Have you ever felt a sense of doubt when someone compliments you on your work? Or you don’t feel like you necessarily belong in your workplace because you think you lack the skills and feel like a fraud? Constantly wondering to yourself how you were able to get the job when you feel as if you don’t have the qualifications?
If you are suffering from these thoughts – you, my friend, have Impostor Syndrome. It’s a relatively new term that describes those who don’t feel like they deserve the high praise or accolades they receive in their workplace.
For further understanding, impostor syndrome is a condition in which you distrust your own talents and feel like a phony. It adversely impacts high-achieving individuals who struggle to accept their achievements. Many people doubt whether or not they are deserving of compliments.
To prevent oneself from feeling as such, or continuing to have self-doubt, one must always believe in oneself. Easier said than done, right?
But we gotchu. Here are a few ways on how to deal with impostor syndrome.
Take A Moment To Feel
When you accomplish something in your workplace or receive high appraisals from your higher-ups, do not let negative thoughts hinder you from embracing the terrific moment. The thoughts that you have would usually hinder your progress towards success. So, embrace, accept and squeeze every moment that you can when you do accomplish something, so that it will be the drive for you to achieve your next goal.
Inner Saboteur
The thoughts that are swimming in your head about not being good enough, or your work not being perfect, are just your own thoughts and no one else’s. That’s your inner saboteur preventing you from flourishing in your career. Also, perfectionism exacerbates your sense of inadequacy. When you feel like a fake, it’s typically because you’re reaching for an unachievable or unattainable outcome. Reward yourself with a break and more love – which leads me to my next point.
Kill It With Kindness
Give yourself the love that you deserve and stop undermining the skills that you have worked so hard to attain. Talking so negatively about yourself can severely impact your mental state and how you view yourself. Be kinder to yourself and start practicing positive affirmations such as “I am capable, skilled, and enthusiastic about my profession. I am enough.”
Simply altering the way you communicate to yourself in your brain, with a small phrase like that, can help. It can not only make you feel less stressed and nervous, but also help you have the courage to take risks that will pay off.
Count On Your Success
When you’re suffering from impostor syndrome, you have this tendency to attribute everything to luck and never appreciate the hard work that you put into your successes. So, keep track of all the accomplishments that you have made in your career in a notebook or a file in your computer. This way, you can look back on all the achievements that you have made to motivate yourself to work harder and acknowledge that you are doing well.
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