As expected, this topic stimulated much discussion in our recent Virtual Meet-up session. 

"Fake it until you make it"

The saying suggests that by imitating confidence, competence, and an optimistic mindset, a person can realize those qualities in their real life and achieve the results they seek (Wikipedia).

It’s a term that was made popular in the 1970s, however what does that advice actually mean? To what extent is it true? How should you interpret that in your everyday life?

Does "faking it until you make it" really work? 

We put the question to women in Australia, US and Canada in our Virtual Meet-up events on 25 May 2022, 7pm AEST and PST.

Here are some key takeaways from the session, that we can all take on board and learn from:

Take-away #1: "Visualising yourself how you want to be and envisioning your desired end result will ultimately help you become the person you want to be and achieve what you want to do."

We discussed the power of visualisation and it's relationship to us "faking it".

Through visualisation, we are actually imagining the outcome of ourselves achieving a desired result in the future.

Participants in the meet-up shared how they used visualisation to help train their mind in believing that they can achieve a desired outcome, whether it was to have a successful performance or meeting.

Participants said that when they did this, what they visualised always came true! 

WOW! Right?!

There is also science backed evidence supporting this theory. 

Take-away #2: " 'Faking it' doesn't mean that you are 'being fake', you can tell when someone is being inauthentic."

There was a group concensus, that there is a difference between "faking it" and "being fake". 

Participants agreed that when you are "faking it", it's still you, but just a different version of you, stepping outside your comfort zone to do something that you feel you aren't quite ready for. 

When you are "being fake", you are being inauthentic, and it is something that will clearly shine through or show to another person.

Take-away #3: "By 'faking it', 'pretending' or 'role-playing', it is still you doing the actions and performing in front of others. This could be the better version of you, without fear or anxiety."

As our co-host Jackie (@the_real_diy) put it, we had quite an 'A-HA' moment in the meet-up discussion. 

This moment was; that if you are able to fake it, you may not even be faking it anymore. The fact that you are able to do it means that you are capable of becoming that better version of you.

It could actually just be you in your higher form, without fear or anxiety holding you back!

Take-away #4: "When we visualise our highest self and aim to realise our potential, we are not only helping ourselves, but helping others around us. Without knowing, we are inspiring others and impacting their lives in a positive way."

There were wonderful stories in the meet-up of how participants helped other people, without even realising it. One participant even found out a few years later, how their action helped someone and changed the course of their life. 

It is a reminder, that we owe it not only to ourselves, but also others around us to do whatever we can to step outside our comfort zones, follow our passions, and grow as individuals, even if it means we have to "fake it" initially, until we fully embody our higher self.

Because we will never know whose lives we have truly impacted for the better, while continuing on our own personal development and confidence journey.

Final take-away: "We can visualize the best version of ourselves and give it our best shot in achieving that state of being."

If anything, "faking it until you make it" shows you the potential that you have inside of you. It helps you take action, when you feel nervous, afraid, anxious and doubtful. 

"Faking it" helps us achieve a goal we have, while we start catching-up with ourselves and say: 

"Oh-wait! I actually did that! That was real! That was ME"

THANK YOU!

It was such a pleasure to meet and see all the amazing and inspiring ladies who could attend this Virtual Meet-up!

A big thank- you to our Co-host for Canada/US Jackie @the_real_diy who volunteers her time for this. Please follow Jackie on her social media to support her and her women empowerment projects!