Acting ‘as if’

In high school my best friend Melissa told me: “If you want to be cool you just need 1 other person to think you are cool. Then if you think you are cool and that other person thinks you are cool, you are cool.” I always loved that saying and tie it together with acting ‘as if’.

Acting ‘as if’ means that in your mind you have decided that something already done. If I act ‘as if’ I am cool then I assume that I am cool and then the decision on my end is made.

On a practical basis acting ‘as if’ helps someones confidence. If I am doing something for the first time then I will have little or no confidence because I haven’t ever done it before. Once I have done it I will have confidence that I can do it. However confidence is just a mental state. I can act ‘as if’ I have done this new thing before and have the same confidence as if I have done it before.

Acting ‘as if’ is the opposite of imposter syndrome, or maybe its a cure? Either way if you ever feel a lack of confidence remember you can try acting ‘as if’ you have done it before and maybe it will help.