(NewsNation) — From a young age, most people are encouraged to “just be yourself.” However, it’s not that easy, especially in the workplace.
According to a new study by JobSage, 64% of American workers are hiding something from their employer. The poll consisted of more than 1,900 workers, and 37% of employees say they hide political views.
Roughly 36% of employees hide information about their families, but over half say that not being authentic impacted their mental health.
More than 3 in 5 say that after being authentic they were treated differently at work, most often treated unkindly or ignored.
Why are we hiding?
- 49% of people don’t want to make people uncomfortable
- 43% of people fear being stereotyped
- 41% of people don’t want it to affect their career advancement
- 41% of people fear discrimination
- 40% of people don’t want to damage connections with coworkers
Are there consequences to hiding our authentic selves?
- 55% of people say that not being authentic at work impacts their work
- 49% of people have worse working relationships
- 37% of people are unable to do their best work
- 35% of people have lower retention
- 34% of people have decreased productivity
- 33% of people put less effort into work
According to the survey, men and women are equally likely to be hiding something from their employer but for different reasons. Among men, 66% are hiding something because they don’t want to make their employer uncomfortable, and 62% of women are concerned with portraying a stereotype.
