One of my classmates summoned this phrase to encourage another classmate this week. It struck a chord with me, as I had just been sharing on my Facebook page how the Oregon Zoo uses fake snow throughout the year to enrich its animals. The zamboni at the Sherwood Ice Arena makes a pile of ice shavings, or "snow", which volunteers shovel into the back of a pick-up truck and haul back to the zoo. It gets distributed among various animals who love to play in it and forage through it for hidden treats.
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| Snow cute! River otter
at the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, Kansas. Photo by Jaime Green/Wichita Eagle/MCT via Getty Images |
When I was hired as an emergency communications operator years ago, I sorely lacked the confidence I needed to progress satisfactorily through my training. I lagged behind the other trainees who were hired at the same time as me. "Fake it 'til you make it" became the mantra of one of my coaches, as she tried to push me over the hurdles my insecurity had erected around me. (It - or something - eventually worked. I "made it" through probation at the eleventh hour.)
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| Another coach told me that a trained monkey could answer 911 calls. Didn't really make me feel better about my ineptitude. |
At the zoo, I love showing kids Sydney, our blue-tongued skink. They are confounded by his large body, short limbs, and snake-like skin. They try to guess what sort of reptile he is ("Alligator???" is an incredulous common proffering). And then, with a flash of his blue tongue, they are completely won over.
Skinks are ideal education animals as they make for an interesting discussion, have loads of personality and great dispositions. Sydney is great at being handled and very cooperatively flicks his tongue repeatedly during our short talks.
These skinks are very common in their native Australia. They also have a lot of natural predators. They move well despite their large size, but unlike longer legged, more arboreal lizards which can quickly ascend trees to escape becoming someone's buffet, the blue-tongued skink must resort to a bluff. When threatened, these lizards puff up their bodies to look bigger, opening their mouths (which are bright pink inside), hissing and sticking out their bright blue tongues. Bright colors in nature often signal "poison" to other animals, so a skink - while actually not poisonous - may surprise and confuse its predator long enough to scurry away to safety.
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| Blue-tongued skink. Not that you had any question about that at this point. |
Fake it 'til you make it.
I don't think I really bought into this mindset until the last couple of years. Until March 2013, I was stuck in a secretarial position feeling like I was capable of so much more, but seemingly unable to convince my employer otherwise. I finally chose being brave over being comfortable, and got myself hired as an Animal Care Aide at the local county shelter. I didn't know as much about breeds and diets and handling - about anything, really - to justify getting hired, but a little bit of volunteer experience and a well crafted cover letter and resume helped me "make it".
A few months in, the shelter's Volunteer Coordinator position opened. I knew I wasn't technically qualified, but I also knew I'd be great at the job. I decided to use that confidence to apply. I knew I wouldn't get the job. But I was in full "fake it 'til you make it" mode.
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| I hope. |
I didn't get the job. Not for naught: my efforts resulted in me becoming a blip on one manager's radar, which led to my current shelter position as TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) Incentive Coordinator. I knew nothing about grants, or incentivization, or TNR for that matter. But when that manager remembered my resume and asked if I would be interested in coordinating this pilot program, I thought of how I enjoyed being innovative at work regardless of my position ... and I thought of my skills in organization and coordination ... and I said yes. And for the first couple of months in my new position, I was faking it and faking it ... and at some point it clicked, and I started making it.
So I decided to volunteer as Vendor Coordinator for SummerFest, my community's annual summer celebration. Not that I knew anything about SummerFest or vendors. Nevermind all that. I wanted the experience, so I convinced the committee I was the right person for the job. And I was. My efforts resulted in twice as many vendors as had attended SummerFest in the past, and I just received my invitation to chair again.
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| Okay. I'll do it. |
I keep eyeing a position as Development Director at a local animal rescue. I first looked at the posting only because my boss - that manager that I mentioned before - told me about it. "Not that I want to lose you," she said, "but it would be a great opportunity for you and you'd be awesome in the position." I read the job requirements and decided it was totally out of my league. A few weeks later, it was listed again. Too many "desired applicant" requirements there to fake. The position remains unfilled, and today it was listed a third time. Hmmm. No applicant possesses every desired requirement.
I think I long resisted the concept of "fake it 'til you make it" because I considered it to be the equivalent of lying. But what I've learned is that this catchphrase means that I should imitate confidence ... and as my confidence produces success, then real confidence is generated.
And as the last couple of years can attest, that's real.
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