
You’ve almost certainly heard the advice to “Fake it till you make it.” It’s good advice—some of the time. We don’t talk about when it’s best to avoid it, and that’s what I’m talking about in this very short episode.
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Transcript: Fake It Till You Make It
Please note: This is an unedited transcript, provided as a courtesy, and reflects the actual conversation as closely as possible. Please forgive any typographical or grammatical errors.
Nancy Norbeck [00:00:06]:
Welcome to Follow Your Curiosity. Ordinary people, extraordinary creativity. Here’s how to get unstuck. I’m your host, creativity coach, Nancy Norbeck. Let’s go. Have you ever tried to fake it until you make it? How has that worked for you? Hi. I’m Nancy Norbeck, and here’s this week’s Creative Pep Talk. So fake it till you make it is great advice that we’ve all heard. If you’re not sure that you’re gonna make it with a new behavior, a new habit, a new anything, faking it is actually a great way to get yourself there faster.
Nancy Norbeck [00:00:45]:
And that’s why it’s such great advice that has lasted this long. So if you haven’t ever tried it, I recommend it in certain circumstances. There are times, and this is the part that we never hear about, when it doesn’t really work well for us because we need help. Some things we can kind of fool our brains into doing, and some things we can’t because we need to learn something. We need someone to lean on. We need something more in that process. So what I really wanna say today is if you’ve tried faking it until you make it and you’ve never made it, you probably aren’t the problem. The problem is that you need someone to lean on.
Nancy Norbeck [00:01:34]:
You need to ask for help. And of course, in our incredibly individualistic culture, especially here in The US, asking for help is often viewed as a failure in and of itself. But when you think about it, the the outcome of not asking for help is frequently worse than the outcome of asking for help. Right? If you don’t ask for help, you’re probably, if you really need it, going to fail. Possibly in a big embarrassing and maybe even scary way. Whereas when you ask for help, you get the information you need, you learn what you need to know, you get support. And all of those things make it much more likely that you will succeed in whatever it is that you’re trying to do. So think about it.
Nancy Norbeck [00:02:29]:
And maybe, you know, not so much rethink fake it till you make it, but look at it in a broader sense. Know when you need help and don’t be afraid to go ask for it. It’s like when I used to teach and kids would tell me that, you know, they couldn’t go ask their teacher for help because they would look stupid. If they didn’t go ask their teacher for help, they were gonna fail the assignment or the test. And the kids who did ask for help usually got what they needed and got the admiration of their teacher too. So don’t be that kind of kid. They’re everywhere. They still exist.
Nancy Norbeck [00:03:03]:
Go and get the help that you need and be better for it. You will thank yourself in the end. Give that a try. Keep it in mind, and I’ll see you next time. If this episode resonated with you or if you’re feeling a little bit less than confident in your creative process right now, join me at the spark on Substack as we form a community that supports and celebrates each other’s creative courage. It’s free, and it’s also where I’ll be adding programs for subscribers and listeners. The link is in your podcast app, so sign up today. See you there, and see you next week.
Nancy Norbeck [00:03:39]:
Follow Your Curiosity is produced by me, Nancy Norbeck, with music by Joseph McDade. If you like Follow Your Curiosity, please subscribe, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. And don’t forget to tell your friends. It really helps me reach new listeners.