Is Being Authentic A Sustainable Strategy

[Joseph Maynor]

Bear with me here.  I'm gonna do kind of a core-dump of thoughts to consider here: Is having no filter a problem? I.e., I'm gonna be me, I'm not putting on any pretenses.  What about learning to be interpersonally strategic?  Is acting roles necessarily a bad thing, say when you are working your job? What to make of fears of being a fake person, fears of selling out, or fears of losing authenticity? Can you play the role of being something without being that?  Are you really sacrificing anything by strategically playing roles? Is having no filter a bad or destructive thing? Esp. for business.  Is it better to operate on more of a need to know basis, developing a huge filter, and being more interpersonally strategic?  Is being authentic all the time a sustainable or even wise strategy to use across the board?  What are some pitfalls with this strategy?  Should we strategically play roles to get what we want?  And does that by necessity hurt our authenticity?  Does the actor hurt himself when he strategically plays roles?

Edited June 13, 2017 by Joseph Maynor

[Emerald]

5 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Bear with me here.  I'm gonna do kind and of a core-dump of thoughts to consider here: Is having no filter a problem? I.e., I'm gonna be me, I'm not putting on any pretenses.  What about learning to be interpersonally strategic?  Is acting roles necessarily a bad thing, say when you are working your job? What to make of fears of being a fake person, fears of selling out, or fears of losing authenticity? Can you play the role of being something without being that?  Are you really sacrificing anything by strategically playing roles? Is having no filter a bad or destructive thing? Esp. for business.  Is it better to operate on more of a need to know basis, developing a huge filter, and being more interpersonally strategic?  Is being authentic all the time a sustainable or even wise strategy to use across the board?  What are some pitfalls with this strategy?  Should we strategically play roles to get what we want?  And does that by necessity hurt our authenticity?  Does the actor hurt himself when he strategically plays roles?

The trick is to always maintain awareness of the role that you're playing when you're playing a role. That way you don't get attached to it and confuse it for what you really are. I had the same question after I first experienced a glimpse of egolessness, and after thought "I need to be 100% honest and authentic all the time at all costs." And I ended up doing stupid things that undermined my ability to to get along in the world. So, it's important to make a difference between being 100% honest with yourself versus being 100% honest with the world regardless of consequences. So, use a filter for practical reasons. People wouldn't understand anyway and just think you're crazy. But try to make your filter as minimal as the situation allows. 

[SOUL]

21 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Is having no filter a problem?

It may be no problem at all, yet sure, it can be a problem but what problem it is and to whom cannot be addressed so simply.

 

27 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

What about learning to be interpersonally strategic?

What about it? Are you suggesting someone cannot do this and be authentic at the same time?

 

29 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Is acting roles necessarily a bad thing, say when you are working your job?

I guess it depends on what someone is "acting" like.

 

30 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

What to make of fears of being a fake person, fears of selling out, or fears of losing authenticity?

Are you asking about how to deal with those fears or how to not be fake, a sell out or lose authenticity? Or maybe you mean how to allay the fears so one can be fake without fear, I'm sure there are some people who would prefer this take on it.

34 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Can you play the role of being something without being that?

From the perspective of accepting what is as it is, if someone is behaving a certain way that's what they are acting as, there is no we aren't what we are acting as. What it seems you really are asking is it acceptable for someone to act/behave in opposition to their personal ideals. As an example let's say I am a vegetarian but to further my interpersonal strategy I eat meat with other people, am I really a vegetarian? Or am I someone who has ideas/beliefs about eating meat that I choose not to adhere to? So it's about how strongly do I hold ideals and does betraying them effect me?

46 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Are you really sacrificing anything by strategically playing roles?

Are we? Read my last question in the previous response. It depends on how strongly the ideals are held and the effect of betraying them are subjectively assessed. Some people can betray their ideals without any affect at all, why they would even hold ideals they can so easily betray is another question altogether but yes there are some people who will believe one thing and do the opposite quite easily without any self imposed emotional or mental retribution. Some may view it as betraying their very genuine essence and the effect in their consciousness from this realization can be catastrophic.

1 hour ago, Joseph Maynor said:

 Is having no filter a bad or destructive thing? Esp. for business.  Is it better to operate on more of a need to know basis, developing a huge filter, and being more interpersonally strategic?

It depends on what you seek to accomplish and what is most important to you.

1 hour ago, Joseph Maynor said:

 Is being authentic all the time a sustainable or even wise strategy to use across the board?

Really two different points to be made. Yes, being authentic is sustainable. Wise? It depends on what someone is seeking to accomplish and what motives they acting on behalf of.

1 hour ago, Joseph Maynor said:

Should we strategically play roles to get what we want?  And does that by necessity hurt our authenticity?  Does the actor hurt himself when he strategically plays roles?

That all depends on if the role is in opposition to what personal ideals are held and what affect of betraying ideals has. Nobody can decide for anyone else what the answer to this is. If someone is portraying themselves to others as holding and acting on certain ideals that they then go and betray this isn't being authentic. If someone intentionally portrays themselves as holding and acting on certain ideals while betraying them for gain this isn't just inauthentic, it's deceptive.

I hope this helped.

[Joseph Maynor]

@Emerald I tried being 100% authentic all the time and almost everybody started to hate me.  Because I just said what I wanted to all the time.  Your response is very wise.  You can't just operate without any filter at all unless you are independently wealthy and don't care about offending people.  In other words the advice to be authentic is kind of dangerous advice.  I'm not saying anybody gave that advice, including Leo, but I found out that my implementation of that advice in my life caused me some pretty bad results.  

Edited June 14, 2017 by Joseph Maynor

[Emerald]

Just now, Joseph Maynor said:

@Emerald I tried being authentic all the time and almost everybody started to hate me.  Because I just said what I wanted to all the time.  Your response is very wise.

Thanks. People thought I was totally crazy when I came to that conclusion and began acting that way. No one knew where I was coming from, and just saw me as very looney. The issue was that I had accessed some 'higher' wisdom before I was spiritually mature enough to handle it. I didn't realize that what's true and what's helpful are two totally different things. Truth undoes reality, so it almost always works against practical functioning if you try to apply higher wisdom where more practical wisdoms are more appropriate. And wisdom remembered through memory and the lens of logic is no longer wisdom. Wisdom changes moment to moment like a river. 

[Emerald]

10 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

@Emerald You can't just operate without any filter at all unless you are independently wealthy and don't care about offending people.  In other words the advice to be authentic is kind of dangerous advice.  I'm not saying anybody gave that advice, including Leo, but I found out that my implementation of that advice in my life caused me some pretty bad results.  

That's true too. But even the wealthy need filters. I was even trying to break down certain safety boundaries which was another type of filter that everyone needs. Even if you realize that all is one... you still can't walk into a lion's den.

[Visitor]

To be authentic requires full openness of heart for the truth in you to fulfill your being. Then your truth will become you, and you will be authentic and real.

In authenticity there is no tension or fear, but softness and loving. There is no deception, but honesty. There is no false witness, but whenever you speak you only say what is true.

The price of authenticity is high. Not only does one require to gag their ego, but be gagged by the majority. Truth is the greatest fear of everyone's ego. Though truth is admired, most fear its consequences. You will be a diamond in the rough, yet no dishonest person can obtain it.

Is authenticity sustainable? Yes.

[Emerald]

@Snick @Joseph Maynor This song always reminds me of that time and my foolishness...