Being the Best is a Process: Fake It ‘Till You Make It

By: Briana Mutlu

Quit thinking of how to be the best you and start being the best you! Well at least start acting like it and fake it till you make it! 

Robert K. Merton, the sociologist who coined this phrase said, “A prediction about the outcome of a situation can invoke a new behavior that leads to the prediction coming true.” The first step to achieving your goals is believing you can achieve them. 

Here are some tips to help you create a positive self-image and lead the way to success!

Confidence is key. The more confident you are increases how skilled or intelligent you appear to others; this is known as the status enhancement theory. A study from the University of California, Berkeley in 2013 concluded that confidence not only leads to higher social status, but even when that person is wrong, their status is not harmed. So, don’t be afraid! Put yourself out there and, no matter if you are wrong or right, you will be admired for your conviction.

Even if you don’t feel extremely confident, think about your brain! Your brain automatically creates associations or pathways when two things are presented in conjunction with one another. If you want to feel more confident, try repeating “I am confident” to yourself before you go to bed and after you wake up. An article from CognitionToday said, “correlation becomes causation in a manner of speaking.” Even if it feels weird, eventually the association between “I” and “confident” will be made and you will feel more self-assured. 

Belief in your abilities will help you develop a positive self-image and if you focus on success you can create a self-fulfilling prophecy. A self-fulfilling prophecy is when you expect something to happen and your behavior will change, in turn, causing that expected situation. Merton described the self-fulfilling prophecy as, “A false definition of the situation evoking a new behavior which makes the originally false conception come true.”
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Faking it ‘till you make it has great implications, but most importantly it starts with how you view yourself. Remember that each day you are the most experienced, intelligent and best you yet!