If you ever heard the phrase “fake it till you make it”, then you will be familiar with the contents of this article. The problem with “fake it till you make it” is that is assumes a certain level of dishonesty or falseness.

We beg to differ on this…

If you are in business, either an online business or a traditional bricks and mortar business, then you will be fully aware of the importance of your brand, or how you position yourself in your market place.

Therefore is it not true that on the day you open your business:

1. Everything will look really good
2. You will be very well presented and so will your team.
3. You will get lots of best wishes to your good fortune from suppliers and customers.
4. You will speak confidently about your business and you will assume an air of authority on your product or service.

Why is that? You have not sold anything yet. You are borrowed up to your eyes and you have very little cash flow left? You have not paid any supplier yet and you are hoping that they will be kind to you.

That’s life and that’s the life you must lead to be successful.

You see, people buy from people they like and associate with and they like successful people. Therefore you need to act as if you have already made it in business, if you are to truly achieve.

It’s actually more important to act this way for yourself because you have to train your mind on what it is like to be successful, to be optimistic in the face of everyday business challenges, to know exactly why you have chosen this line of business, this way of life.

If you read any personal development books you will come across the phrase BE x Do = HAVE

What we are talking about here is the BE. You have to BE the person you want to become first in your own mind. You must sell the idea to yourself. It’s done through as series of exercises. We refer to them as IVVM, idealization, Visualization, Verbalization and Materialization. We teach this to out clients and business colleagues and we watch it work time and time again.

Do you need to “Act as If”?

Do you know who you need to be?

Have you understood the sheer power of IVVM?

Have you the desire and discipline to be truly successful?