“You know what's worse than being broke? Being broke AND pretending you're not.”
Make it so you don’t have to fake it
Probably the opposite of what you’ve heard everyone else tell you.
But you know what is an awful feeling?
Being someone, or something you’re not.
You see it everywhere.
People on instagram renting cars they can’t afford.
Wanna-be business owners talking about their “team of 50” when it’s really just 3 assistants from the Philippines.
So many people are playing dress-up as the successful person they wish they were.
It’s why imposter syndrome is so big for people.
The faking never stops. It can’t.
Because once you start pretending, you can’t stop.
You’re always one question away from being exposed. One detailed conversation from everyone knowing you’re full of it. They put on an act until tiny little cracks start to appear.
I’ve been broke, 7 days from avoiding bill collectors… I have also made near 7 figures in a single year…
But I’ve never once had to fake who I was.
Not because I’m special or too cool for it.
Because I learned early that authenticity and integrity are your biggest advantage.
You can recover from being stupid. But you don’t recover from being a liar.
My Montana Reality Check
I have run companies from a town of less than 400 people in Montana.
Not Silicon Valley, Austin or New York.
I’m in a town so small you can drive 30+ minutes in any direction and only run into one traffic light. You have to drive 15 minutes to find a neighbor (that isn’t a cow.)
I don’t need a corner office to prove I can start and scale businesses.
I didn’t need to network at cocktail parties to generate 200 million for businesses.
I needed three simple things: To be curious, to be competitive and to just start the damn thing.
The Truth About Starting From Zero
People will want a lot of things in life. Some more than others.
But most people will never even take the first step.
Not because they’re lazy.
Because they’re scared.
Scared of failing. Scared of looking stupid. Scared of starting.
When I started out, I had nothing…
No savings, no plan and definitely no idea what I was doing.
Hell, I was making coffee as an office assistant just to afford my 400 rent.
But that became my first stepping stone.
Fast-forward about 10 years and I was making nearly a million a year working at someone else’s company.
And that’s when I decided to start over.
From Zero… Again.
Because the hardest part of building your own thing is getting started.
I kept telling myself I needed the perfect product, or name, or it just wasn’t the right time…
I was lying to myself. In a way, I was faking it.
You just need to start.
Before you’re ready.
Because focus builds momentum and momentum compounds over time.
So if you want to control life on your terms. Your business. An income You get to decide. Waking up on Monday to do something You love…
You have to start scared.
Because everyone else who has those things did.
And the only thing separating you from those who were successful is they started anyway.
The Compound Effect of Truth
Every time you fake something, you create debt.
Integrity debt. And that kind of debt compounds faster than any interest rate.
You fake your revenue? Now you have to fake the size of your company.
You fake your team size? Now you have to fake your capabilities.
You fake your expertise? Now you have to fake your results.
Meanwhile, I’m sitting in Montana telling people exactly what I know and exactly what I don’t.
I don’t want that debt. I don’t want to pay off that compounding interest against the truth.
How to Never Fake It
Stop trying to be impressive. Start being useful.
There you go, section over. I’ll keep going but I’m only half kidding…
You don’t have to fake expertise if you learn the actual skills. You don’t need to fake connections if you can build real relationships. You don’t have to fake results if you’re doing the real thing.
If you don’t want to fake it - here’s my secret:
Pick one thing and get undeniably good at it. For me, it was understanding the math of business. Not kinda good. Undeniably good.
Start where you actually are. I didn’t move to Silicon Valley (I wouldn’t have fit in.) I didn’t pretend to be some “serial entrepreneur with 7 exits.” I was a guy in Montana who was really good at starting and scaling companies. That’s it.
Let your results do the talking. When you’ve generated hundreds of millions in revenue, you don’t need to convince people. The numbers convince them for you.
The Uncomfortable Truth
The reason most people fake it isn’t complicated. Hell, I can hardly blame them…
They’re just addicted to looking successful rather than being successful. To having the thing, rather than earning the thing.
The appearance of whatever they’re faking is more important than being or earning it.
Because it’s much easier to have the story, than the results.
Here’s what I learned living on the ranch, building real companies.
The people who matter can tell the difference. Always.
The people closest to you will know.
And most importantly, you know.
The Invitation
So here’s my challenge to you: Stap faking anything for the next 30 days.
Go on a faking diet, if you will. Don’t pretend to know things you don’t. Don’t act bigger than you are. Don’t tell stories you know aren’t true.
Instead, get violently good at something real. Real skills. Real relationships. Real value.
Why? Because when you’re actually good, you never have to pretend to be.
The ones who win aren’t the ones with the best story. They’re the ones who are the best.
Cody Alexander
From the ranch in Montana, where the only thing I’m faking is that I’m going to go out in this downpour and fix the damn fence.
P.S. If you want to stop faking, and start your own company. I’m doing a FREE LIVE training TOMORROW, November 16th at 6pm ET to show you the #1 product selling in 2025.