Dealing With Impostor Syndrome

Dear reader,

Who are you?

No seriously, who do you even think you are?

This is a question that many high achievers find themselves asking at times, despite the countless number of wins stuffed firmly under their belts. There’s even a name for this type of thinking: Impostor Syndrome.

The impostor terminology dates back to a 1978 research paper penned by Pauline R. Clance and Suzanne A. Imes entitled “The Impostor Phenomenon in High Achieving Women: Dynamics and Therapeutic Intervention.”

To put in a nutshell, Impostor Syndrome is the fear of being found out as a phoney or a fraud.

What Did They Discover Back in 1978?

The paper was a culmination of five years of research that surveyed a cross-section of successful and well-educated professionals. Despite their successes, several participants in the survey reported “generalized anxiety, lack of self-confidence, depression, and frustration related to inability to meet self-imposed standards of achievement.”

It appeared back then that the symptoms were far more prevalent in females than in males, but more recent studies show that the effects are much more evenly spread than previously thought. Numerous additional studies have been carried out since the original paper and it is now thought that as many as 70% of people will experience the syndrome at least once in their lifetime.

Spotting the Impostor Within Your Skin

There is no clear cut tick list to diagnose a patient with Impostor Syndrome but the following indicators are typical of someone dealing with the syndrome:

You dread the day that you’ll be called out as a fake. People with this fear often end up working even harder just to hide an inexistent lack of talent.
You’re in constant disbelief of the merits of your success. It’s all down to luck not ability; you don’t deserve your success and refuse to believe anyone who tells you otherwise.
You’re terrified of failure. This brings feelings of anxiety and humiliation. Oftentimes, mental scenarios of failure play out in your head which only amplify the fearful feelings.
You spend the majority of your time procrastinating or perfecting your work. Both approaches are considered typical coping mechanisms.
You constantly compare your success to that of your peers. In fact, you cannot allow yourself to be second best; you need to be at the top. Feelings of guilt arise when your results aren’t top-notch.

Causes for the Syndrome

Just as there is no single defining indicator, there is also no unique root cause to the syndrome that can be mapped out onto every patient’s case. As is the case with many psychological disturbances, patterns and events in our early formative years can have significant impacts on our behaviour further down the line.

There are though a couple of recurring family themes that seem to be commonly shared amongst those with Impostor Syndrome:

Intelligent relatives, oftentimes a sibling. The child may attempt to keep pace with the gifted sibling, leading to a string of excellent results that go largely unnoticed in the shadow of the other child’s progress. Naturally, this fosters deep rooted feeling of inferiority.
Overly enthusiastic parents. This is quite the opposite of the previous example as parents may smother their child in praise, even for the smallest of accomplishments. Beneath the surface, this could help develop deep feelings of scepticism and self-doubt within the child. Despite their young age, children have sharp minds and can quickly learn to question the authenticity of their parents exuberant praise.
It’s clear to see from these examples that parents play a pivotal role in the psychology of their young children’s mental formation.

You’re Not Alone

Natalie Portman, Michelle Obama, Tom Hanks. All images are in public domain.

There are numerous cases of well known and successful people who have begun opening up about their mental challenges. If you can identify with these symptoms then fear not as you’re actually in pretty good company:

“No matter what we’ve done, there comes a point where you think, ‘How did I get here? When are they going to discover that I am, in fact, a fraud and take everything away from me?’”

Tom Hanks

“I still have a little [bit of] impostor syndrome, it never goes away, that you’re actually listening to me. It doesn’t go away, that feeling that you shouldn’t take me that seriously. What do I know? I share that with you because we all have doubts in our abilities, about our power and what that power is.”

Michelle Obama

“Today, I feel much like I did when I came to Harvard Yard as a freshman in 1999. I felt like there had been some mistake, that I wasn’t smart enough to be in this company, and that every time I opened my mouth I would have to prove that I wasn’t just a dumb actress.”

Natalie Portman

“And I had impostor syndrome. For a long time my life was about being extremely self-critical and overthinking everything as a way of trying not to fall off the perch. It’s partially cultural. We grew up in a British culture of “If you’ve made it, then you’ve cheated.” There was all of that. Then you come to terms with everything in a good way with a fake smile, which was necessary to do. Or go mad.”

Thom Yorke

Rebuilding Trust in Your Abilities

With all that being said, if you do identify with some or all of these emotions on a regular basis, don’t hesitate to get in touch with a mental health professional. Together you should be able to find the root cause of the syndrome and work upon rebuilding your self-esteem and belief in your abilities.

The key message to take home is that there is a way out of the syndrome and this begins by better understanding your past, reassessing your present, and building a brighter path for your future.

Talk to you next time (whoever you are),

JaseDMF

Cover image by Clem Onojeghuo on Pexels (modified)

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