How to Fight ‘Imposter Syndrome’ When Working Remotely

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Ever feel like you are out of your depth? Have you sometimes thought about how unqualified you are? Have these feelings gotten worse since you began working remotely or from home? Good news — it might just all be in your head!

What is the imposter syndrome and do you have it ?

Ok, let’s go through the scientific stuff, just to prove to you that this is a real thing.

The term was originally introduced in 1978, in an article called “The Impostor Phenomenon in High Achieving Women: Dynamics and Therapeutic Intervention,” and designates it as:

“an internal experience of intellectual phoniness which appears to be particularly prevalent and intense among a select sample of high achieving women.” (Clance and Imes, 1978)

A later relevant scientific article on the topic broadens the affected base, identifying imposter syndrome as:

“The psychological experience of believing that one’s accomplishments came about not through genuine ability, but as a result of having been lucky, having worked harder than others, or having manipulated other people’s impressions” (Clance and Langford, 1993)

In layman’s terms, has one of the following phrases ever crossed your mind?

“I was just lucky to get here. I should hold onto it because this is the peak of my professional existence.”

“One day I will remember these glory days with nostalgia, as I will be exposed as a fraud.”

Don’t worry — it might just be a teeny tiny voice in your head, one that is slightly detached from reality.

Maybe you have started having these thoughts more intensely since working remotely. You are either 100% remote, or working from home one day a week — the problem is, you are alone, which leads to issues like:

• You subconsciously compare yourself to your colleagues. Without them being physically present, it is quite difficult to realistically compare yourself to them, leading to a lack of an objective overview over your competences.
• General communication involving getting feedback and getting your head out of the job does not happen automatically during the famous “water cooler talk” or when randomly bumping into colleagues. Remote communication requires more proactivity.
• Written communication is a misinterpretation goldmine. A phrase can be read in so many different ways, and stripping the “how” from the “what” can lead you to add your own “how” to a sentence. This can spiral quite fast — as questions or ideas in a discussion can be very easily misinterpreted as attacks.

Such factors lead to you creating your own interpretation of reality — making that teeny tiny voice louder and louder.

Is that all that is to it?

These are just triggers that activate some mechanisms that have existed in you before. A lot of scientific and popular articles have been written about this topic, and they all list a number of different internal factors that can lead to imposter syndrome.

I would rather say that the reasons can be traced down to personality traits (perfectionist, empath) or family or other circumstances growing up. The motivation set causing it is probably unique to you; however you might find yourself being close to one of these five personality types:

1. The perfectionist: guess what? Setting high expectations for yourself leads to major disappointment! A common misinterpretation is that being a perfectionist is an absolutely good thing; however this can cause issues with others (such as micromanagement, not being able to delegate), but mostly with yourself, as you will find yourself in agony after something you’re responsible for was (according to you) not done flawlessly.
2. The Natural Genius: you were always touted as “the smart one,” and you’ve never really applied yourself to anything because it all just seemed to come to you easily. The problem starts when you think you can handle it all by yourself, and when you do not really try to get out of your comfort zone. This leads to feelings of shame when you do not get that millionth A+ in a row, or a pat on the back that you are all so used to.
3. The Superwoman/man: ok, you feel incompetent and fake. What’s the best way to make up for it? Work harder than everyone else, and prove your worth! Think about it though — is that just a cover for your insecurities? Will you ever work hard enough to cover up the feeling of just not belonging there?
4. The Soloist: how difficult is it to ask for help? Do you find yourself working often (or always) on things on your own, refraining from getting help?
5. The Expert:

“I know that I know nothing” ― Plato’s account of Socrates

Socrates might have suffered from the imposter syndrome, or he might have just understood basic psychology, and how this reverse Dunning-Kruger effect works. Do you feel uncomfortable being called an “Expert” on something? Do you berate yourself for still lacking so much knowledge about an area that you are dealing with on a daily basis?

Ok, you have it, what now?

First of all, don’t panic

You should feel a bit of a relief. At least I did when I first discovered that there is a chance that I am actually not a fraud, and that it might all just be in my head.

Don’t compare yourselves to other people, especially in a remote setting. In another article I’ve written, I’ve used lyrics to a essay/song to help me write, so I’ll just do it again:

“Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind;

The race is long and in the end, it’s only with yourself.”

Focus on your own achievement and growth. Do you think you are better at things than you were 5 years ago, 1 year ago, last month, yesterday? Think about where it might have gone, all the good choices you made, and the bad choices you could have made, and how that was partially down to luck, but also good judgement from your side.

Second of all, keep stayin’ alive

Now that we have gone through this meditative journey of self-reflection, think about what you are doing. Somebody must have hired you to do it, so they might even think you are good at it, right? Do what you do, and try to accept critiques of your work as positive feedback. Think about it in this way: you would not provide feedback to a two-year old trying to drive a car, but you would to an 18-year old, as you deem the person competent enough to do it — they just have to make a slight change here or there. You are not perfect at doing something, and nobody can really expect that — you are good at it, meaning you can always be better at it.

Communication is a big factor, especially in a remote environment. As mentioned earlier, written words are more like water and you can shape them how you like. It’s a piece of cake to misinterpret constructive criticism as an attack on your “mask of competence.” Stand aside. Breathe. Think what the person really meant, assume positive intentions, and ask for more in-depth feedback if possible.

Practice standing aside and letting things happen outside of your control. Do something outside of work that you like. As the subtitle reference might suggest, I often have music on, as it helps me with distancing.

Try to understand it

It is very probable that the reason you feel this way is most likely unique to your background and situation. Try to understand the drivers behind this feeling. Perhaps you can fit yourself in one of the five types, or even more of them. Maybe you secretly hate your job. Could it be that the remote environment is a bridge too far for your need of validation, or human interaction is your best way to distance yourself from the pressure of performing?

The sooner you understand the why, the less you will need to “stay alive”.

This article is not a recipe to win

It’s more like a “what it is and how to fight it,” rather than “how to overcome it” article.

Years ago, when I first stumbled across the existence of such a psychological state, it initially came to me as a relief.

Over the years, however, I realised that overcoming incompetence might be easier than overcoming the feeling of incompetence and the fear of failure, and it needs much more work. Maybe this is just the first step of your thousand miles, but you’ll get there eventually and along the way — cut yourself some slack.