Where'd My Confidence Go?

Have you ever received a compliment, praise, or an award and thought “why am I getting this”? Do you feel like you love your job, but still feel like you can’t do it? I know I’ve felt that way before.

It’s a weird feeling. You mentally know that you can complete the job, no problem. Your skill set is documented by your education and experience. You KNOW you’re deserving of this recognition, but you still feel like a fraud some days?

Guess what, there’s a name for that - Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome?

Reading through articles this morning, I stumbled across an article that Forbes published yesterday. The article caught my eye because it has a picture of a stylish woman in a bustling city looking up and laughing. this peaked my curiosity. The title, “You Are The CEO Of Your Life And Career: Here’s How To Own It” made me want to read it even more.

At the beginning of every Forbes article, it gives two or three “Tweetable” one-liners for you to share. To be honest, I didn’t even make it to the article. The first one-liner was “we can feel some form of imposter syndrome over being in charge of our own life!”. I set my coffee cup down and thought for a moment. What is imposter syndrome?

Thanks to Google, I did a quick search to find out what imposter syndrome is. According to an article written in September 2018 for Psychology Today, titled “The Reality of Imposter Syndrome”, I found out three things:

1. Imposter syndrome is not an actual disorder;

2. It is a psychological term that refers to a behavioral pattern where people have persistent and, often, internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud so they doubt their accomplishments; and

3. People experiencing imposter syndrome are convinced that they don’t deserve the success they have, even if there are adequate external evidences of achievement and accomplishments.

Here’s the thing about imposter syndrome - ANYONE can be affected by it. And, it can do crazy things to you. It can cause anxiety, stress, shame, low self-confidence and depression.

Wait, It Can Affect My Business Too??!!

What does that look like to an entrepreneur? It could be that, by feeling like we’re going to be exposed as a fraud, we shy away from going after new opportunities or decide not to learn a new skill. It can affect turning inquiries into leads, or affect our ability to be satisfied living the dream life we’ve built.

I can say, from first hand experience, imposter syndrome is a difficult thing to experience, but an even harder thing to talk about. When I left the safety net of my stable job last year, I experienced imposter syndrome for almost a solid four months. It was difficult to get through. I knew that I was qualified to do the work I was performing, I had many external sources providing me with outstanding referrals for my work, but I still struggled that it would all end. I was afraid I’d wake up from the dream life I was building and still be at the desk in a stuffy office building.

But you know what - the dream is still going. I’m living the life I AM CHOOSING TO LIVE. I still struggle, from time to time, with imposter syndrome but I remind myself that I am worth this life.

And you are too.

Whatever you’re choosing to do, whatever life you’re choosing to live, be that badass CEO of your life. You aren’t a fraud, you’ve just hit a bump in the road of accepting your dream life. But here’s a secret, the vehicle you’re driving (your life, career, whatever you’re struggling with) WILL get over that bump. Just give it time, trust me, it will.