Through the many conversations that organizational psychologist Amantha Imber has had with her guests on her podcast, it turns out that no matter how competent or successful people are, many feel the same fears and insecurity. Still, unlike many of us, they've discovered ways to channel their emotions into something productive.
This is the process:
- Interpret self-doubt as a positive emotion. Instead of avoiding doubtful experiences, accept them and remember that it's the challenges that drive our growth.
- Stop trying to be the smartest, and don't be obsessed with how others perceive you or self-censor, as this will get in the way of your learning.
- Don't be afraid to fail even if it scares you, and if you feel doubtful when opportunities come, ask yourself why you're scared and if you're hesitant to do something because you're worried about failing.
- Don't run away from negative feedback, but accept it, and remember that only negative - not positive - feedback helps you learn how to develop and improve.
Amantha Imber, an organizational psychologist, recounts how she felt when she received a call telling her she had been accepted into the Ph.D. program in organizational psychology at Monash University: “I thought there was an administrative mistake.
I was too young and inexperienced. But then, it turned out that there was no mistake, and I was indeed accepted. Less than three years later, I became the youngest graduate in the program.
Today, I'm an organizational psychologist, and I run Inventium, a behavioral science consulting company that aims to help people improve their performance and feel happier at work. In addition, I created my podcast How I Work, hosting CEOs, entrepreneurs, and writers to talk about what led them to success.
From the many conversations I've had with people from all walks of life, I've realized that I'm not the only one with imposter syndrome, and scientific research has found that up to 82% of people have imposter syndrome. The other 18% are probably too afraid to admit it.
How can you overcome imposter syndrome?
This number may be surprising to you, and fortunately, many were able to overcome this syndrome by following four effective strategies, and this is what we present to you in this article:
1. Interpreting self-doubt as a positive emotion
American author and actress Abbi Jacobson suffered from imposter syndrome during the first seasons of Broad City, and Abby described her experience of feeling entirely suspicious and self-doubtful while speaking at events or panel discussions; She felt that her work was too little for all these people to talk about, which made her feel nervous and afraid of being good later, but she looked at this tension and self-doubt as a positive thing, contrary to what most of us do, saying: "I am happy that I still feel very nervous, even if I do not have to feel that, I want to look at myself always and wonder what I have reached in my career, and I want to measure the distance I have traveled and know that there is still a lot to do; this allows me to develop and be aware, even if I am confident now and the projects I am doing."
Abby's point of view may help us interpret our feelings about imposter syndrome from a different point of view, and think of it as something positive and energy-enhancing, or evidence of how much we care about what we do, so the next time you feel self-doubt, try to interpret these feelings as a motivating force that gives you room to evolve, and accept experiences that raise your self-doubt instead of avoiding them because it is the challenges that help us improve.
2. Don't try to be the smartest
Even though she co-founded Melbourne-based technology company Envato, which is worth more than $1 billion, CEO Sian Tide has long felt that she isn't as intelligent, strong, and perfect as everyone thinks.
Cyan looked for role models to overcome the imposter syndrome and spoke to them, and closely monitored what they did differently than what she did; One of the major features was that they were not afraid to ask questions that might make them look stupid, and this is what Cyan admitted that she was always worried about, saying: "My thinking was shifting from wanting to look smarter to wanting to leave the place; I wanted to ask questions constantly, so I was eager not to care if it made me look stupid."
We may have all felt this way and avoided asking questions for fear of being judged by others; Still, there is a new practice, which is to simply ask what is in your mind, and you will find that this is a simple thing that does not require fear; It helps you to develop and know what you want and also to encourage nervous people like you to talk.
So, instead of obsessing about how others view you, get rid of your self-censorship so you don't get in the way of learning, and know that there are other possibilities other than looking stupid; For example, other people - trying to impress them - may want to ask the same question, and also remember that you are doing others a favor by asking any question you need to clarify or more information about. In addition, you'll seem more confident in your abilities and competence because you dared to ask a question you didn't know the answer to.
3. Not avoiding failure even if it scares you
Cyan also found that impostor syndrome was causing her to avoid seemingly frightening opportunities: “I have been avoiding failure for a long time, but then I realized I had to seize opportunities, even if they were frightening because while acceptance may increase the risk of potential failure, it also helps me develop and grow because it is hard to get better with easy or safe opportunities,” she said.
Through practice, Cyan has forced herself not to be afraid of failure and to deal with it, big or small, saying, “When you try to do hard things that someone has never done before, you often fail. “They launched about ten startups; Little is known or heard about them because they didn't work, and they closed them down.”
As Cayan says, she's not afraid to admit not knowing if this is true, rather than pretending otherwise.
The Cyan method helps to not be confused by the idea of failure and realize that it is okay not to know all the answers; So, if you feel hesitant when opportunities come to you, ask yourself why you are afraid, whether you are hesitant because you are worried about failing, and if the answer is “yes,” this could be a good sign that you should accept this opportunity because it would be an excellent opportunity to step up. Just make sure you're not burdened and prioritize experiences that will develop you and help you reach your goals.
4. Do not evade negative feedback
If you see inventor Dom Price speaking at a conference, you will assume that he is the most confident person ever; He is very tall, his voice is loud, and he runs the research and development department at Atlassian, one of the largest technology companies in the world. However, Dom had always suffered from imposter syndrome, but listening to feedback was a huge motivator for him.
“It is ironic that so many people see imposter syndrome as a reason not to listen to negative conversations. In fact, when I received some feedback on one of the occasions I spoke in the United States recently, I ignored all the credit and went straight to criticism because I wanted to know what people did not like; after all, I cannot learn much from praise, but I can learn a lot from critical feedback, and I believe that the moment I become arrogant and do not accept criticism, I will pave my way to failure.”
You should accept negative feedback, not take it personally, and look at it with constructive criticism and a strategy that helps you improve your performance because if someone gives you critical feedback, it means that he believes that you can improve, and this is a good signal, so be careful not to close the door to negative feedback, and remind yourself that only negative feedback - not positive - helps you know how to develop and improve, and the assumption of positive intention in the feedback provider is helpful, they want you to improve and believes that you can do so. Next, plan how to apply the feedback, and you can always get back to the person who gave it to you.
In conclusion
Accept the imposter syndrome, and stop counting it as a weakness. The most successful people in the world have doubts about themselves and are not afraid to look stupid. If you avoid doing something because it makes you nervous, remind yourself that these experiences are the most important ones that help you learn.
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