Were you held back by Imposter Syndrome for most of your life? Let’s find out…

Last man standing, my insecurities or me?

A few days back, I met one guy who is a professional model. While talking, he told me that he is doubting his hard-earned achievements and feeling unsecured as he was thinking that all his accomplishments are a matter of luck. As per my perspective, that guy is quite successful in his field and I have seen him on on the advertisement banners of many big companies, At the age of 25, he is not doing bad at all. Then I understood that the person might be suffering from Imposter Syndrome. What is this syndrome? Let’s see…

But, before understanding Imposter syndrome we shall learn who an imposter is? An imposter is the one who pretends to be someone else, often through the means of disguise. For example an actor in the role of a pilot and making cabin announcements, but in reality, utterly capable of even starting the engines.

Imposter Syndrome is an ailment that most people consider wrongly. It is very common among people irrespective of gender, designation, income or even achievements. Many people got panic after hearing about this syndrome but there is no reason to be afraid. Let’s discuss more this syndrome and we’ll find out how can we overcome this phase?

To begin with…..

WHAT IS IMPOSTER SYNDROME?

It is a condition when a person doubts his achievements and undervalue his competence and active role in accomplishing the goals. It includes falsely attributing one’s accomplishments to luck or any other external factors.

Individuals with Imposter Syndrome may consider themselves inferior (even if they are not) and incapable of holding the position that they have.

Researchers suggest that it is a widespread phenomenon and very common in the majority of people which they face at least once in their life.

SYMPTOMS OF IMPOSTER SYNDROME

Experiences of imposter syndrome could vary from person to person, depending on the one who experiences it. Based on many pieces of research, most common symptoms may include:

• Feeling like success is impossible
• Feeling incompetent or inferior despite demonstrating competency
• Fear of not meeting another person’s expectations
• Feeling like past successes and hard work was only due to luck or any other external force
• Feeling incapable of performing at the same level every time
• Feeling uncomfortable with receiving praise or congratulations
• Feeling disappointed over current accomplishments
• Feeling doubtful of successes
• Feeling constant pressure to achieve or be better than before
• Feeling stressed, anxious or depressed from feelings of inadequacy

As per my views, OVERTHINKING can also be called one of the root causes of all the above symptoms. If we divert our minds to other valuable and necessary things, we may come out of this problem. What do you think? Do let me know in the responses!

WHAT ARE THE CAUSES OF IMPOSTER SYNDROME?

There could be many causes of imposter syndrome but the root cause of imposter syndrome is the hugely unhelpful picture of what other people are like. We feel like imposters not because we are uniquely flawed but we failed to imagine how deeply flawed everyone else must necessarily also be.

The imposter syndrome has its roots far back in childhood like a 4-year old child is incomprehensible that once their mother was their age. The gulf and status appear unbreachable. We know ourselves from the inside but we know others only from the outside. So, the imposters keep on trying to know the state of mind of others and compare it with his state of mind. Thus, making them feel doubtful about themselves.

Let’s throw some light on:

HOW TO DEAL WITH IMPOSTER SYNDROME?

Firstly and most importantly, always remember that THERE IS NO SYNDROME MORE POWERFUL THAN OUR MIND! What I am trying to say? You cannot get rid of any problem with a negative thought, so we should always be positive and have a belief in what we do!

Like other mental health conditions like anxiety or depression, it may be beneficial for the people who struggle with Imposter Syndrome to pursue psychotherapy or talk therapy. However, there are many other ways to deal with Imposter Syndrome. Some look like:

• Discussing feeling and emotions with others (e.g. with family and friends)
• Doing one thing at a time
• Reduce overthinking and thinking situation practically and realistically
• Setting measurable, clear and realistic goals
• Replacing the negative thoughts with positive ones
• Prioritize face-to-face world over the virtual one (e.g. social media)
• Helping others going through a similarly difficult time
• Last but not the least, Moving forward despite crowded with negativity.

I am writing this because I have dealt with this syndrome many times in my life. Then I realized that by sharing my views with others, I will grab confidence to face my insecurities face to face. If you are feeling that you may have this syndrome too, what about a post on Medium?