As a coach, I tend to stumble upon the word authenticity everywhere. It is a popular word for speakers and authors on psychology, spirituality and human development. Plus, it’s part of todays’ vocab of most managers and consultants. It’s a funny word which - as it should - sounds interesting and important and all, but comes with a variety of interpretations. It means something like ‘not false or copied, genuine, real, free from pretense or hypocrisy, sincere’. Authenticity is regularly explained as being your real self, without concern for what others may think of you. Easy summary, tough challenge!
As we travel, we can’t get away from people using the A-word. Many travelers want to experience the real deal; get an honest idea and perspective on the countries they visit. But what does it mean for people to be ‘real’? And who decides if it’s real or not? And is it even achievable, as only us being there changes the whole dynamics of places?
Is it about people living their original lifestyle, living by traditional values, so that us travelers can get a sense of history? Most travelers seem to be looking for that nostalgia, wanting to experience the exotic, wanting to connect to something sacred from the past. Over here at Angkor Wat, that - and the grandeur of the amazing Temple complex - is one of the key reasons for people visiting. For some that includes touristy elephant rides. But - authentic or not - you can’t get away from the hundreds of little handcraft shops and the abundance of food stalls aiming at tourists. After all, you can’t blame people for trying to make a living of it all. I remember us visiting the floating villages at Lake Titicaca in Peru, only for a few hours. Their traditional way of living - or so it says in every guidebook - seemed only disturbed by them singing ‘Vamos a la playa’ for welcomes and goodbyes. To us, this type of A-word tourism felt quite perverse. These people were obviously far from authentic, living a museum-lifestyle to make a living with modern life only miles away.
So what is authentic in terms of travelling? I guess it’s all about being given the opportunity to look behind the scenes; which is s lot easier in places where you are welcomed in stead of entertained. We also find that it takes time to see through, if we even can. The more days we spent in little towns - meeting the same people over and over again - the more people start to behave in their natural ways around us. And if we stick around, we are often lucky meeting different people, somewhat further away of the business of dealing with tourists.
I guess authenticity is all about today and not about history. Yes, it’s amazing to meet with people and cultures that are still strongly connected to their roots and their past. But if the past is cultivated in a way that it withholds people from living their lives or from being teenagers today, it starts to feel twisted. So if we want authenticity, we have to go with the times and the flow, not leaning backwards but forwards. It’s the people themselves that - by working out their own lifestyle - decide if it’s authentic or not. So if you’re the kind of traveler that wants to avoid daily living conditions or political realities, you’re not going to meet much authenticity.
As said in the beginning, the search for authenticity is popular these days. Sales representatives have to be authentic, consultants have to be authentic and managers have to be authentic. If we feel people show us who they are, we tend to trust them. But there is a similar catch to it; who decides if people are being authentic? Is it the company? The client? The manager? For some it gets real confusing, especially within strong company cultures. Is it wise for companies to look for people that can - authentically - fit in their historically shaped company culture? Or would it be better to allow people to be different, so that a company culture stays open and can move forward. I guess I would always advice to gently lean forward, in a way that stimulates people to show themselves and work out their own work- and lifestyles. For one because many people have a fair tendency to adjust, or even to seriously overstretch themselves in order to fit in. Like Cambodians in Siem Reap adjust to tourism, which - to us - makes it harder to look behind the scenes. Nevertheless, allowing people to be authentic, also means allowing them to be different then before.
Back to the A-word in traveling. We’ve slowed down now. Which - for now - feels awfully good. And although we’re never sure how much extra life behind the scenes we get to experience by slowing down, it sure is an interesting change of perspective. But maybe this is not just about trying to look behind other peoples’ scenes. I guess it’s just as much about me and my girlfriend letting go of our travel culture so far, giving in to our own real deal by gently leaning forward. People - travelers, managers, companies - are not likely to find authenticity if they don’t step out them selves. The search for authenticity has to cut both ways.
As we travel, we can’t get away from people using the A-word. Many travelers want to experience the real deal; get an honest idea and perspective on the countries they visit. But what does it mean for people to be ‘real’? And who decides if it’s real or not? And is it even achievable, as only us being there changes the whole dynamics of places?
Is it about people living their original lifestyle, living by traditional values, so that us travelers can get a sense of history? Most travelers seem to be looking for that nostalgia, wanting to experience the exotic, wanting to connect to something sacred from the past. Over here at Angkor Wat, that - and the grandeur of the amazing Temple complex - is one of the key reasons for people visiting. For some that includes touristy elephant rides. But - authentic or not - you can’t get away from the hundreds of little handcraft shops and the abundance of food stalls aiming at tourists. After all, you can’t blame people for trying to make a living of it all. I remember us visiting the floating villages at Lake Titicaca in Peru, only for a few hours. Their traditional way of living - or so it says in every guidebook - seemed only disturbed by them singing ‘Vamos a la playa’ for welcomes and goodbyes. To us, this type of A-word tourism felt quite perverse. These people were obviously far from authentic, living a museum-lifestyle to make a living with modern life only miles away.
So what is authentic in terms of travelling? I guess it’s all about being given the opportunity to look behind the scenes; which is s lot easier in places where you are welcomed in stead of entertained. We also find that it takes time to see through, if we even can. The more days we spent in little towns - meeting the same people over and over again - the more people start to behave in their natural ways around us. And if we stick around, we are often lucky meeting different people, somewhat further away of the business of dealing with tourists.
I guess authenticity is all about today and not about history. Yes, it’s amazing to meet with people and cultures that are still strongly connected to their roots and their past. But if the past is cultivated in a way that it withholds people from living their lives or from being teenagers today, it starts to feel twisted. So if we want authenticity, we have to go with the times and the flow, not leaning backwards but forwards. It’s the people themselves that - by working out their own lifestyle - decide if it’s authentic or not. So if you’re the kind of traveler that wants to avoid daily living conditions or political realities, you’re not going to meet much authenticity.
As said in the beginning, the search for authenticity is popular these days. Sales representatives have to be authentic, consultants have to be authentic and managers have to be authentic. If we feel people show us who they are, we tend to trust them. But there is a similar catch to it; who decides if people are being authentic? Is it the company? The client? The manager? For some it gets real confusing, especially within strong company cultures. Is it wise for companies to look for people that can - authentically - fit in their historically shaped company culture? Or would it be better to allow people to be different, so that a company culture stays open and can move forward. I guess I would always advice to gently lean forward, in a way that stimulates people to show themselves and work out their own work- and lifestyles. For one because many people have a fair tendency to adjust, or even to seriously overstretch themselves in order to fit in. Like Cambodians in Siem Reap adjust to tourism, which - to us - makes it harder to look behind the scenes. Nevertheless, allowing people to be authentic, also means allowing them to be different then before.
Back to the A-word in traveling. We’ve slowed down now. Which - for now - feels awfully good. And although we’re never sure how much extra life behind the scenes we get to experience by slowing down, it sure is an interesting change of perspective. But maybe this is not just about trying to look behind other peoples’ scenes. I guess it’s just as much about me and my girlfriend letting go of our travel culture so far, giving in to our own real deal by gently leaning forward. People - travelers, managers, companies - are not likely to find authenticity if they don’t step out them selves. The search for authenticity has to cut both ways.
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