“Fake It Till You Make It?” What Does That Mean?

Faking it until you make it may be an old strategy for personal development and self-improvement. Yet people still get confused as to what exactly it is and is not. How exactly do you “Fake It Till You Make It?” and why should you use this strategy at all?

Let’s take a look at what this mindset can actually do. Can you successfully use “faking it” to improve your life?.

What Does It Mean To Fake It Till You Make it?

I think it’s important to kick this post off by discussing what “Faking It” doesn’t mean, which is to become a fake person with fake ambitions etc.

The act of “Fake It Till You Make It” is a state of mind. A mindset which can help propel you towards your goals, dreams and aspirations. It means pretending to have traits you admire, such as confidence, creativity and courage etc. Therefore helping you develop them into a solid trait which you no longer have to “fake”.

This use of faking it helps you create new circuits in your brain necessary for you to become what you wish to be.

Don’t Fake It Till You Make It. Fake It Till You Become It.

Amy Cuddy

I love this quote. This sums up the whole concept perfectly. Ultimately the goal is to become that which we want to be. Therefore we must change our mindset to help step into the role of what it is we wish to become.

When To Use It

You should use the art of faking it when you need a boost to help you achieve something which you desire. Re-wiring your mind to install new traits, overcome fears, practice feelings, or try on new behaviors.

It’s all about stepping into the shoes of who and what you want to become. Telling yourself the new story which will lay the base of your desire. This is not about changing your whole personality or who and what you are. It is about enhancing yourself with positive self talk enabling you to live your best life.

If you would like to learn more about how to tell yourself a new story and develop a new mindset I highly recommend two YouTube accounts which I visit regularly. These two women have absolutely changed my life and I believe they will help you too. Check out Sammy Ingram and Electrasoul (Please note I am NOT affiliated with these accounts :))

What can the “Faking It” strategy help you with?

Faking it till you make it works best to help you learn new feelings, behaviors, and thoughts. These should be things you want to improve on or behaviors you want to start (or stop). It works extremely well at helping people develop confidence and optimism, for example. 

In my opinion, there is pretty much nothing that this mindset cannot help you with. Used properly, this tool can literally change your life. It can be applied to any area you desire to change and improve.

For instance, you really want to improve your relationship with money. Let’s say you have quite a negative money mindset and you feel that money just doesn’t work for you. If your constant inner talk is; I never have money, I’m always broke, I can never afford to buy what I want, Only certain people have money … etc…etc… then you are programming your mind to believe those thoughts and the chances are your reality will reflect your negative money mindset back to you.

But guess what?????

You can change that story around. It’s all about your mindset and reprogramming your subconscious mind into living out the new story you choose to tell yourself. Now here is the ‘Faking It” part. Okay so your bank balance is telling you a different story (i.e your broke) and your purse is empty. You have to fake the new story changing your constant inner talk to; I always have enough money, Money comes to me easily, My bills are always paid on time, I can buy anything I choose … etc… etc… constant repetition of this new way of thinking will cause your reality to reflect back this positive shift.

What Faking It Is Not

Faking it is not a magic bullet that will change everything about your life. There are several things it absolutely cannot do. For example, you cannot fake background knowledge. You can try, of course, but everyone will eventually see through you. Naturally, you also cannot fake knowledge you do not have.

Faking it also cannot substitute for practice. You can fake it to help you develop confidence in a role or behaviour, but it will not work unless you are also doing the work required. You’re not going to be able to “fake” being a world class athlete without the correct training for instance.

To sum this up, “Faking It” is an amazing tool, however you have to practice, practice and practice some more to make this successful. Going back to the money example, the old money mindset is a story you have repeatedly told yourself for years and years most likely. That is going to take time to change, hence repeating the new story (the “fake” story) to yourself over and over is what is needed to benefit from this strategy. But my friends, it can be done and omg is it worth it!