‘Fake it til you make it’ – can it work for you?

I first heard of the phrases ‘Fake it ‘til you make it’ and ‘Act as if’ a few years ago while working through some issues, and honestly did not understand what it meant or how you could do it. I could not understand how someone who wanted to be rich could bring it into their life by pretending they were, or how someone desperate to lose weight and be slim could ‘act as if they were a size 10’ when the clothes in that size would not even fit! It baffled me. What was the key to making this work?

The more that I started reading about the Law of Attraction, the more I realized this is not necessarily what those phrases mean. The basis of the Law of Attraction is that the universe will provide you with more of what you are grateful for and more of the positive thoughts that you focus on. This is why practicing gratitude is so important. The subconscious mind cannot differentiate between negative and positive thoughts so whatever you focus your energy (and therefore, your thoughts on), is what the universe will provide you with. The more love, gratitude and positive thoughts that you give out, the more will return to you and vice versa.

Becoming aware of an abundant mindset and opening ourselves up to this, puts us in a position of receivership, and the universe will, therefore, provide what we ‘are already receiving’. If we can visualize the life we want and be grateful for it (as if it is already happening now) our subconscious mind thinks we have it already and provides more of it.

In practical terms, if someone wants to have money, it is important to change any limiting beliefs such as ‘I could never earn that much money’ or ‘Only rich people can make money’ or ‘You have to have a certain education to make money like that’. Once we accept that we have the potential and the power to become whatever we want to be, we can let go of any stories we have told ourselves around money, health, happiness, career or social status and can start to open ourselves up to the Law of Attraction.

So, if you truly dream of going to Italy but cannot afford it, buy a few Euros and carry them in your wallet, listen to Italian music, eat and drink in Italian restaurants as if you are truly there and feel that feeling as if you are there – the opportunity will come. If you dream of the perfect job – buy the clothes as if you work there, imagine your colleagues, visualize the office you will work in – the opportunity will come. If you want to have a certain amount of money, feel as if you would if you had, shop in the shops you would if you had it (even if it is only looking), make a bank statement or a cheque with the amount of money you want – the opportunity will come.

So, when I was wondering how you can ‘act as if’ you are thin when you are so uncomfortable in a bigger body, or how you can ‘fake it til you make it being rich, the answer is ‘feeling it’. You have to feel as if you are already there, be grateful for it and keep feeling what it is like to have what you desire already. This is key.

There are so many ways we can ‘act as if’ or ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ but to do it well and as a tool to actually make positive change in your life, it is important to ALWAYS be in a state of gratitude and visualize what you will be doing, wearing and saying when you receive your desires. Who will you be spending your time with when you receive it? What will you spend your money on when you receive it? What will you look like and how will your appearance help you feel into being this person?

If you dream of buying your dream home, you can still do a viewing and feel what is like to be in it and how you would decorate. If your dream car is a Ferrari, you can test drive one to feel what it is like to drive and if you want to travel, you can find ways of bringing the country to you until you can afford to go there, and the opportunity presents itself.

Use all of your senses (sight, hearing, taste, feeling and smell) to really feel what it is like and relive that feeling as often as possible until it comes – and it WILL come, it is guaranteed. The key is in your hands so once you have the dream, you are 100% capable of making it happen.