Fake It Til You Make It (but only sometimes)

 It's perfect timing for the article The Swiss psychiatrist who inspired a viral TikTok hashtag to be included in this week's blog assignment because we just finished learning about Carl Jung and the Personality Theory Unit last week in psych! The part of this article that grabbed my attention was the mention of how we put on these certain personas, "the mask you wear when out in the world...who you pretend to be in public". Although not something new to hear since we all know everyone fakes their personalities at times (even if it's just a little), it still sucks to know that many people feel the need to hide behind a persona that isn't truly them.Furthering on this idea of hidden personalities, something from this article that made me sad when I read it was "he [Jung] warned of a world where the individual 'has lost his individuality and become a mere abstract number in the bureau of statistics'". I honestly love it when you really get to know someone and they end up being the complete opposite of who you thought they were when judging them purely from the outside. So the world would definitely be missing something if we weren't able to uncover this true side of the people we meet because they mask it. This is definitely a fear when being part of a generation of people who crave social media validation. For example, I think one of the best parts of going to a school like Troy High is that it's so diverse, not only in race but also in personalities; sadly these unique and fun personalities often get hid under a more basic and socially acceptable one that's seen on social media, almost like these "different" personalities are being protected from outside judgment.

However, I definitely think there are times when faking a persona is for the better. In the article Can You ‘Fake It Til You Make It’ When It Comes to Personality Traits? by Mary Grace Garis, I was reminded that confidence is one of these traits that can be faked for the better. The article states that "'Status enhancement theory says that when people act confident they start feeling that way,' says Dr. Sherman. 'And when you act ‘as if,’ hopefully it’s changing not only your behaviors, but also how you feel and think about yourself from the inside out.'" This reminded me of when Rihanna was asked in an interview what she does on the days when she doesn't feel as confident or powerful and she iconically responded with "Pretend. I mean why not it's either that or I cry myself to sleep and who wants to do that?" So what I guess I'm trying to say is that although in an ideal world I would hope everyone, including myself, would feel like they're able to not have to constantly put on a fake persona; in the meantime if you're ever not feeling too great about yourself, just pretend because even Rihanna said she does ;)