If you had to choose one, which would you choose?
If you were only known for one of these values, which would you prefer?
If your team could be marked by either authenticity or excellence, which would you rather?
Unless you wrestle through black and white polarizing questions like these ones, you’ll never uncover your true bias.
After all, most leaders would publicly choose both, but when push comes to shove, often lean in one direction or the other. So which direction is that for you?
And that’s the thing. It really is a direction. Authenticity and excellence are not opposites. I’ve been a part of worship services that have been both authentic and excellent—in mega, medium, and micro churches. The same is true for concerts, small groups, staff meetings, service projects, and block parties. All of those gatherings can be simultaneously authentic and excellent, but they often lack one or the other—or both.
So if you had to choose one, which would you choose? Or better yet, if authenticity and excellence were on the opposite ends of a spectrum—even though they’re technically not in opposition to one another—where would you mark yourself?
If you had to choose one, which would you choose?
Let’s explore the implications of both choices for the teams that you’re on and the teams that you lead.
1. Choosing excellence over authenticity
Teams that are led with a bias toward excellence over authenticity are often high pressure. Workaholics thrive on teams like this. Enneagram 3s and 8s would be attracted to these environments. Projects are prioritized over people. Hard growth metrics are more important than emotional health. You are judged solely on your public persona—as long as you keep your private life private.
[Read more…] about Authenticity vs. Excellence
