The antidote for “Imposter Syndrome”

Imposter syndrome, the feeling that you have landed in a position for which you’re not qualified, inflicts designers and developers at all levels of experience. But rest assured, it is a common and treatable condition.

Having worked for more than two decades as a designer, a mentor, and a manager, I’ve seen it time and time again. It happens to even highly experienced professionals: an art director with decades of experience making the move from an ad agency to a product design team; a developer transitioning into a UX design role; a recent college grad with loads of hands-on experience but entering their first corporate role. Each of them experienced anxiety as they stood on the precipice of something new, joining teams who are already familiar with that domain.

It’s exhilarating to learn a whole new domain, exciting to expand your knowledge and work with new people. Eager to contribute, you walk into the first meeting with your new team. Then they start speaking in unfamiliar acronyms about internal processes you don’t yet understand. The self-doubt begins to creep in. You wonder, “Should I even be here?”

Many people keep this to themselves, and imposter syndrome goes unaddressed. They fake it ’til they make it. Being open about your insecurity and honest about what you need to learn can prevent weeks or even months of anxiety.

I’ve had a lot of practice helping others get past this entirely common “syndrome” to reach their full potential. There are many things one can do to overcome these feelings, become more confident, which enables you to perform at a higher level sooner.

There is an antidote for imposter syndrome.

Embrace the curve

Whether you’re beginning your career, entering a new industry, or starting a new project, there is always something to learn. Acknowledge that there is a learning curve and embrace it. Remind yourself and those around you that you’re not going to perform at 100%, or even 30%, when you first start out.

Don’t flail around for weeks, either, exclaiming “I’m new!” Schedule time to learn and work with your manager on reaching specific goals by specific dates.

Dive in

Setting aside weeks or months to “just learn” will contribute to your feelings of inadequacy. If you aren’t adding business value, you’re wasting everyone’s time. Get started working on projects. Offer to shadow a co-worker or collaborate on projects not yet assigned to you. Set meetings with as many subject matter experts as you can and bring pointed questions.

Bring it

In business, experience is just as important as knowledge or talent. In cases where you have prior experience, even from other disciplines, use it to help your co-workers. For instance, I’ve spent some of my career doing front-end development and managing developers. I know where development teams are coming from. I understand their pain points and common conflicts with designers. I speak their language. I can empathize with them. I’m able to bring that experience to any project I work on with developers.

Find a mentor

When you start something new, almost everyone you work with knows more than you. Use them. Most people would be happy to mentor you through your journey. In some cases, it helps them with their career, too. Ask for a set cadence of one-on-ones and possibly set office hours, where they can be available for questions.

Evaluate

Sometimes it takes hearing from others that you’re doing a great job in order to gain the confidence you need. That’s okay, but you need to ask for it. Check in at least once a month with your manager to see how you’re performing. Don’t wait until the end of the year for your performance review, you’ll just be questioning yourself at every turn. In addition, keep a running self-evaluation journal to track your accomplishments throughout the year and help you effectively communicate them.

Imposter syndrome is a legitimate and common affliction, but there is an antidote, and it isn’t found in a doctor’s office or a pharmacy. Following these suggestions will give you more confidence in yourself, help you overcome your feelings of inadequacy, and empower you to become the superhero you know you are.

Feedback is welcome and appreciated. Special thanks to Esteban Pérez-Hemminger and Carly Price for helping me overcome my imposter syndrome while writing this article and Mia Kimmell for her wonderful illustrations.

Josh Kimmell is a Design Lead for Security at IBM, based in Austin, Texas. The above article is personal and does not represent IBM’s positions, strategies, or opinions.