Have you ever had the overwhelming feeling that you don\u2019t deserve success? Or do you lack confidence and believe you\u2019re not as smart, creative or talented as you should be? If so, you could be suffering from a case of imposter syndrome – a deep-seated sense that you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re doing and that everyone will find out. It\u2019s that nagging voice in your head that tells you you\u2019re not good enough which in turn can have serious impacts on your confidence and self-esteem.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Often described as a fear of failure or self sabotage, imposter syndrome can often involve feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy, feeling like a fraud or that your achievements are simply due to good luck or timing rather than talent.<\/p>\r\n
Usually experienced by high achievers and perfectionists, imposter syndrome often rears its ugly head during moments of success like starting a new job or business, getting a promotion or receiving recognition for your work. It\u2019s a feeling of chronic self-doubt that makes you blind to your own achievements.<\/p>\r\n
One of the first steps in overcoming imposter syndrome is to acknowledge what you\u2019re feeling and why. This could be as simple as keeping a journal and writing down what the voice in your head is telling you, what you\u2019re feeling and why you think you might feel that way.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
By jotting down your thoughts, it\u2019s easier to see just how harmful they are and that they aren\u2019t helping your mental wellbeing. Although feelings are important, they are just feelings and usually don\u2019t reflect reality – feeling like a fraud doesn\u2019t\u00a0 mean that you actually are. Talking to a professional can also help manage negative self talk and provide you with the tools to change those thoughts and feelings.<\/p>\r\n
To stop feeling like an imposter, you have to stop thinking like an imposter. Change your thought patterns by acknowledging negative thoughts when they appear and reminding yourself they are only thoughts and that thoughts can be changed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Keep track of any positive feedback and praise you receive so that next time you hear the negative voice in your head, you can look back at these positive experiences and realise you deserve to be successful. It also helps to remember that you\u2019re just as smart and deserving as the next person.<\/p>\r\n
Rather than telling yourself that you\u2019re a fraud who doesn\u2019t deserve success, remind yourself that you\u2019re not alone and that no-one has all the answers. Embrace your mistakes and reframe failure as a wonderful learning opportunity that will help you grow as a person. We\u2019re all going to experience failure at some point in our lives, so it\u2019s better to look for the lessons in these instances and use them as part of the learning process.<\/p>\r\n
We can co-design a tailored, high impact and value-adding coaching program for you or your leadership team.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Have you ever had the overwhelming feeling that you don\u2019t deserve success? Or do you lack confidence and believe you\u2019re not as smart, creative or talented as you should be? If so, you could be suffering from a case of imposter syndrome - a deep-seated sense that you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re doing and that...","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":917,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Imposter Syndrome","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Imposter Syndrome - How to Recognise & Practical Solutions","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Have you ever had that nagging inner thought, that you don't know what you're doing and don't belong in your current role? You could be suffering from imposter syndrome.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-adv":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"team_author":[26],"class_list":["post-915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-leadership","team_author-julia-fiore"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n