Deception

There were a couple of things that stood out to me in this week's pod club pick. Off topic, and not relating to the subject at all, is this: I love Ira Glass' voice. And, I know this was a really old episode but it was one I hadn't listened to before, and I'm glad I hadn't because I feel I got more out of it at this time in my life than I would've at some other previous time.
Here is what went through my head as I listened:
There have been many times in my life where I have had to: "fake it til you make it." In a way this is a kind of self-deception, as well as deception to those around me. However, if I had not faked it there would have been no way I could have succeeded in my task. Sometimes, you have to first convince yourself of something before you can actually become it. For example: when I first started teaching dance I was terrified to be up in front of the class, I was afraid the class wouldn't like my choreography, or they wouldn't like me...but I had to get up in front of the room and pretend to be Miss Confident otherwise there was no way any of those people would come back to learn from me. But eventually I started to believe that what I was doing was actually awesome and wonderful...in other words, I became what I convinced myself I was.

My biggest ah-ha moment came though, after listing to David Sedaris tell his story about being mistaken for a pick-pocket while living in Paris. Here was a story about a successful comedian/author who had to stand on a train and listen to two people (who mistakenly thought he was French and wouldn't understand English) call him names and throw accusations around about how he was supposedly trying to steal the woman's wallet. Did he berate them back in English? Make them feel like fools? Try to change their opinions of who or what he was? No. No, he did not. He got off at his stop with his boyfriend and went about his day. I realized after listening to this that he did not care in the least what those strangers thought about him. He knew he was not a pick-pocket, he knew who he was and he didn't need to try to convince strangers of it. What other people think of you does not make it true or real. It shouldn't bother you or take up space in your mind. If what others think of you is founded on false pretenses then there isn't much you can do to change it. All any of us can do is know who we are, what we are, and not worry if those around us have misguided notions.

Did you listen this week? What did you think? Let's go find out what Rachael thought about it...

Pod-club BFFs: Rachael and Jill