Everything You Need To Know About Imposter Syndrome, Meaning, Causes And How To Overcome It

Imposter Syndrome can be defined as the persistent inability to believe that one’s success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as a result of one’s own efforts or skills.

It also refers to an internal experience of believing that you are not as competent as others perceive you to be.

That simply means feeling inadequate during professional-related attempts despite having more than enough expertise and experience in a certain field.

This is usually common with high achievers or people who excel in their field, they consistently feel inadequate or fraudulent despite the evidence of their success.

It is also more common among women than men because of prior assumptions that men are better than them.

Women suffering from imposter syndrome always describe the feeling like they are not smart enough or good enough to be in their current position, they feel like a fraud or that they are undeserving of everything they have worked for.

According to research imposter syndrome is a widespread phenomenon and impacts a majority of people at least once in their lives.

Signs of Imposter Syndrome

• An inability to realistically assess your competence and skills
• Attributing your success to external factors
• Berating your performance
• Fear that you won’t live up to expectations
• Overachieving
• Sabotaging your own success
• Self-doubt

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Types Of Imposter Syndrome

• The perfectionist

These are people with imposter syndrome that strives to be their absolute best, no matter the cost to their mental health.

These individuals set really high standards for themselves.

• The superwoman

These set of people are called superwoman because they often struggle with work addiction.

They always feel inadequate compared to their colleagues and continue to push themselves as hard as possible, regardless of the consequences on their mental, physical, and emotional health.

• The natural genius

This set of people represents a person that not only struggles with perfectionism but also sets out to achieve giant goals on their first try.

They feel unworthy, guilty, and some shame if they cannot easily complete a task or achieve a goal on their first try.

• The soloist

This set of people have great difficulties asking others for help. Perhaps they may feel that others are not as competent as themselves or that they must prove their own worth through their productivity

• The expert

These set of people never feel good enough despite being extremely knowledgeable.

These ones feel like they are less experienced than their colleagues if they do not know an answer or have knowledge on certain topics.

Causes Of Imposter Syndrome

Although the exact causes of imposter syndrome are not really known. Chances that upbringing, family background, personality, and genetic factors all play a role in the development of imposter syndrome.

According to Wikipedia, “common causes of impostor syndrome include feelings like stigma, stereotype threat, or an overall sense of “intellectual phoniness“.

A perfect example would be a woman working in an all-male institution, she is most likely going to worry that her accomplishments are not good enough compared to her peer’s accomplishments, vice-visa.

How To Overcome It

• Communicate

Talking about feelings of inadequacy with others helps you and makes you feel better, it could be your friends, family, or therapy.

• Accentuate the positive.

Perfectionism can indicate a healthy drive to excel. The trick is to not obsess over everything being just so. Do a great job when it matters most, without worrying over routine tasks. Forgive yourself when the inevitable mistake happens.

• Separating Facts From Feelings

Taking things one day at a time and setting clear, measurable, and realistic goals, separate feelings from the facts. always question negative thoughts and begin to replace them with positive thinking.

• Exercise And Meditating

Performing exercise and meditating, also learning to accept thoughts, feelings, and emotions, even if they are negative, this helps you move forward despite negative feelings.