How to overcome Imposter Syndrome
Have you ever felt like you didn’t deserve a seat at the table? Have you ever felt like maybe you can’t do the job even though you’re qualified for the position?
If you said yes to either one of the questions, then you may be experiencing imposter syndrome. According to studies, 8 out of 10 people may experience the feeling at some point. Imposter syndrome is when a person doubts their abilities and feels like a fraud. I remember getting my first job out of college and knew I was capable but felt like I didn’t have the knowledge needed to be successful.
This feeling can also start to hinder your success by showing up in various ways such as being afraid of speaking during meetings, avoiding giving your ideas, and not giving yourself a fair chance to progress in the workplace. The good news is I found a mentor that helped me overcome imposter syndrome by consistently motivating me and reminding me of my credentials and skillset. The relationship with my mentor even pushed me as far as going back to school for my master’s degree, which was one of my lifelong goals.
Here are 3 ways that having a mentor can help overcome imposter syndrome.
- A mentor can be there to talk about your achievements. My mentor was there to talk about my short-term and long-term goals and my plan to achieve those goals. She was also there cheering me on when I reached my personal goals. reminder only motivated me to achieve more of my goals.
- A mentor can help with reflecting on your journey. This can be a reminder to look at how far you’ve come to help you realize that you’re more than capable and deserve success.
- Hearing from a different person other than yourself about why you deserve a seat at the table makes a difference. Sometimes you may need to hear that you’re amazing from an outside source to fully believe it.
Having a mentor has helped me conquer imposter syndrome and to be honest, it continues to help me when self-doubt tries to creep its way in again.
