# Work Against Phoniness By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2023-01-28 Much of our focus has been on the importance of authenticity and solidarity. To some degree, these are offered as virtues. An aspect of virtues is that they are inherently and self-evidently accepted. In the case of authenticity and solidarity in organizations, it is perhaps worthy to provide a little attention to its converse. Increasingly work can become sites of superficiality and isolation, in which appearances are as important, if not more so, than substance. Such phoniness precludes addressing the deeper concerns that could unite us. Pretending the product our company produces and sells is needed, impressive, and inspiring locks us into a way of comporting ourselves organizationally. The rhetoric of organizational reality betrays insincerity. Wealth management and insurance make money off the aspirations and fears of individuals. Gimmicks, fads, and insecurities incentivize the production and consumption of pointless products. There is often a desperate, unspoken pact within organizations that nobody dares speak the truth at least it will have to be confronted. Commitments to authenticity and solidarity are works against phoniness. It is undertaken based on the belief that by having the courage to be honest about our experiences we can start to attempt to create something better. Organizational phoniness is drudgery. Authenticity is the basis for the solidarity that holds the potential of liberation. #### Related Items [[Authenticity]] [[Solidarity]] [[Work]] [[Organizational Analytics]] [[Phoniness]]