'Act As If' Only Works In THIS Circumstance

I’m sure you’ve heard the term, ‘act as if’, before…

Act as if you’ve reached your goal, as if you’re already that guy, because it’s ‘that guy’ that’s responsible for the goal being achieved, so if you act as if you’re already him, then the goal will come.

It’s a nice idea, however, there’s only one instance where I think it holds true and it becomes beneficial.

The reality is that if you’re building a business, you’re not going to act as if you’re the guy who has the business built. Heck, no. You’ve got to do more than him, risk more, work more, think more, create more.

You’re far away from that delegated, mission-only focus.

You’re in the weeds, and you have to be.

You’re not going to act as if you’re the guy who’s already in shape, either. Because while he has great habits formed, you have to diet a bit more, you have to be more strict with protein intake, with what you do for cardio, even lifting.

The guy that gets the results is 10x the guy who has the results…

…EXCEPT when it comes to handling stress.

I heard a clip the other day of the comedian Theo Von talking about Joe Rogan. It was so good that I actually wrote it down verbatim.

“If he does feel pressure, he doesn’t let you see it,” he said, when talking about Rogan’s insane schedule and the weight of the world he must have on his shoulders.

In that sense, we CAN and SHOULD act as if.

Act as if everything’s alright, even if it isn’t.

Act as if the pressure we face which, as men, is world-consuming, is light, even not there.

We do the work. We take the risks. We take on more than we may think we can handle.

We’re responsible for putting food in our kid’s mouths, giving our wives all we think they deserve, aiming for the upside, being in great shape, protecting those around us, providing for them, guiding them, teaching them, all the while not fully understanding everything ourselves, and continuously pursuing knowledge and wisdom…

…And growth.

It’s a lot, sure. But we don’t have to act like it is.

And in not acting like it is, it becomes not a lot. 

It’s a frame of mind that’s rooted in Stoicism, Christianity, and any other GOOD philosophy or religion.

It’s the idea that we can control what we can, and nothing more.

We have to do everything we can, all of the work and discipline we can have, must be ours, we can’t avoid that. It’s not indifference to the struggle, it’s indifference to the worry and the weight of it all.

Yes, we struggle, but we don’t struggle with the struggle.

All you can do, is all you can do.

You have to do all you can do, it’s hard, sure, but we don’t have to see it as such, after all, this is our life, this is what we chose, these are our battles, and we ought not only fight them with honor and pride, but with peace, with a Stoic demeanor. 

In the end, it’s a choice. 

Not a one off decision, but a choice to constantly check yourself, how you’re thinking, how you’re acting, what you’re showing to others.

It’s a choice to train yourself to not be bothered by what bothers almost everyone.

This is true strength and grit. 

It’s going through hell while feeling like you’re in Heaven.

It makes the lives of those around you better.

It allows you to think more clearly. 

It makes this struggle called life easier, even more fun.

It makes the goal you’re aiming at far more likely.

It is, at the very least, worth trying.

Get after it.