I often speak to students and parents about authenticity and how a vital aim of a Middle School education at Kristin is to develop our students in ways that allow them to be their authentic selves.

To do this, they must learn many things: speaking opinions honestly in healthy and constructive ways, making decisions that align with their values and beliefs, pursuing their passions, listening to their inner voice guiding them forward and finally allowing themselves to be vulnerable and open-hearted. Perhaps the most important of these is to learn how to be vulnerable and open-hearted. I believe in leadership by example and that by demonstrating vulnerability to students, they will learn and understand the power of this trait.

Last term, I firmly grasped the vulnerability nettle by performing a traditional Morris Dance along with several colleagues at Kristin's International Peace Night as part of our International Week. I think the students appreciated seeing their teachers join them and participate in this event, and it helped to remove the mask that all of us can sometimes wear.

I think that society sometimes tells us that we need to wear a mask, act a certain way, and say certain things to be accepted. So, a question I often ask students is, are you wearing a mask? Are you just playing a role to fit in or impress others?

As adults, most of us have gone through times like this. Instead of behaving genuinely, we tell people what we think they want to hear and act in ways that go against our true nature. The problem is that living and working like this is limiting and holds us back from reaching our true potential. Instead, we should strive to live and work authentically, to permit ourselves to be ourselves. That way, we can choose our life course and not be tied to others’ expectations. I love this quote from Roy T. Bennett:

"You were born to stand out; stop trying to fit in."

What this says to me is, in simple terms, that authenticity means being true to your personality, values, and spirit, regardless of the pressure you're under to act otherwise. If you're honest with yourself and with others, and you take responsibility for your mistakes, then your values, ideals, and actions align. The result is, you come across as genuine, and you're willing to accept the consequences of being true to what you consider to be right.

At Kristin, we believe that for our students living an authentic life is infinitely more rewarding than hiding your true self. When you live authentically, you don't have to worry about what you said (or didn't say), how you acted, or whether you did the right thing. Living authentically means you can trust yourself and your motivations implicitly. 

In short, you can be your true self.