Imposter syndrome limits us

I feel like now is a good time for a word about imposter syndrome. While I recognise the feeling I do wonder if this is a useful term to be using. Doesn’t it feel very weighty? Almost like an illness. ‘I can’t do that, I have imposter syndrome.’

Labels weigh us down. If you don’t feel like you should be in the room, what do you need to believe that you do? If it’s more knowledge, can you find someone who can help you with that? If it’s more experience, well, you are only going to get that if you are in that room! Women can feel like imposters if they don’t think they know 90 per cent of what is going on. But that’s rarely the case. And usually someone has invited you or encouraged you into that space in the first place. Do you trust their opinion? They clearly value your contribution.

‘Imposter syndrome’ is a good example of a time when we look at others’ exteriors, to the confident face they present to the world, and compare it to our fearful interior. Other people feel insecure too, you just can’t always see it. It is also an opportunity to use common sense to talk back to the negative voice in our head and accept that it is what it is. It can be a part of us that occasionally likes to get overly loud. I always used to tell it to quieten down, but recently realised that this might be a version of our younger self that needs kinder words and reassurance from our older selves in order to keep moving forward positively.

You need to value your contribution