阅读 7 选 5 Pretend You’re Good at It A while back, I met my pal Jenny, who was in town recording her biography, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened . __1__ She told me that it had been going horribly—until she reached out to her friend Neil for advice . When she asked Neil how he managed to record so many of his books while still sounding so cool and collected, his response came back almost immediately: PRETEND YOU’RE GOOD AT IT. So she wrote his advice on her arm and went back into the recording studio. __2__ And she was. She re-recorded the first chapter with her new words singing through her head. __3__ Of course I was happy it worked for my friend Jenny, but other than that, I didn’t think much about it. But slowly, gradually, “Pretend you’re good at it” has worked its magic on me. I have long suffered from a serious mental disease. I needed something to help me get past my fears and head out into the world. __4__ And it worked. Having a hard time getting up in the morning? Tell yourself that you are the best at getting up early. __5__ Pretend you’re good at it, and you’ll surprise yourself with how good you really are. However, “Pretend you’re good at if” is not a substitute for actual training or an excuse to behave in a proud and unpleasant way, either. A. What would that look like? B. I asked her how it was going. C. I pretended, and my anxiety eased. D. So I turned to “pretend you’re good at it”. E. She took a deep breath and pretended she was good at it. F. “Pretend you’re good at it,” on the other hand, is more playful. G. This didn’t strike me as particularly world-changing advice, honestly.