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EMBRACING AUTHENTICITY AT WORK: KEY BEHAVIORS, BENEFITS, AND POTENTIAL PITFALLS

  Authenticity is surely the buzzword of the past year and much has been written recently about bringing our “whole” selves to work. But what does it look like in practice to “be real” in a professional setting?  And is it truly advisable? And if so, for whom? It sure has its positives . It does increase our overall well-being and happiness, creates psychological safety that strengthens relationships, leads to higher job satisfaction, and gives rise to undeniable improvements in productivity.    Firstly, authenticity can sometimes be seen as unprofessional . In many workplaces, there is an expectation of maintaining a certain level of decorum and professionalism. This can include things like dressing appropriately, using proper language, and behaving in a certain way. If someone prioritizes authenticity over professionalism, they may come across as unprofessional, which can be detrimental to their career. Secondly, authenticity can sometimes lead to oversharing . In an effort to be

ATTITUDE VS. EXPERIENCE: WHICH IS MORE VALUABLE?

  A debate about hiring for attitude versus aptitude has developed over the years. Nearly every job posting includes the type of experience an employer is seeking, which makes sense considering that companies want to locate applicants who have already demonstrated a certain level of skill in that particular industry or role.  Both the experience (hard skills) and the attitude (soft skills) are given high priority in the initial job requirements. The debate comes to light during the interview and hiring process. Although the initial requirements highlight soft skills and personality traits as important parts of the job applicant’s qualifications, during interviews, many hiring managers focus on hard skills and experience because they are easier to discuss and judge. As a result, many applicants end up being hired based exclusively on their experience rather than on their attitude. Is it better to hire people on the basis of their experience or their potential? If we believe experie

LESSONS FROM ROCK CLIMBING: PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

   Close your eyes and imagine yourself standing in front of a towering wall with small, colourful pegs scattered along the structure. Around your waist is a snug harness, and you begin to scale the wall, one step at a time, climbing higher and higher. Every move you make is methodical, forcing you to think with your body as much as your brain. There are mental health benefits of rock climbing that exceed the physical ones, and we don’t necessarily have to be a master of the sport to reap them. Leadership can be learned anywhere. Reflecting back on rock-climbing sessions, we realized how much this experience can be a metaphor for leadership experiences. Rock climbing offers many opportunities for personal and professional development.   1. Collaboration and Differing Perspectives: . . . -> Climbing is solitary, yet highly collaborative in nature. To climb safely, you must have someone to belay and/or spot you, meaning you are always part of a team. Active encouragement and coa

THE LIMITATIONS/ DRAWBACKS OF WORK-LIFE BALANCE

  Work-life balance is the state of equilibrium where a person equally prioritizes the demands of one’s career and the demands of one’s personal life. Why is it so hard to maintain a balance? A survey of thousands of working adults found these to be the most common answers: Work-life balance is less about dividing the hours in our day evenly between work and personal life and, instead, is more about having the flexibility to get things done in our professional life while still having time and energy to enjoy our personal life.  There may be some days where we work longer hours so that we have time later in the week to enjoy other activities.   So far, it always seemed that finding a good balance between our daily work and the time we spend with family, friends or just ourselves is what we all should strive to achieve. Some arguments against and in favour of the work live balance theory may be: When the focus is on business development, employers inevitably lose focus on where to dr

FAMILY SYSTEMS EXPLORED: BOWEN'S THEORY MEETS VARNASHRAMA DHARMA - (CHAPTER 02)

  ***Continued from Chapter 01 (Covered previously: Diwali & Family Ties, Bowen Family Systems, Three out of the eight concepts of the Bowen Theory Views) Link to Chapter 01 04: Family Projection Process Children inherit many types of problems (as well as strengths) through the relationships with their parents, but the problems they inherit that most affect their lives are relationship sensitivities such as heightened needs for attention and approval, difficulty in dealing with expectations, the tendency to blame oneself or others, feeling responsible for the happiness of others or that others are responsible for one’s own happiness, and acting impulsively to relieve the anxiety of the moment rather than tolerating anxiety and acting thoughtfully. The projection process follows three steps: These steps of scanning, diagnosing, and treating begin early in the child’s life and continue. The child grows to embody the fears and perceptions of the parent.   Example:- . . .