Purpose-Driven Leaders & Founders - Reclaiming Authenticity

"Just be more authentic." Might be the most useless piece of advice in leadership right now. You can't be authentic when you've lost sight of what authentic looks like for you. I work with leaders and founders who hear this constantly. In appraisals. From coaches. From colleagues trying to help. And every time, I want to ask the same question: authentic to what, exactly? Because the leaders I work with aren't performing. They're not fake. They've been carrying too much for too long and somewhere in the process, they've lost the thread of who they really are and what matters to them. One client described what the shift felt like: "I wasn't living and leading in a way that fully aligned with my values. Once I became aware of that, things started to shift." Another: "I don't have to self-sacrifice anymore. I know I have the right to lead at my best and to care passionately about my work at the same time." A third: "You helped me remember who the fk I am. Not a better, braver, more polished version. Who I already was." Three different people. Three different versions of the same shift. And I keep hearing it. The problem isn't authenticity. It's that somewhere between the ambition and the responsibility and the relentlessness of caring this much, they lost the thread back to themselves. They want the thread back. That's what Phase 2 of the Purpose Papers is trying to understand. Not the polished version of leadership. The real one. What's actually going on for purpose-driven leaders and founders. If that's you, or someone I should be talking to, I want to hear from you. DM me or drop your name in the comments. Interviews run through May and June.