Your guide to overcoming imposter syndrome

Whether you have the qualifications or not, sometimes you still feel like a total fraud. You keep thinking someone is sure to call you out any day now.

Feeling like this is a classic sign of imposter syndrome. It makes you feel incompetent even when you have all the skills and knowledge you need to succeed. If you let it, it can keep you from fulfilling your potential and achieving what you want.

Let’s first get to grips with what imposter syndrome is. It’s a psychological phenomenon that makes you doubt your accomplishments and abilities, even if you have evidence to prove you have them. It leads you to worry that you’ll be exposed as a fraud – that’s where the ‘imposter’ part comes from.

Have you ever stopped yourself from contributing to a conversation because you think your point is too basic and will prove to everyone that you shouldn’t be there? That’s imposter syndrome.

If someone compliments you on your presentation and you assume they wouldn’t have said that if they knew how terrified you were, (yep, you guessed it) that’s imposter syndrome too.

These feelings can drive you to overachieve so you won’t be ‘found out’. It’s a vicious cycle as you’ll then start to think that burning yourself out is what you always have to do to succeed.

Imposter syndrome can also keep you from putting yourself forward for opportunities. If you don’t trust your abilities and feel anxious about being outed for being incompetent, you’re not going to take the calculated risks that can help you move forward.

When you’re in the middle of it, it can feel as though you’re the only one in the world who feels like this but it’s very common.

And remember what we said about it being evidence-proof? People like Albert Einstein, Michelle Obama and Emma Watson have all admitted to feeling like complete fakers, despite their huge success. Albert Einstein. Let that sink in for a moment.

There’s no one reason why we experience imposter syndrome. It can be triggered by lots of different factors.

What we do know is that it’s closely associated with transitions and new experiences. That’s why you’re particularly likely to experience it when starting university, getting a new job or being handed more responsibilities at work.

While it can affect anyone at any time, there are also aspects of your identity that might increase your risk of experiencing it. One of those is your age, with a study by Heriot-Watt University reporting that 45% of younger professionals (age 24 to 44) said they frequently experienced imposter feelings, compared to 30% of older professionals (age 45-54). Women and people from minority groups are also more likely to feel this way.

Let’s take a quick look at the most common symptoms of imposter syndrome.

The first thing to look out for is that feeling that you’re going to be ‘found out’. You might be afraid that you’re going to fall short of people’s expectations and that they’ll realise you have no idea what you’re doing.

How you think about your achievements and abilities can also be telling. Have you ever achieved something and told yourself it only happened because someone made a mistake, you got lucky or because you had help? That might sound like healthy humility but if you find you’re always finding excuses not to give yourself credit, it could well be imposter syndrome.

Finally, if you find it hard to let go of small mistakes or flaws in your work, that’s also a sign. It suggests that deep down, you think you need to be perfect to be competent.

Thankfully, there are steps you can start taking right now to shake those sneaky doubts. Here are our top tips for how you can deal with imposter syndrome.

Imagine that someone who you respect invites you to work on a new project. You instantly panic that you’ll do a poor job and let them down.

In situations like this, it’s important to recognise imposter syndrome at work. In this case, it’s causing you to leap to the worst-case scenario. Telling yourself that you’re not viewing this situation clearly can stop you from getting swept up in negativity.

Take a breath and think about your reaction. Ask yourself why you’re thinking this way. What are the facts?

Do you have any evidence for assuming the worst? If you do, are there any practical steps you can take to address those doubts? Eg. If you’re panicking because you’ve never handled a project like this before, could you ask someone with more experience for some pointers?

You should also look for any facts that suggest it could go better than you think. After all, the person asking for your help clearly thinks you’ll do a good job. Isn’t there a chance that they’re right?

Be mindful about your self-talk – the things you tell yourself in your head.

Rather than telling yourself that you’re going to fail, tell yourself that you’re going to try your best. Rather than telling yourself there’s lots you don’t know, remind yourself of what you do know and then ask yourself what you can do to fill in any gaps in your knowledge.

If you change the story you tell yourself about a situation, you’ll find it becomes a lot more manageable. This is an opportunity to learn and grow, not the end of your journey.

What if you're in the right place, you're not a fraud, and you do deserve to be here?

Imposter syndrome causes you to disregard your achievements, so regularly remind yourself of them.

Keep symbols of your accomplishments around, whether that’s framing your graduation photo or putting a sports trophy somewhere you can see it. How about printing out positive comments from your tutors, boss or friends as well? This might seem a bit cringe, but it works.

Don’t just focus on the big stuff though. It’s just as important to celebrate smaller wins or steps you’ve taken on the way to a bigger goal.

You could try keeping a Weekly Wins List where you challenge yourself to find a set number of things to praise yourself for every week. Even if you don’t believe them at first, you’ll slowly get more comfortable looking for things worth celebrating.

Try not to put your success down to happy accidents. Of course, luck does sometimes play a part but it’s rarely the only reason something good happens.

Say you meet someone at a networking event who offers you an opportunity. While it was lucky that you met them, you decided to put yourself out there and then made a good impression. You wouldn’t have received the opportunity if you hadn’t done those things, so take pride in them.

You should do the same when you accomplish something as part of a group or with help. You might have needed a hand, but that doesn’t mean you didn’t contribute. Some things are a relay race, not a solo sprint.

If you reach out to a trusted friend and explain how you’re feeling, they can help you put your fears into perspective. Together, you can identify which worries are logical and which aren’t.

They’ll also be able to provide external validation for your achievements, making it more difficult for you to set them aside.

When someone compliments you, Imposter syndrome might make you think they don’t know what they’re talking about.

But remember that their able to be a lot more objective than you are. Rather than thinking “they’d never say that if they knew…” remind yourself that they might have seen something in you that you’re not able to see right now.

The first step is changing how you respond. Your instinct when someone praises you is probably to wave it away or downplay whatever it is they’re praising you for. But by doing this, you’re reinforcing your belief that you don’t deserve praise.

Instead of saying “Thank you but…” just say thank you. It’s a small change but it can make a big difference (and we promise the person won’t go away thinking you need a pin to deflate your ego).

Imposter syndrome can turn tasks into huge mountains that you have no idea how to climb. But there is actually only one way to climb a mountain: one step at a time.

Rather than staring at the big picture, start breaking it down into smaller pieces. If you can give yourself practical actions to take, they’ll act as stepping stones towards the larger goal.

This could be coming up with a study schedule for an exam, breaking a work project down into microtasks, or creating a self-development plan for getting to grips with a new role. The idea is to focus on what you can do right now, rather than on what you’re telling yourself you won’t be able to do later.

As you complete each small step, your knowledge, skills and confidence will grow. You’ll be at the top of that mountain before you know it. Just make sure you remember to celebrate the accomplishment and give yourself a massive pat on the back when you get up there.

Remember, we all feel like an imposter sometimes. By reminding yourself of what you’ve accomplished already and gently challenging those negative thoughts when they come up, you can make sure imposter syndrome doesn’t hold you back.