She has written 11 books, but says that she always feels that “’Uh-oh, they’re going to find out now.’ If you are wondering who, this was a quote by a really low-profile underachiever by the name of Maya Angelou. This is not just limited to her. In another interview, I read that when asked “How many of you in here feel that you are the one mistake that the admissions committee made?” over two-thirds of incoming students at the notoriously selective Harvard Business School raised their hands.
In today’s world, high achievers have to deal with a feeling of fraudulence where they don’t consider themselves qualified for their position and convince themselves that they’ve cheated their way into their success. This feeling have been acknowledged as a corporate disease and named ‘the impostor syndrome’.
What is the “impostor syndrome”?
Impostor syndrome can be defined as a “collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist even in face of information that indicates that the opposite is true. It is experienced internally as chronic self-doubt, and feelings of intellectual fraudulence.”
“The impostor syndrome describes the countless millions of people who do not experience an inner sense of competence or success. Despite often overwhelming evidence of their abilities, impostors dismiss them as merely a matter of luck, timing, outside help, charm—even computer error. Because people who have the impostor syndrome feel that they’ve somehow managed to slip through the system undetected, in their mind it’s just a matter of time before they’re found out.” states Valerie Young, author of The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women.
Which high achiever suffering from the impostor syndrome?
Actress Kate Winslet says: “I’d wake up in the morning before going off to a shoot, and think, I can’t do this; I’m a fraud.” According to you, should an Academy Award winning actress of the caliber of Kate Winslet says such a thing. Should she be suffering from this syndrome?
This syndrome is associated with highly achieving and highly successful people from in different professions such as teachers, people in the social sciences, people in academia, actresses and actors, may all have impostor feelings. It was originally associated with women, but recent research indicated that men suffer in similar numbers.
How do you know if you are the achiever suffering from the impostor syndrome?
Are you a fake in your position? Have you made statements or variations of this like: “I look more competent than I really am.” And/or “I am terrified people will discover how much I don’t know”.
Is your success a credit to sheer dumb luck? Another symptom is the tendency to attribute success to luck or some other reasons and not to your own abilities. People would get to hear statements like, “I just got lucky this time” “it was a fluke” so as to excuse themselves if they are not able to replicate the same success again.
Do you tend to discount/downplay your successes? People suffering this syndrome typically tend to discount their achievements by saying, “it is not a big deal,” “it was not important.” Or saying, “I did well because it is an easy class, etc.”
So, how do you combat feelings of being an impostor?
Owning your successes. ‘The impostors’ have a tendency to attribute their success to external factors – like luck or a helping hand. You will see this in women more so than men who are more likely to attribute their successes to a combination of internal factors, such as grit, talent, brains and sheer hard work.
– Acknowledge your fear. Use logic and facts to combat your fears by keeping a inventory of your skills, accomplishments, and experiences to understand your success. Also note compliments or acknowledgement received from peers, seniors and public. Go through this list whenever you feel like a fraud or if you feel like you don’t deserve the success you have achieved.
– Accept and internalize external validation. Learn to receive compliments and accolades and peer judgments positively and internalize the same.If you are accustomed to resist then acknowledge and discard your habitual negative response. Another way to practice this is to ask a trusted ally what your special gifts are; listen carefully and “metabolize” your friend’s words.
Build support groups customized to you. There are 2 connections you should specifically look at – 1) Clarify your own values, and build connections with people people who share similar values and have similar accomplishments and can act as a personal cheer squad. 2) Speak about your feelings with a trusted friend, a coach, a mentor, your partner, or a therapist. Turn like-minded people into allies. Develop a circle of people around you who see the real you and whose opinions you respect.
Increase your happiness index. 1) Find ways to regularly relieve stress – take cooking lessons, find a good gym or workout class, take walks, watch your favorite TV show. Engage in these activities without guilt or judgment. 2) Have a sense of humor. One of the best ways to maintain perspective is to laugh as often as possible—especially at yourself. 3) Be sure to socialize either in a group or with some close friends. Isolation from peers is a side-effect of the imposter syndrome. It is impossible to deal with high pressure of work and your own high expectations of yourself if you do not interact with people.
Don’t indulge in comparisons because they are never fair. Comparisons are always subjective, often biased and rarely helpful. Most people have their own personal and professional challenges to get through, even if you think they have it all. In comparing ourselves, we often tend to compare our weaknesses with others strengths. We say to ourselves, “If I had so-and-so’s confidence and presentation skills,” or “If only I was as creative as this person.” But if these people also have similar thoughts, then where does that leave you in retrospect.
Hopefully any of you in management positions suffering from this, will take steps to own your successes and move on and not let the high achiever in you suffer so!
