thoughts of hot cues?

I recently played at my first gig and everyone thought I did great (including other djs) but I kind of feel like a fraud for using pre-planned hot cues to help me with my transitions.

I’ve tried playing without hot cues on my own and it always sounds messy/bad. Hot cues make me less anxious and more confident when I’m performing.

Am I less of a DJ for using them? Should I be working my way towards not using hot cues?