Have you ever experienced imposter syndrome? What is it, and how do you handle it?

Imposter syndrome is a term used in psychology to describe people who cannot realize their accomplishments and often doubt their ability to handle situations (commonly work).

I think this happens more frequently in daily life than people like to admit. How many times have you had a coworker tell you their promotion was luck because of lack of better candidates? Or a successful CEO stating that their success is due to being in the right place at the right time. 

Part of me loves to believe in luck, it’s hopeful, it’s romantic, it paints a nice picture, maybe describes the plot of an indie movie I would watch at the Metrograph. Yet that’s just not true when it comes to people’s careers. Most of the time that individual really deserved that promotion, they put in the sweat, the tears (hopefully figurative tears) and the time to grow into that role. The successful CEO spent countless hours working on their dream to make it a reality. That isn’t luck, that is work- and YOU did that. So you need to own that. 

So how do you handle imposter syndrome? First, I think it is fair to acknowledge your fears. Fear is normal, you are human, but you can’t let it take over you. 

1. Map out your accomplishments-maybe this is via LinkedIn or talk about it with a friend, maybe it is even just jotting it down in a notebook. 
2. Believe in your work and knowledge, and trust that you got to where you are because of your hard work. This is easier said than done, but needs to be said. 
3. Set up some time to chat with me, to discuss tactics on how to present your accomplishments, and set up a plan for the future.