“Because the truth is, we are all broken in places, but it is those who know exactly where and how they are broken, who also know exactly where and how they are whole!”
—C. Joy Bell, Author
The coaches of VIM Executive Coaching spend a lot of time listening and reflecting. It will not surprise you to know that “language” fascinates us.
Unfortunately, we live in a present-day society of buzzwords. Often, perfectly good words, valid words, become so overused they lose their meaning.
Over the years phrases such as “Let’s Get Real!” or “Let’s Be Totally Honest” or, more recently, “Being a Totally Authentic” person have all gone down the same garden path. Sadly, the garden contains artificial turf and plastic flowers!
In a PR Daily article (June 23, 2025) entitled: “Why ‘authenticity’ is such a tough buzzword to replace,” author Jess Zafarris wrote: “Across sectors, communicators and marketers are quick to sprinkle the A-word into their narratives. AI startups strive for chatbots that can produce an ‘authentic brand voice.’”
The article goes on to describe how the term authentic is sprinkled about in numerous industries including fashion, fast food and travel.
The good folks who write, edit and update the Merriam-Webster dictionary admit that authenticity “although it’s ‘clearly a desirable quality,’ authentic is ‘hard to define and subject to debate.” So, how do executive leaders see through these muddy waters?
The Humor of it All
The humor in all of this (though it’s hardly funny) is that exactly in the time when there is a tremendous need for authentic executive leadership, no one can define it.
It has only been in the past decade or so that “authenticity” has moved beyond the physical and into the emotional. Authenticity, used to be applied to art and antiques, books, classical music and such. For example, “Is this illustration an authentic Walt Disney?”
At some point, the word began to apply to people. For example, “I love working with Annette because she’s an authentic person.”
The problem was that calling someone “authentic” is much like a moving target.
To her co-workers, Annette may indeed be a sterling individual; to her “friends” she may be seen as maddening, as someone who “never picks up a check,” or never volunteered to take the soccer team to practice.
As our quote above shows, “authenticity” is not so much about how “we” might feel about someone, but how they respond within themselves to the world around them. Let’s get real. Unless introspection is caringly applied to self in an effort to change or improve behavior, authenticity becomes moot.
Yes, we are all broken in places
No one knows the heart and mind of an executive leader as well as the person themselves. VIM Executive Coaching and our fine coaches can guide people toward greater self-knowledge and Authenticity (or clearly any words and phrases about “getting real,”) however the heavy lifting, as they say, must come from within.
Words, as the adage tells us, are cheap. It is in the response to daily stressors and challenges that matter.
Part of the problem every executive leader must face is if their response to a situation is real or faked, if it is an angry reaction or a weighed and measured action. Most difficult are situations where the executive understands the temptations to regress or to fight the urge to resort to poor habit.
Training can guide the executive leader to understand the most broken pieces can be the greatest source of strength and the sum of their worst mistakes and missteps can turn into a powerful tool for compassion and understanding.