Alright so everybody wants to be authentic right? Right, but is authenticity really what we are seeking? I would postulate that authenticity without truth is like selflessness without love. Love gives selflessness direction and purpose. Merely doing things without a selfish impulse does not in any way cause them to be loving; however, if you do something out of love then you are being selfless in the process. If you pursue authenticity without a pursuit of truth or if you miss truth in your pursuit of authenticity then there is no limit to where you could end up. Hitler was authentic to who he was. One of the reasons he swayed a nation to commit atrocities was through his authentic belief in what he did. Hitler was more authentic than most people you will ever meet. So was Alexander the Great. He thought he was the reincarnation of a god, several actually. Ok, Ok so you are not going to be the next Hitler (most likely), but this is important: authenticity comes through truth, but it does not necessarily yield truth. I can authentically believe that there are aliens inhabiting my basement, but this would not be true.
The way this most often manifests itself is through justification of practices that are “true to who I am.” “I divorced my wife and tore apart my family because I just wasn’t being true to myself,” “I eloped at age 17 because that was the most authentic expression of me,” “I left the Christian faith because it didn’t feel authentic.” Truth is much bigger than authenticity. Be authentic because truth will only manifest itself in your life through authenticity and if you are honest about who you are. Pursue truth and with it you will gain true authenticity, pursue love and you will gain true selflessness. There are a lot of authentic people living debilitating and sinful lies, there are a lot of authentic faiths but only one True faith, there have been many selfless people who had not love and were merely clanging cymbals. Authenticity and selflessness are essential pieces of love and truth, but they are only parts of the whole.
p.s. I think kindness is to goodness what authenticity and selflessness are to truth and love