Will 'fake it till you make it' take you far enough?

Microsoft's Bill Gates and Apple's Steve Jobs were no strangers to 'faking' it during at least a part of their initial struggle.

I once interviewed a wet-behind-the-ears upstart who came across as an extremely confident and self-assured candidate but for the fact that she didn't have the required experience for the job she was applying for. She ticked every other box. She displayed great communications skills, had a positive attitude, was open to multitasking, and was willing to go the extra mile. Partly because the organisation couldn't find a candidate with the required experience for the position it wanted to fill in a hurry, and partly because this candidate managed to suitably impress the interview panel, she was hired.
She actually did well in the role and climbed the hierarchical ladder by a few notches before she decided to move on a few years later. In her exit interview, she confessed to me that when she appeared for the interview, she was extremely nervous but was desperate to fake it until she could make it. I must confess, too, that she did a good job of it. She isn't alone, though. Microsoft's Bill Gates and Apple's Steve Jobs were no strangers to 'faking' it during at least a part of their initial struggle. Richard Branson of the Virgin Group did it. So did Anita Roddick of The Body Shop. And Maurice and Charles Saatchi of the famous Saatchi and Saatchi ad agency.
There are several other high-profile entrepreneurs who put this aphorism to good use - they exuded confidence when they had little reason to, disguised limitations as deliberate pursuits, and pretended to have in abundance whatever it was that was required to pass muster when they clearly fell way short. But it doesn't work all the time. You can't fake being a rocket scientist or aircraft pilot or a surgeon or even a lawyer. You can fake something to get an audience with decision-makers, investors or TPTB (the powers that be), but you'll still need real ability and ambition when it comes to delivering the goods. That's the difference between faking it and being plain phoney.