The word of the century. How it's defined those who have it and those who don't. Imposter syndrome refers to the phenomenon where people will doubt their abilities and fear being exposed as a fraud, even though the evidence for their competence and achievements show otherwise. People with imposter syndrome often downplay their accomplishments, and blame others for their success (Yup you read that right!) So what to do if you've got the ick (the imposter syndrome ick, that is).
Overcoming imposter syndrome is actually really simple! Simple but many of us stay stuck in mental block we refuse to face and overcome, until the day we decide this no longer serves us! There's a nice description of the 3 P's of imposter syndrome, they are 1) Perfectionism, 2) People-pleasing, and 3) paralyzation. These three pillars are what cater to imposter syndrome. If we aim for perfect, we'll never get there! We will always feel like it's "not good enough", and for that I have the best quote (and book recommendation for those who feel sparked by the idea of overcoming our own self created hurdles), by Theodore Roosevelt...
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Theodore Roosevelt
The point is, you are doing more than the guy who didn't do anything at all, and the ones who have done it won't judge because they too stood where you stand - in the arena. The second pillar was people pleasing! Oh how we love this one. People-pleasing is the rejection of your own wants and needs. Once you begin trying to please everyone, you'll realize that it is quite frankly impossible. Stick to what makes you happy, because it makes you happy, not because others will like you for it. And Third pillar is paralyzation. This is where we feel so overwhelmed by the idea of something that rather than taking small steps to reach a goal, we shove the goal in the back of the closet and hope to catch it later.
And that's when you come here, to the handy dandy Guide-Lens counselor. I will be here to provide you with simple tips and tricks, products that were hard yes's and hard No's, and more!
So the antidotes to the three pillars and for overcoming imposter syndrome is actually very simple! The antidote to the first pillar is to allow yourself to do it messy. No need to have it all figured out just yet, piece it together as you go and learn and you begin to feel the traction under your feet. The antidote for the second pillar is to do what you want to do without caring what people may think. And the antidote for the third pillar is to just DO IT!
