gave the
individual courage
The individual uses this role model as a benchmark for
authenticity because she is real
The individual is able to be more real
herself
Role models When living life In all situations
The individual’s role model
remains true to their values
The individual looks up to their father
The individual is able to be more true to his/her
values
Role models When growing up In all situations
The individual’s mother helped him transform
any aspect into a positive one
The individual was able to be himself
The individual was more authentic
Seeking approval When pursuing
a career in business
In all situations
The individual thought a
business career would legitimize his place in the world to family
The individual chose a career in business over
a career in art
The individual realizes that something is
missing
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and friends
Seeking approval When trying to please his/her
father At home
The individual’s brother died and
after that his father’s demands
on himself translated into
perceived demands of he
individual
The individual constantly tried to win their father’s approval
and felt that if they could just achieve more,
they would be acceptable
The individual never felt good
enough and struggled to be
authentic
Seeking approval When living life In all situations
The individual was not able to
say no to anyone and wanted
approval from people close to
them
The individual was not able to say no to others
The individual felt drained and unable to express their true
self
Seeking approval When living life In all situations
The individual has a need for
continual acceptance and
approval
The individual is unable to say no
The individual compromises
his/herself
Seeking approval When with others In all situations
The individual wanted people to accept him/her
The individual would always try to impress
others
The individual is less authentic
Seeking approval When at work In the work environment
The individual has a single
minded pursuit of recognition
The individual’s actions would only focus on
achievement and resultant recognition
The individual would conduct him/herself in a manner which is
less than authentic
Seeking approval When living life In all situations The individual
loves attention
The individual seeks the approval of those he
admires
The individual loses himself in the
process
Self-acceptance When living life In all situations
The individual believes that
failures must be acknowledged
The individual tries to accept his whole self
The individual feels his
authenticity will be enhanced
Self-acceptance When living life In all situations
The individual sees his path of
self-awareness as one where he
accepts who he
The individual asks himself the important questions he has no
answers to yet
The individual believes this
enables authenticity
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really is
Self-acceptance When living life In all situations
The individual has few things they do not like
about themselves
The individual likes who they are and likes
to respect the views others have
This empowers the individual to be
authentic
Self-awareness When being
put through the fire
In all situations The individual
was put “through the fire”
The individual spends a lot of energy on being
himself
The individual is more authentic
Self-awareness During tense moments In all situations
The individual finds themselves asking questions
The individual asks “am I being me”?
The individual has a moment of
realization and learning
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual believes
authenticity comes from
understanding one’s emotions
The individual believes authenticity is about
thinking and behaviour
The individual is able to be authentic
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual believes people live a superficial
life
The individual believes people just move
mechanically in the roles they play
These people are not authentic
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual is very
compassionate
The individual is doing an MBA to help South
Africans
The individual knows himself and
who he is
Self-awareness When enjoying one’s heritage In all situations
The individual takes pride in his
traditions
The individual embraces eating
German sausage and Eisbein
The individual does not pretend to be
anyone else
Self-awareness When in
moments of conflict
In all situations The individual questions himself
The individual tries to be critical
The individual is a little more authentic
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual knows what they
are
The individual spent many hours soul
searching and introspecting
The individual knows his strengths
and weaknesses
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Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual recognizes
himself as a holistic being
The individual practiced reflection for many years and wrote the
CLL essay
The individual has begun to
understand who he truly is
Self-awareness When in uncertain situations
In all situations
The individual considers self-
awareness to be one of the most
important factors in his future success as a
leader
The individual anticipates his reaction in an uncertain situation and adjusts the degree of authenticity in his
behaviour
The individual can adjust his reactions to the world around
him
Self-awareness When in a leadership
session In all situations The individual
was being filmed
The individual saw a lot of things he never
realized about himself and tried to imagine
being filmed and what it would say about him
The individual could discover
more about himself`
Self-awareness When in a marriage In all situations
The individual’s husband accepts her for who she
is
The individual is more confident
The individual is able to accept
herself
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual has come to
acknowledge who they are
The individual can face and acknowledge their
inadequacies
The individual can become more
authentic
Self-awareness When maturing In all situations The individual has matured
The individual is able to be honest with himself and evaluate his morals
and values
The individual is more authentic
Self-awareness When moving
away from home
In all situations
The individual broke the bond
of always trying to please her
father
The individual has developed more into herself by not having
her family look over her shoulder
The individual is able to be more
authentic
Self-awareness When doing the EMBA In all situations
The individual’s feelings
developed to a higher level
The individual understood that they are
driven by fairness
The individual got to know herself
better
Self-awareness When living In all situations The individual is very aware of
The individual will act strongly if he believes it The individual is
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life himself is important true to himself
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual has the courage to confront his
realities
The individual overestimates the negative effects
The individual does not stay positive
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual believes in
committing to know your total
self
The individual is aware of strengths and
weaknesses
The individual is authentic
Self-awareness When doing a
course in Buddhism
In all situations
The individual wanted to work towards his own
experience
The individual did an introductory course in
Bhuddism
The individual added to his
journey of self-discovery
Self-awareness When growing up In all situations
The individual’s confidence was destroyed as a
child
The individual saw his father turn from stable
into aggressive
The individual understands this
changed his outlook on life
Self-awareness When looking at their past In all situations
The individual has identified
what is holding them back and now wants to move forward
The individual wants to go through therapy to
understand what makes them tick
The individual will get to know
themselves better
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual admits they are
not always authentic
The individual acknowledges the mask
they sometimes wear
The individual has taken a step along
the path of becoming authentic
Self-awareness When starting yoga In all situations
The individual wanted to
improve their health
The individual started yoga
The individual is now more calm and
self aware
Self-awareness When leading a team At work
The individual wanted to ensure harmony in the group he was
leading
The individual never asked whether he was giving the team room
enough to grow as themselves
The individual can now reflect on his
need for self-evaluation
Self-awareness When living In all situations The individual believes self-
The individual wants to work towards self-
The individual will hopefully become
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life awareness is a capacity that can
be developed
awareness by practicing mindfulness
more aware
Self-awareness When living life In all situations
The individual believes self-exploration is only possible
through an effort to maintain a healthy life
balance
When the individual is less negative, they are
less ignorant
The individual is able to discover
more and live more freely
Self-deception When dating a man In all situations
The individual thought she
loved this man and bought into his lens of the
world
The individual turned a blind eye towards him even if it meant giving up allowing gay and non-white friends to their house while he
was there
The individual deceived herself
Self-discipline When with others In all situations
The individual considers self-
discipline important for the development of
authenticity
The individual does not give in to temptation to
lead him away from himself
The individual becomes more
authentic
Showing trust When with others In all situations
The individual is open in
relationships
The individual is open and true to his word
This has a profound effect on the way his friends
see him
Showing trust When with others In all situations
The individual has never had
anyone damage his trust
The individual has enormous trust in others
and his future
The individual behaves
authentically
Showing trust When with others In all situations
The individual is a trustful person
by nature
The individual trusts easily and has been let
down in the past
The individual is authentic to their
ideals
Showing trust When dealing with others In all situations
The individual finds it very
difficult to trust people
The individual will try to give people the
benefit of the doubt and trust that they will
deliver on their promises
The individual will become more
authentic
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Showing trust When
interacting with others
In all situations
The individual believes trust plays a central
role in our dealings with
others
The individual grants more trust to others
Others will grant more trust to the
individual
Showing trust When in
leadership positions
At work
The individual had to manage a
hundred men as a twenty one year old woman and her mentor told her to build up
their trust
The individual gained trust with these men
The individual had the most fulfilling work experience based on mutual respect and trust
Showing trust When with others In all situations
The individual feels they would
be more interesting to others if they
opened up more
The individual would want to open up more
and show trust to others
The individual would get more
pleasure
Showing trust When with his wife In all situations
The individual finds it difficult to trust others, but when he
does, he leaves nothing unturned
The individual trusts his wife and opened up to
her completely
The individual will be more authentic
Shyness When dealing with others In all situations
The individual was the last of ten children
The individual is very shy and believes this
might have come from his parents
The individual is not sure if that is
their authentic self
Sound values When in the navy At work
The individual was taught that honour, loyalty,
integrity and dignity were key
values
The individual believes his ability to be an
authentic leader is based on his sound values
This has guided the individual through
tough decisions
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual believes in a healthy value
system
The individual picked his top values which
include nurturing relationships and bringing friends
together
The individual lives this value and is more authentic
for it
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Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual that one needs
confirmation of one’s values
The individual believes that one’s values should
be continuously scrutinized
The individual believes this will
lead to authenticity
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual has little
tolerance for what he believes
is wrong
The individual does not tolerate wrong and lives according to his values
This enables him to be authentic but
can also cause him to appear arrogant
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual believes in
understanding what he stands
for
The individual wants to understand and act on
his beliefs
The individual will be more authentic
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual was taught strong
values by his parents
The individual practices the values of family life,
caring for others spirituality and
openness
These values prevent the
individual from compromising their
integrity
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual believes values
should be unwavering
The individuals values do not change according
to the situation and to improve the values
lagging behind the rest
The individual wants to reach their
full potential
Sound values When being religions At work
The individual believes it is
important to take a stand on his
values in terms of religion
The individual stands firm on his religious
beliefs and convictions
The individual is more authentic
Sound values When living a Christian life In all situations
The individual’s religious beliefs enables them to
have a set of values
The individual tries hard to decide where he stands on moral issues
The individual is more authentic
Sound values When living life In all situations
Honesty is important
because it means the individual is
dedicated to maintaining his
values
The individual has gained confidence and
lives by his values
The individual is more authentic
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Sound values When with others In all situations The individual
has solid values
The individual leads with his heart and is
genuine
The individual is authentic
Sound values When with peers At university
The individual stayed true to his
values
The individual remained chaste, and
did not smoke or drink despite peer pressure
The individual never compromised
his core values
Sound values When living life In all situations
The individual uses his morals as the backbone of his behaviour
The individual keeps a close eye on the values he has developed over
time
The individual is more authentic
Spirituality and religion
When living life In all situations The individual is
grounded
The individual has strong emphasis on
spirituality and family values
The individual is more authentic
Spirituality and religion
When living life In all situations
The individual believes his
morals and ethics are attributed to his spirituality
The individual is spiritual and thankful for his opportunities
The individual is more authentic
Spirituality and religion
When being brought up religiously
In all situations The individual is a Muslim
When faced with issues, the individual draws on his religion to resolve
them
The individual can act authentically
Spirituality and religion
When becoming a Christian
In all situations
The individual understood that his purpose was to follow God
The individual serves God and others
The individual has a more authentic
life
Spirituality and religion
When rejecting religion In all situations
The individual realized religion divides when he
was taught in Catholic school
that other Chrisitan religious
followers were sinners
The individual recognizes a need to
serve a higher purpose than himself
The individual is more authentic
Spirituality and religion
When trusting God In all situations The individual is
a Muslim Through trusting God
the individual overcomes his fear of
The individual is more authentic
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rejection
Spirituality and religion
When living life In all situations
The individual was hugely
influenced by the teachings of the Catholic Church
The individual lives according to those teachings, such as having respect for
others
The individual is more authentic
Spirituality and religion
When dealing with sexuality In all situations
The individual’s mother has
transmitted the idea that sex is
taboo
The individual internalized that sex is
reprehensible
The individual ihas problems with her
sexuality
Spirituality and religion
When raised in a Jewish
household In all situations
The individuals parents wanted
him to make them proud
The individual conformed to the Jewish
communities’ values
The individual was not true to his own
values
Spirituality and religion
When being associated with
terrorists In all situations
The individual is a Muslim and is
afraid in a society that associates
Muslims with terrorists
The individual hides or plays down his religious
beliefs
The individual is not being authentic
Standing up for what you believe
in
When living life In all situations The individual is
very assertive
The individual always answers honestly when asked for opinions and stands up for what he
believes in
The individual is authentic
Standing up for what you believe
in
When living life In all situations
The individual has a strong
sense of self and a highly
developed sense of righteousness
The individual became a civil rights attorney to
fight for the rights of the disenfranchised
The individual is able to be authentic
Standing up for what you believe
in
When realizing how short life
is In all situations
The individual believes he
should stick to his guns
The individual is true to himself
The individual is more authentic
Standing up for what you believe
in
When choosing what to study In all situations
The individual was a math fundi but did not study
this at first
The individual changed his course to that of
actuarial science
The individual was true to himself
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Standing up for what you believe
in
When working for a debt collection
agency
At work
The individual’s boss wanted them to do something technically
illegal
The individual stood up to his boss and refused
to do the task
The individual lived according to
his values
Standing up for what you believe
in
When living life In all situations
The individual’s mother instilled strong morals in
him
The individual is not afraid to voice his
opinions and stand up for what he believes in
The individual is true to himself
Stealing the traits of others
When meeting people In all situations
The individual tried to search for the lesson
from everyone he met
The individual would steal traits from these
people
The individual was left feeling hollow
and lost who he was
Stealing the traits of others
When growing up without a
father In all situations
The individual looked for traits
in “father figures”
The individual attached himself to males that he liked and used them as a
role model
The individual only copied these traits instead of adopting
them
Stealing the traits of others
When being around others In all situations
The individual’s managers had a high impact on
him
The individual copied their behaviour
The individual did not have his own
style
Stealing the traits of others
When living life In all situations
The individual pretends to be someone he is
not
The individual copies parts of role models
The individual is not truly authentic
Stewardship When living life In all situations
The individual believes in
paying it forward
The individual does not only concentrate on himself but serves
others
The individual is more authentic
Stewardship When in
leadership positions
In all situations
The individual learn that people are more willing to listen if you are humble and
help them
As Head of House at boarding school, the
individual would clean the house with the more
junior boys
The individual could lead better
Strong intuition When in a working
environment At work The individual
wants to work where he can
The individual has a strong intuition which
helps to understand him
The individual can expect what their real intentions are
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apply values what people want
Strong intuition When living life In all situations
The individual has a different
approach to leadership
The individual always lets his heart or gut
determine the decisions he makes
The individual is authentic
Strong sense of self
When living life In all situations
The individual developed a positive self
image
The individual saw a counselor, asked for feedback, understood
his addiction and read a great deal
The individual is able to be authentic
Strong sense of self
When living life In all situations
The individual has become
comfortable with herself
The individual believes in herself and aligns her actions with her values
The individual is authentic
Strong sense of self
When living life In all situations
The individual has a strong sense of self
The individual achieved this through introspection
The individual is true to himself
Strong sense of self
When living life In all situations
The individual believes finding the true self is a
journey
The individual remains aware of his ‘self’ and
believes it changes
The individual is more authentic
Strong sense of self
When living life In all situations
The individual has been told
they do not care about others
The individual only has a few close friends and picks what he needs to
hear from others
Others often distance
themselves from him
Taking risks When living life In all situations
The individual has felt truly
authentic when taking risks
The individual takes productive risks
The individual is authentic
Telling the truth When living life In all situations
The individual believes telling
the truth is about integrity
The individual did not go shark cage diving
with the class
The individual was true to themselves
Telling the truth When with others In all situations
The individual believes if one is truthful, others
listen
The individual tells the truth regardless of whether it will be
received in a positive or negative way
The individual is authentic
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Telling the truth When in a relationships At home
The individual does not want his
fiancée to be surprised about
him
The individual told her about the time he
slapped a girl
The individual is authentic
Telling the truth When growing up In all situations
The individual does not want t disadvantage anyone by not telling them all
the facts
The individual always tells the facts as they are
The individual is authentic
The ability to adapt and change
When living life In all situations
The individual has an adaptive
personality
The individual adapts himself to suit the
occasion
The individual grows through this
process
The struggle of maintaining one’s
integrity
When in recovery In all situations
The individual went into
recovery to please family and
management
The individual relapsed time and again because he was not in recovery
for himself
The individual went through a big
learning curve
Times of distress When living life In all situations
The individual believes people
become authentic in times of
distress
The individual believes people are authentic eg
when they are eg hungry or anxious
The individual believes one can
only be truly authentic in these
difficult times
Times of distress When having cancer In all situations
The individual was diagnosed
with stage 2 breast cancer
The individual has been on a process of self
discovery and built her confidence
The individual is more authentic
Times of distress
During the liberation
struggle and colonial legacy
In all situations
The individual was reminded of where he came
from
The individual experienced injustice at
college
The individual is more authentic
because he remembers where
he came from
Times of distress When in the Armed Forces In all situations
The individual was pushed to
the limits of their mental and
physical ability
The individual was deprived of sleep, comfort, rank and
stamina
Without any of these trappings, the
real individual emerged and was
authentic
Times of distress When working in humanitarian
In all situations The individual was often placed
in dangerous
The individual experienced life and
This enabled him to be truly himself
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crisis situations conditions death situations
Tolerance of others
When living life In all situations
The individual was brought up to be tolerant
The individual has the ability to be tolerant of
others
The individual is true to himself
Tolerance of others
When in relationships In all situations
The individual’s boyfriend
cheated on her with her friend
The individual did not forgive her friend even
after 12 years
This does not allow her to be authentic
with her friend
Tolerance of others
When living life In all situations
The individual needs to
stop making baseless conclusi
ons
The individual needs to stop making
assumptions of others and give them a chance
This will help him t reach his
full potential
Tolerance of others
When working in diverse
groups At work
The individual believes beauty
is skin deep
The individual will not judge others on their appearance and gives
them a chance to prove themselves
The individual is able to be authentic
Tolerance of others
When in the MBA syndicate
groups At university
The individual has good
experience in working in
groups under pressure
The individual tolerates the imperfections of
others
The individual feels he has the right approach
Transparency When living life In all situations
The individual is not afraid of transparency
The individual is transparent and there is no disconnect between what she really is and
what one sees
The individual is authentic
Upbringing When living life At university
The individual was brought up
with strong values
The individual was asked to mention who
in the group had underperformed in a
hearing and did refused to mention any names
The individual was able to be true to
his values
Upbringing When growing up In all situations
The individual had a good
relationship with their parents and
received
The individual talked to his/her parents about their fears and needs
The individual showed his/her true
self to others
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unconditional love
Upbringing When growing up In all situations
The individual has always seen his family as the most important part of his life
His mother taught him when he was little to put
rubbish in his pocket and not to litter, and the individual still does not
litter
The individual lives according to
his values
Upbringing When growing
up with her grandmother
In all situations
The individual’s grandmother
taught her right from wrong
The individual gained morality from her
grandmother
The individual is authentic
Upbringing When growing up In all situations
The individual asked his father for money for a
ruler
The individual bought sweets instead and
received a hiding from his father
The individual learnt the key
values of honesty and integrity
Upbringing When living
with his father and stepmother
At home
The individual’s father and stepmother
discouraged him from doing
anything that would not
impress them
The individual was not able to speak out and
only did things to impress them
The individual was inauthentic
Vulnerability When in
meaningful relationship
In all situations
The individual has meaningful
relationships with friends and
mentors
The individual does not wear a mask in front of them and can unpack
experiences
The individual is able to be authentic
Vulnerability When with others In all situations
The individual fears letting
others see him at his weakest
The individual needs to let go of his ego and be
vulnerable to people and to the universe
The individual will be able to be more
authentic
Vulnerability When working with others At work
The individual was no longer a threat at work
when admitting he did not know
everything
The individual admitted his staff knew more
about a subject than he did
People were eager to talk to him and
he learnt from these conversations
Wanting to fit in When with others In all situations The individual
wanted to fit in and achieve
The individual hid the truth by developing a
The individual behaved
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success persona inauthentically
Wanting to fit in When around others In all situations
The individual wanted to fit in with the crowds
The individual change his accent
The individual was not being his true
self
Wanting to fit in When at the
Red and Yellow School
In all situations The individual did not know how to fit in
The individual tried to be trendy, then
pretended that she could not socialize with her
classmates because she had a serious boyfriend
The individual was unhappy and inauthentic
Wanting to fit in When being an auditor At work
The individual needs to have a good working
relationship with the people he
audits in order to do his job
The individual builds relationships with the managers he audits
The individual is sometimes placed
in challenging positions
Wanting to fit in When in a community In all situations
The individual has a need to be
accepted
The individual abandons his true self
and pretends to be something else
The individual is inauthentic
Wanting to fit in When working with others At work
The individual fears being seen as foolish or not
a team player
The individual does not voice his opinions
The individual is not authentic
Wanting to fit in When at UCT At university
The individual’s classmates found his well-spoken façade puzzling
The individual pretended to be a
foreigner and adopted an accent
The individual was confused and
unhappy
Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When choosing a workplace In all situations
The individual wants to find a workplace that
fits with his values
The individual will choose a workplace
where he can live his values
The individual hopes to be able to live authentically
Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When applying for a job in
future At work
The individual wants to find a
job where he can check the extent of fulfilling the
role
The individual plans to choose his boss and
companies according to his values
The individual hopes to be authentic
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Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When taking an Authentic
Happiness test In all situations
The individual scored that he
was happier than 90% of
respondents
The individual lives out his values in his work
The individual is authentic
Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When working with a large
team At work
The individual got a lot of
freedom from their boss
because they would not try to hide mistakes
The individual was true to her values in her
organization
The individual was authentic
Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When in his current job At work
The individual’s and the
company’s values are
aligned
The individual can apply his personal
values in the workplace
The individual is true to himself
Working in an environment conducive to
expressing values
When in his current job At work
The individual’s values are
aligned with those of the company
The individual lives out his values
The individual is authentic
Working too much In his current job In all situations
The individual does not take
time to reflect at work
The individual tends to overwork and not take
time to reflect
The individual neglects his
family’s needs
Working too much When living life In all situations
The individual gets so caught up
in the rat race that he forgets
what is important to him
The individual finds himself chasing
something, but not knowing what it is
The individual is less authentic
Working too much
When a friend was in need after a car accident
In all situations
The individual had too many
work pressures to be authentic and provide moral
support
The individual only gave money to his
friend instead of moral support
The individual was not authentic