Showing emotions makes you authentic – so stop pretending and hiding them
A lot is happening in the world right now. We have a war and then this week a terrible earthquake disaster. This would already be enough to make a lot of people feel down and depressed. On top however are inflation and a very uncertain economic climate that affects all our mental health in different ways, while we try to navigate our lives. Because of all this negativity in the world and uncertainty for the future leaving a lot of us feeling increasingly anxious it is very important to join others and share our feelings openly and flawlessly. We are in difficult times - but we are not alone - so let’s start talking about our feelings rather than pretending to be ok all the time.
Very often, people feel embarrassed to show their feelings openly in public and especially in workplaces. The fear is, for people to be perceived as soft and lighthearted when expressing emotions in touch times. The opposite is the case in fact.
Emotions are totally natural, both positive and negative ones. We talked before about how important it is to be authentic when interacting with people in all kinds of contexts and showing emotions is a direct pathway to authenticity and therefore great leadership. Showing emotions means connecting with people, feeling connected and on the same level and giving people a feeling that they are not alone with their feelings of negativity and often anxiety, rather others feeling the same way.
Another important aspect is to not only show emotions but also talk about them. Now of course there are more introvert and more extrovert people and that is totally fine and not meant here. However, anyone can talk about their emotions. Be it with colleagues or friends or family members - it is important to share our feelings with others to have others listen and kick off a kind of knowledge share process where we can explore coping mechanisms and ways to improve our mental health together. It is proven that humans are in need for interaction and communication with others, and the same holds true when it comes to talking about our emotions.
Talking and expressing emotions is especially hard for the elderly ones among us, as very often we still grew up in a time where showing emotions was more of a no-go area and we had to be the tough guys that were never crying, and our job was it to just get on with things or deal with it. Luckily, in my opinion those days are over and behind us. Nowadays emotions and showing emotions in pubic has grown into more of a strength rather than a weakness and something that can even encourage others to do the same and start talking about and showing their emotions. We are all humans and to show the emotional and human side of us – is no longer a weakness but a strength that can drive and inspire others around us. Once we start showing emotions - we will be surprised how many people around us feel the same.
Showing emotions especially in a time of high uncertainty and anxiety for many is essential. Go out there, be yourself, show your emotions good or bad and connect with others who are often more likeminded than you think. This will allow you to develop coping mechanisms and build a community of likeminded people that all experience the same issues. Let’s start talking about our feelings - it will do us all good to start. Being cold hearted is no longer sexy - showing feelings and being authentic is – so lets move forward in that spirit and encourage each other rather than judge.
