An Epidemic: Imposter Syndrome
There’s an Epidemic
It’s not COVID.
It’s not Obesity.
No, it’s not Addiction.
It’s not any other physical health condition (stay with me, I’m not trying to minimize any of those things).
It robs the world of our gifts and talents.
Crippling us all.
And everyone I’ve ever spoken to suffers from it.
The epidemic is imposter syndrome, and it’s very real. According to the NIH, the formal definition is a behavioral health phenomenon described as self-doubt of intellect, skills, or accomplishments among high-achieving individuals. These individuals cannot internalize their success and subsequently experience pervasive feelings of self-doubt, anxiety, depression, and/or apprehension of being exposed as a fraud in their work, despite verifiable and objective evidence of their success.
Career Journey with
Imposter Syndrome
As I embark on a new career journey, I can feel a flair-up. I just want to say never mind and get some easy job where I can be invisible and not have to think much. But logically, I know I’m pretty good at what I do. If I were to retreat, it would be a disservice to those who I know will benefit from my work.
Still, I can feel the body’s memories. In 2006, I was hired into my first customer success role. My manager made it clear that I was brought on at a ‘junior level’ more times than I can count. That label always hung over my head, reminding me I was younger and less experienced than others on the team. This could not have fueled my imposter syndrome anymore. Perhaps this was intentional because it drove me to work harder, to prove myself. And you know what? I did. There were a few faceplants, but for the most part, I kicked ass at that job.
20 Years Later
Almost 20 years later, I’m feeling the same feelings, particularly the body memories. I’m learning a whole new industry. And I’m surrounded by talented and experienced people. I’m drinking from the firehose, as they say. And yes, I’m overwhelmed. But this time feels different because I can ground my thoughts in facts and data. I’m at a point where I can say that I bring 25 years of relatable experience to the role. This is actually the truth.
But…
Sometimes facts and data are not enough. Because imposter syndrome is powerful and has the best intentions, it wants to protect us from suffering. It wants to keep us safe from those oh-so-embarrassing faceplants. But by succumbing to it, we stunt our own growth.
Question
A powerful question we can ask ourselves as an antidote to imposter syndrome is…
When have you felt like an imposter in the past?
If I look only at my adult life, I can confidently answer this by saying…
Every single time I’ve started a new job.
This leads me to dig deeper into all the new jobs and the things I’ve successfully learned…
Trusted Guidance
2000
Property Management
Terms like section 8, market value, skilled beds, assisted living, and independent living became common.
2002
Reinsurance
If you are left saying, what the fuck is that? Then, you are not alone. Not only did I learn it, but I developed e-learning programs to teach others about it.
2006
Health Insurance Everyone’s favorite, especially around the time that the Michael Moore movie Sicko was released. This was my first customer success role, and what I loved the most about my work was the relationships I had built. So I grounded myself in that. Health Insurance in the US is a controversial topic, and I’ve had my share of frustration with it. But these companies employ hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom are excellent. So, I grounded in my desire to support these people through my work.
2011
Higher Education & Government
Not to mention creating the customer success program for Lynda.com from the ground up. I made it up as I went along. Somehow it worked. I learned to deal with higher education’s siloed nature and the bureaucracy of government agencies.
2022
Enablement
Quite honestly, this was a happy accident. It came out of recognition that the best way I could serve was to tame the chaos of customer success at my recently joined, well-meaning startup.
2023
Emotional Intelligence & Emotion Regulation
It’s hard to pick a favorite, but this might be it. This knowledge became invaluable as I embarked on my journey of somatic therapy, burnout recovery, and starting my business.
25 Years
In my career, I’ve learned and done some really cool shit. And, as I embark on my 25th year in the adult workforce, I know that I have it in me to do it again, as scary as that feels right now.
What feels right is not to say that this is a big FUCK YOU to imposter syndrome because I know it is trying to protect me. So I take a more gentle approach. It’s a recognition of the role it plays to keep me safe and keep me humble.
The question is…
Can I walk side by side with it without letting it control me?
Can I keep it in check so I’m not robbing the world of my talents?
What about you? What would your list of career accomplishments look like?
And what is your relationship with imposter syndrome?
I want to hear about the cool shit you’ve done in your career. Let’s connect!
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