Acting “as if”
Barbara Niven was a single mother of a two-year old living in Portland, Oregon. When she turned thirty years old, she made a decision to pursue a radical change.
Although she was nearly broke, she remembered her long-dormant dream to become an actress. Everyone told her she was crazy, that it was impossible.
That didn’t stop her. She considered her path forward and determined that being a TV news reporter would be her inroad to acting.
The challenge was she had no college degree and no qualifications. But she decided then and there that she would become a reporter.
She went to the news director at the local NBC affiliate and asked, “If I bring you stories, will you give me feedback?” He said yes.
She then interviewed people and typed up the sample script, and eventually she was hired as an intern.
When she got her one shot to be in front of the camera and report a story, it made it to national news.
She continued to pursue acting by auditioning, screen testing, and eventually landing paid acting gigs.
She went on to have a thirty-year career acting, a veteran of soap operas and Hallmark and Lifetime movies.
Barbara knew the power of acting “as if.” She decided she would be a reporter, so she began doing the things a reporter does.
She broke from traditional thinking that says you do certain things in life in order to have certain things to then be someone whom others would respect.
For example, do well in school in order to get a good job, have certain things (a home, car, and so on), to eventually be someone (a respected member of the community).
It’s the DO → HAVE → BE model.
Barbara knew intuitively that doing was not the first step in the process. She didn’t focus on what she didn’t have–experience, credentials, money, connections–and focused on being the person she wanted to become.
She flipped the model to: BE → HAVE → DO.
Barbara decided her identity would be that of an actress and she acted “as if.”
You can act “as if” with your habits too. This can be a powerful way to move from where you are to where you want to be.
Modern neuroscience has shown us that habits occur in the deepest parts of our brains, the basal ganglia, which are the parts that work on autopilot, while higher order thinking focuses on complex tasks.
This is why you can tie your shoes while talking, or drive while listening to a podcast, or, read a book to your children and think about something else at the same time (I’m always amazed at this one).
Once a habit is engrained, your higher level thinking is no longer needed, and the basal ganglia performs this function.
Habits are neurologically formative. Said another way, your brain is wired–formed with neurological connections–through habits.
It’s a huge gift not to have to think about every minute task you need to complete during the day, and it can also be difficult to form new habits.
If you practiced your way into a habit, you can practice your way out of it.
It starts with the practice. It starts with acting “as if.”
How would you finish this sentence stem? “I’m the kind of person who….”
Now insert the desired change you want to make, you literally flip the first response into a new behavior.
“I’m the kind of person who gets nervous in front of an audience,” would become, “I’m the kind of person who is energized being on stage.”
Or “I’m the kind of person who only thinks in black and white,” becomes. “I’m the kind of person who sees gray and loves nuance.”
Then you create a habit that supports the person you are becoming. In practicing the habit, your heart follows. The new habit forms us. And over time, the brain is rewired with the new habit.
This is what neuroscientists call neuroplasticity. It is the brain’s ability to modify, change, and adapt both structure and function throughout life and in response to experience.
What is a change you want to make? What would you do if you acted “as if?”
