Imposter Syndrome

A Research Paper By Mandy Leung, Transformational Coach, SINGAPORE

What Is Imposter Syndrome?

Do you have those inner voices inside your head?

“I am not that good enough.”

“I don’t deserve it.”

“I’m a total fraud, and someone’s going to find out.”

If you had similar thoughts before, you’re not alone.

Psychologists Pauline Rose Clance and Suzanne Imes first introduced the term Imposter Syndrome in 1978. The study is focused on women who are ambitious and high achieving. Despite outstanding accomplishments academically and professionally, women who experience the imposter syndrome still believe that they are not as bright as other people think. Business leaders such as Sheryl Sandberg (Facebook Chief Operation Officer), Michelle Obama (former First Lady), and Sonia Sotomayor (Supreme Court Judge) have confessed to experiencing it.

It doesn’t go away, that feeling that you shouldn’t take me that seriously. What do I know? I share that with you because we all have doubts in our abilities, about our power and what that power is. – Michelle Obama

According to Sheryl Sandberg’s book – Lean In, she cites the studies proving the prevalence of imposter syndrome amongst women and it is largely due to self-confidence.

What Are Signals Telling You That Your Client May Be Experiencing Imposter Syndrome?

• They don’t believe that they earn their success or position through their efforts. They rationalize their success with “I got lucky.”
• They feel inadequate in terms of intelligence, ability, experience, competency, or knowledge. They always feel that somebody else would have done a better job
• They are unable to internalize their accomplishments and be proud of what they achieved
• They are exaggerating their flaws and failings. They always feel like a fraud
• They feel that they need to be the best or perfect to gain value or trust from others
• They have a lot of self-doubt and anxiety
• They feel that overworking is the only way to meet expectations because they perceived themselves as inadequacies
• They feel unworthy of attention or affection
• They might develop self-defense and self-sabotaging coping strategies. They are fearful of not having something “smart” enough to say so that’s why they don’t speak up in the meetings

Why Do Some People Encounter Imposter Syndrome?

1. The Perfectionist: Set aggressive targets for themselves. However, when they fail to reach a target, they experience self-doubt and setback.
2. The Superhero: Be convinced they need to push themselves to the limit and prove that they’re deserved to earn the role.
3. The Natural Genius: They think that they have the natural talents to earn the role. When they experience a failure on their first try, they might feel embarrassed and have self-doubt.
4. The Soloist: they refused any additional help or assistance so that they can prove their worth. Asking someone for help or accepting support means admitting their inadequacies and showing themselves as a failure.
5. The Expert: They consider themselves a fraud or failure if they can’t address the questions or challenges posted to them. A study addressed in Lean In showed that the woman’s self-esteem drops significantly more than men’s when receiving negative feedback.

47% of workers worldwide reported increased feelings of imposter syndrome since 2020. During covid, the majority of people were required to work from home. People received less feedback professionally and socially in the workplace. The person with imposter syndrome would suffer the ability to speak with others and they would increase their self-doubt about their ability, competency, and capability.

Imposter Syndrome can happen in many ways. The reality of returning to the office and coming face to face with co-workers, direct reports, and senior leaders may pose tremendous anxiety and stress for many people. Also, the day-to-day challenge of covid can be difficult for perfectionists. They may feel that they are not performing at the level they’re used to or they want to. That can trigger the imposter feeling of “I’m not good enough to do this.”

Imposter Syndrome represents a conflict between your self-perception and the way how others perceive you.

Imposter Syndrome mostly strikes high-performing people. The effect of imposter syndrome leads to creating stress and reduced effectiveness at work.

The word “confidence” comes from the Latin word “fidere” which means “to trust”; therefore having self-confidence is having trust in oneself.

Yes. You. Yourself.

How to Overcome Imposter Syndrome

Acknowledge the Client’s Feelings and Make Them Aware That They Are Not Alone

• According to 62 studies published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine (December 2019), up to 82% of individuals may experience impostor syndrome feelings
• Helping the client to share their feeling and their stress can help them get some relief from their situations. Sharing those feelings can help them feel less overwhelmed
• Encourage them to open up to peers and share their feelings with others, helping them realize they aren’t the only one who feels like an imposter.
• Once they open up and share their emotions, they may be surprised and find out how many people relate to their feelings.

Challenge Your Client’s Self-Doubts

• When your client experiences imposter feelings, ask them whether any facts support these beliefs.
• When the outcome of work is less than ideal, people with imposter syndrome immediately jump to the conclusion that they are incompetent failures in the wrong job. Everyone makes mistakes, even the experts. It doesn’t mean that they are unqualified for their roles or positions.
• Those emotions are frequently based on fear rather than facts.
• When the client is attached to an outcome, they miss the “journey” or what’s in the present. It would be good to help the client to let their thoughts/ expectations get in the way of their current reality.
• Potential questions that you can explore with the client:
• What is true right now?
• What is it costing you to keep hoping for [expectation] when it may or may not happen?
• What evidence is there to support what you are saying?
• What is the consequence of that assumptions?

Normalize Your Client’s Feelings

• Impostor Syndrome normally happens when your client experiences success such as embarking on a new career, receiving a promotion, taking on expanded roles, starting their own business, or becoming a first-time parent.
• It’s okay to feel self-doubt when you’re walking into a new situation or stepping out of your comfort zone.
• Embrace the power of YET. By adding one simple word to the end of the sentences (like “I’m not good at…” or “I can’t do…) or beliefs, your client can switch from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset.

Build Connections and Focus On Their Strengths

• Boost up your client’s confidence by making them more aware of their strengths and weaknesses. Conduct a personal SWOT Analysis to discover their strengths and improvement areas
• Ask your client to write the name of someone who admires them. What 3 positive words would they use to describe themselves?
• Help your client to build a support network of people who truly know them, motivate them or counter their negative critic

Stop Comparing

• Focus on measuring your achievements instead of comparing them against others. For example, comparing your life against an influencer’s social media feed is a trap for feeling like a failure
• Be truly authentic to yourself and stop comparing yourself with others

Overcome Perfectionism

• Be more mindful and take regular breaks or meditation to help focus on the bigger picture
• Help your client to set a realistic, challenging, and achievable goal
• Remind them that mistakes are a part of life and enjoy the learning journey
• Mistakes also demonstrate that they’re not afraid to take risks and push themselves out of their comfort zone. The most important learning lesson is to “fail fast and learn fast”

Reframing Your Client’s Beliefs

• Start encouraging your client to give credits for their unique strengths and achievements rather than brushing them off.
• Potential questions that you can explore with the client:
• What are your strengths?
• How do you bring value with your strengths?

Develop a New Internal Script

• Support the client to build awareness when they’re in a situation that triggers their Impostor feelings and negative conversations going on in their heads. Remind them that it’s time to rewrite or develop a new script.

Visualize Success and Move Forward

• Help the client to picture themselves what success looks like e.g. when they make a successful presentation or calmly address questions in the meeting. It may help your client to paint a successful and confident picture to move forward.
• Potential questions that you can explore with the client:
• How would you feel if you were able to wake up and feel distressed?
• If you could start over, what would you do differently?
• Celebrate your client’s success
• When things go well, people with imposter syndrome attribute their success to external factors such as luck or help from others. When things go wrong, they tend to blame themselves
• Support your client to develop a robust internal acknowledgment system. When they achieve a target or finish a significant project, they need to acknowledge their unique skills and talents
• Remember to celebrate their success

Wrap Up

People with impostor syndrome often experience an inner voice in their heads, berating them with negative messages like “you’re not intelligent enough” or “you’re a fraud.”

By helping the client to build awareness whenever they have a negative thought, reframe their beliefs and encourage them to look beyond the outcome and enjoy the learning “journey” or what’s in the present. Once they hear their inner negative voice/ words out loud, they start to realize how absurd it sounds.

The two wolves’ story is a parable that represents this idea of emotional self-control with one wolf being good and the other being evil. When it comes to your own life and personal development, you are in control of which wolf you will feed.

References

Stop Telling Women They Have Imposter Syndrome by Ruchika Tulshyan and Jodi-Ann Burey (Havard Business Review)
5 Different Types of Imposter Syndrome (and 5 Ways to Battle Each One) By Melody J. Wilding
You’re Not a Fraud. Here’s How to Recognize and Overcome Imposter Syndrome by Healthline
The HeART of Laser-Focused Coaching: A Revolutionary Approach to Masterful Coaching by Marion Franklin
Imposter Syndrome and How Women Can Overcome It At Work by Penguin
Six Steps to Break the Imposter Syndrome Cycle by The Data Incubator
Why Imposter Syndrome and COVID-19 Mandates Are Challenging the Workforce by Helen Moon