I once had a colleague write a post that trashed the saying ‘fake it till you make it.’ She felt that this was the height of laziness. You should never fake anything. Instead, you should be prepared and know your shit. I agree with her sentiment to some degree, but when you’re working on shifting a behaviour or creating a new habit, ‘faking it’ is how you’re going to feel until it becomes second nature. Whenever we work on creating new leadership behaviours (eg: being less judgmental, being more collaborative, demonstrating a more flexible approach), if that just doesn’t come naturally, it’s going to feel like you’re faking it. The good news is, that’s normal. Whenever we’re learning a new skill, we go through a stage called conscious incompetence. We become fully aware that we need to behave differently, and have to think carefully about our actions. All that thinking makes us feel like we’re ‘faking it.’ Over time your new action will become more second nature. I promise. Faking it while you make it isn’t a cop-out at all. It’s hard work that will pay off dividends when you stick with it.
#leadershiptruth
