My daughter’s mind is a Cauldron of Curiosity, and when she was super young, she perpetually peppered questions at a rate of roughly 678 Inquiries Per Hour.

And whether it was due to fatigue, ignorance, or inability to interpret the question, there were many times where my response would be, “I don’t know.”

And with infantile apoplexy, she would say, “DAD! PRETEND you know!”

And although I understand there are certain situations where “Fake It ‘Til You Make It,” is a sound coping strategy, I feel like “Pretend You Know” may very well be among the Best Practices in the current Corporate America Manual for Success.

Because competence and expertise have been mortgaged for efficiency, you can simply “Pretend You Know” the salient material. After all, ChatGPT or Grok can instantly tell you what you need to Pretend to Know. 

And if you name drop some well-respected Key Opinion Leader, you can Pretend You Know them on a personal level and Pretend You Know what they know because you sycophantically genuflected at their Ego Altar while you attended a conference. Does that prominent Thought Leader remember you? Not a chance, but perhaps they will Pretend to Know You if you’re lucky.

And if you Pretend You Know the right people, you can ascend the Corporate Ladder that leads to a mirage of Self-Actualization. And once you’re there, you can Pretend You Know what it means to be happy and have purpose in life, which you have achieved by perpetually wading in the pool of shallow relationships and superficial pleasantries.

Pretend You Know. And No One will ever Know what You Don’t Know. But deep down, You Know.