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IT WORKS: 'Fake it till you make it'
But not for the reason you think it does.
Corrin Baiel
May 04, 2024
IT WORKS: 'Fake it till you make it'
Yahallo, upstarts!
Recently, I've been thinking a lot about the phrase ‘Fake it till you make it’.
It used to be advice you'd hear all the time, but now, I almost never hear it.
Is it obsolete? Was it disproven? Is there a prettier, more politically appropriate version of it nowadays?
Let me know if you've found why.
As of now, I still think that line is as great as ever. In fact, I think that it might be more relevant than ever.
Today’s agenda is designed to:
☑️ Guide you step by step to fake it till you make it
☑️ Help you sidestep analysis paralysis
☑️ Get you started. Now.
The current “Fake it till you make it” situation
Let’s talk about the situation where “Fake it till you make it” actually happens.
Have you ever been in a situation where you had zero confidence in your ability to succeed, but you needed to step up and make it work anyway?
It’s a crazy kind of situation, isn’t it? It’s one where you are unprepared and yet you have to do the thing anyway.
Nobody likes that sort of situation, and if you do, you’re a liar. We all want to be prepared. We want to be given days, or even weeks notice. We want to be as prepared as we can for that situation so that it all goes well.
But when that situation comes, all we can do is…
“Fake it till you make it.”
That’s right. “Fake it till you make it” is the last resort. Usually.
But I want to argue that actually, instead of at the end, we should put it at the beginning.
Being unprepared is the norm
What exactly happens in the “Fake it till you make it” situation?
It always starts with you being unprepared. Whether you’re lacking in ability, in preparation, in time, whatever it may be, it is always the case that you are unprepared.
Does that sound familiar?
Because that’s every single situation in life ever. Not just those “Fake it till you make it” situations.
Being unprepared isn’t something special. Being unprepared is actually the norm.
You are, by default, unprepared. You only start becoming prepared when you start making moves to prepare yourself. It’s when you do things like working on your abilities, preparing the things you need, working on the prerequisites, etc.
You will never be fully prepared. There will always be something more you can do to prepare yourself better. There’s always something more you can learn. There’s something more you can ready. There’s always something more you can do.
You will spend your entire life preparing yourself.
Waiting to be prepared enough is called analysis paralysis.
There comes a time when enough is enough. “When are you prepared enough?” is probably the questions most overthinkers will ask.
If you thought that while reading this, then well done, you are predictable, just like me.
“When are you prepared enough?” is the absolute wrong thing to ask.
Instead, the correct question is actually: “Can I do it yet?
Yes, exactly like a child on a road trip, petulantly asking their parents “Are we there yet?” every 5 minutes.
The item on this week’s agenda
This week, I’m going to test out the impatience of childhood on you. Or rather, you’ll do it for yourself.
Every task you do, you should always ask “Can I do it yet?”. Step by step. Let’s practice it together in a very simple thought exercise.
Follow the mission, buckle up and ready your fingers to type into the reply box of this email. You’ll benefit a lot from typing down your response and doing the work, it’ll be great.
MISSION DESCRIPTION Step 1: Can I achieve my goal yet if I do this? Step 2: Do the thing that gets me closest to achieving my goal Step 3: Can I do it yet? Step 4: Do the thing that gets me closest to achieving my goal Step 5: Can I do it yet? Step 6: Do the thing that gets me closest to achieving my goal Step 7: Repeat. Fake it till you make it. | EXAMPLE Step 1 “Can I make a newsletter with a consistent and reliable posting schedule for at least a year yet?”
Step 3: Can I do it yet? “Can I achieve my goal yet? No, not yet, my goal says I need to be consistent for a year, which I haven’t done. I also haven’t been reliable either, I need to prepare these much earlier.” Step 4: Do the thing that gets me closest to achieving my goal I’ve written the draft outline for next week’s newsletter. You’ll see it next week. Step 5: Can I do it yet? “Can I achieve my goal yet? No, not yet, my goal says I need to be consistent for a year, which I haven’t done. I have at least prepared the draft outline earlier, but I can do better by starting the actual draft.” Step 6: Do the thing that gets me closest to achieving my goal I’ll start writing my draft next. Step 7: Repeat. Fake it till you make it. |
Why you should fake it till you make it
Fake it till you make it is extremely practical advice.
Why? It’s because it encourages you to just go and do it.
No skills. No experience. No preparation. You don’t need any of that. All you need to do is to get started.
Nobody starts good. Everyone starts somewhere.
There is value in starting, in being a beginner. It is at this point that you are learning the most, simply because you are trying to do the thing and really feeling every single mistake you make.
If you feel unprepared, that’s normal. Because you will always be unprepared. And you will spend your entire life preparing yourself.
It’s such great advice. Not only does it encourage you to get started, which is the hardest part, but it also encourages you to keep going, which is the second hardest part. Not only that, but because you just do the thing instead of preparing to do the thing, you get to show your work.
You gain the experience. With experience comes skill. And with skill comes expertise.
You can get all of that, and it all begins and ends with one step.
Fake it till you make it.
So what now?
If you were convinced, get on that mission right now. Let’s improve our lives together.
I won’t show the draft, but I’ll at least spoil the topic for next week to show that I worked on it. The topic is the need to match goal to effort.
If you can, let me know how this week’s agenda went for you, so that I can sleep better knowing that this actually helped. And you can sleep better knowing you were able to change your life for the better.
Upstart tangents…
🧠 Listen and learn: The book Millionaire Fastlane of DeMarco is something that every individual should look at it. It has a lot of ideas that I think should pass through people’s heads at least once.
🤯 Strange thoughts: Is a fake really worse than the original? Something to ponder.
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