Recently in the Free Weekly Mastermind Forum Dan wrote an article about authenticity and the overuse of this word. We chatted about about how it’s really not about the cliche idea of being authentic, but is rather about creating a conversation and truly being personal. Which, ultimately, is being someone that others, our readers, trust.
When we create personas or rely on algorithms to create traffic and thus lose the personal trust part we are, in fact, not being the leader and thus diluting trust. 
Simon Sinek (For those of you who don’t know Simon, he’s a self described optimist and is best known for “Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action” – which we reference in Blogging Concentrated Circles) shares similar thoughts – that authenticity is about really saying and doing the things you actually believe.
When the personal part, the leadership part is not about being a leader but is rather simply about self and image then eventually the trust won’t be there as our readers will realize that we were not invested in their lives.
So, for June, instead of two random TedX talks, I decided to focus and share thoughts on two talks by Simon Sinek. These two talks further illustrate the intersection of trust and leadership that we’ve been chatting about all month.
*****************************
In “If You Don’t Understand People”, which Simon shared at 99U, he chats a great deal about trust and how trust is a group of people with a common set of values and beliefs. Trust is a feeling, not something that we can simply create with a formula. As a website owner are you creating trust? Is your mission crystal clear? Are you about serving your readers? Do you have a spirit of generosity? (Listen to the example about Simon’s flight mate – a very powerful example) If we are willing to give to others it is amazing what others are willing to give to us.
“Generosity is doing something in return for someone else expecting nothing in return.” Do we give to our readers generously? Are we about creating a relationship that is based on the core of wanting to make their lives better? Or is it simply about us? A persona? In this talk Simon truly illustrates why talking about “me me me” is the worst thing, but rather it needs to be about those we serve and why. It’s the different between taking and giving. Look at your about me sections and your profiles – is it simply about you or is it about how you make your community a better place and change lives?
*****************************
In “Why Good Leaders Make you Feel Safe” (a TedX talk) Simon challenges our view of being a leader even more. He shares a story about Captain Swenson who witnessed a man who was shot and wounded in Afghanistan. As he carried the man to the medical helicopter (it was captured on a GoPro) there was a moment when this captain leaned down and kissed the wounded man. Simon asks, “Where do people like that come from?” as he recognized that in that moment it was about a personal, real, and human connection. Being a leader is not simply a rank, but is rather a choice to take that position and to bless those around us – the team, our readers, our families, and so on.
As a website owner you are a leader. Do you look after those you lead? Do you operate like a leader? Is your site about you or the leader? What do you do to give back? Do you look at every opportunity through the lens of being a leader? Or is the immediate payback diluting the greater good? Are you personal? Approachable? And do you live what you write?
Our challenge to you? Take 40 minutes and watch these videos and then look at how you lead your community. Are you personal? Do you give? What can you do to make your readers lives better? When those questions can be answered it gives clarity and direction to the rest – from Facebook updates, sponsored opportunities, what to write next, and so forth. Being a leader is a responsibility. When we are personal, create conversation, and invest in the lives of those who love what we do then we are truly being a leader that can be trusted.