I spent years perfecting an illusion. The illusion that everything was effortless — that I had it all under control. That I could take on any task with a breezy “sure, no problem” and deliver flawlessly.
Perhaps it was because I was often in roles for which I wasn’t fully prepared, and I thought making it look easy would inspire confidence. Or maybe it was the external validation — the praise that came from appearing competent without visible effort. Whatever the reason, I got good at minimizing the struggle to make hard things look simple. And once the habit was ingrained, even when I did feel competent, I continued the pattern of downplaying what it took to make things happen.
