Imposter syndrome has become a hot topic in the workplace as professionals combat feelings of not being worthy of their roles or doubting their accomplishments. Some of the most successful figures in our culture have talked about their battle with these intruding thoughts.
Here are the top ways I combat those negative thoughts:
Reframing a failure. While we’ve all experienced failure or disappointment in our professional careers, reframing the experience can shortcut you to striking out those negative thoughts down the line. From every major failure pull out 2 main lessons and create a mini action plan to work on those skills. For example, if you deem your recent team meeting as a failure because you didn’t prepare ahead of time or have a handout for them block off 30 minutes in your calendar before the next meeting to prepare. Those small steps lead you to the results you desire.
Your Quirk. This could be anything from talking too much to your artistic outlook. Your quirk is the thing that you got made fun of or punished for as a child. As adults, these are the things that make us the talented professionals we are today. Our quirks can be the
Visualizing. What would it feel like to be proud of your accomplishments? How would you celebrate? Instead of bombarding your thoughts with negative ideas about how you’ll never accomplish that goal, visualize what it would be like when you DO.
Support. As humans, we are our worst critics. Lean into a colleague, mentor, or role model to get honest feedback. Sometimes even talking through your thoughts with the people close to you can help get you to a clear headspace.
