The Imposter Syndrome

Do you have it

We live in a work world of insecurity.

Even the most accomplished of us harbors inner doubts about our talent, constantly comparing our work to the work of others with higher profiles or on bigger stations.

It’s called “the Imposter Syndrome” and it applies to each one of us unable to internalize our success, constantly looking for external proof that we belong here, that we aren’t frauds.

Here’s the deal about the syndrome: it gets more intense the better you become.

The more accomplished you get, the more likely you are to rub shoulders with ever more talented people, leaving you feeling even more inadequate by comparison.

And the ultimate irony? “The genuinely untalented, meanwhile, have no idea that they’re no good — because they’re too untalented to realize it.

So, if you’re worried that you’re not all that good, chances are that feeling alone means you probably are.

And, truth be told, we all feel as if we’re just winging it at times.

You can examine this in detail HERE, but it just reinforces my belief that you need someone in your professional life who cares for you enough to be honest with you, to continue to push you to create amazing content every day, because they know you can!

I can’t take away your insecurity any more easily than I can erase mine, but if we both acknowledge that almost everyone we would consider gifted also feels it, that may be the encouragement we need to continue stepping off the ledge, risking failure — risking exposure of our inadequacies — for the chance of creating something amazing.