3 Ways Impostor Syndrome is Holding you Back

Let’s talk about perfectionism’s distant relative, impostor syndrome. Impostor syndrome is a belief that you are less competent, talented, intelligent, etc than what others believe or perceive you to be. Those with impostor syndrome fear their believed shortcomings will be found out and they’ll be exposed for who they “truly” are…incompetent and a failure. Generally, this is a thought error in the sense that there is little to no evidence that one is actually failing and duping everyone in the process. 

Impostor syndrome is a slippery slope leading us right back into the welcoming arms of perfectionism. On the one hand, experiencing impostor syndrome may seem appealing and even motivating because it propels us to put our best foot forward (aka often striving for what is likely an unrealistic expectation of self), but the dark side of this thought process is that it pushes us to attempt to complete a task perfectly often leading to one of two responses, procrastination, and avoidance or over-preparedness. 

So, now that we know what impostor syndrome is, let’s talk about ways impostor syndrome may show up in your life, keeping you stuck. 

1. You spend countless hours scrutinizing yourself or your performance.
   After all, you have to show up just right, perfectly even, to ensure you continue to prove you really know your sh*t.
   Instead of continuously scrutinizing, stop comparing yourself and measuring your success to others or even your own lofty expectations. Rather, set a realistic goal that’s in-line with your desired task or outcome and celebrate your wins along the way.

2. You shut down and procrastinate.
   You feel drained.
   You recognize that if you don’t do anything at all then you can’t possibly have any expectations to live up to and therefore can’t risk being a phony or failing.
   This one’s a doozy. I invite you to help regulate your fight/flight/freeze response by just observing the self-doubting thoughts as neither good/bad nor fact/fiction. Then create some alternative thoughts to set you up for success.

• Instead of “I’m in over my head” consider “I’m going to take this one step at a time.”

• Instead of “this is pointless, I’ll never succeed” consider “I am in control over my efforts and I’m going to give this my best shot.”

1. You underestimate yourself.
   You play small and believe your accomplishments are a fluke and based on pure luck.
   Therefore you set goals that are too easy and don’t maximize your potential.
   Gather evidence and take stock of your past and current successes and wins. Reinforce these wins by recognizing, celebrating, and reminding yourself that you’re capable of incredible things, and forge on with renewed confidence in your abilities by setting goals that are congruent with your capabilities.

Remember success in life is not only defined by one’s talents, abilities, intelligence, etc but often by how we think to ourselves about ourselves. When we align our thoughts with our abilities our potential is limitless.