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It's not Imposter Syndrome, or is it? 🤔

Writer's picture: Victoria ScottVictoria Scott

What do you call it when you're confident while also doubting yourself?


Notebook with "Am I good enough" written, photo by Nik at https://unsplash.com/@helloimnik?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash

A client was telling me about a promotion they had made happen for themselves by leading with confidence. Now that it was actually happening, my client had some doubts. They would be working with a different team doing more technical work and they were worried about doing a good job. What if they got overwhelmed by everything they didn't know? What if they took on too much because they were unfamiliar with the work and the effort it would take? What if there was too much to learn and not enough time?


When I asked my client if it could be imposter syndrome, which would be normal to feel in any new job, my client told me that wasn't it. It couldn't be, my client told me, because they knew they could add value quickly to the team. They told me a few of their strengths that they would bring to their new role and then they quickly and seamlessly transitioned into telling me all their flaws that may sabotage them. It was almost as if their doubts were so insidious, they crept into and re-routed my client's thought process.


Imposter syndrome IS insidious in that way. Imposter Syndrome doesn't mean that you don't have confidence, it just means you have normal doubts and worries.


Whatever you want to call it, my client's doubts were in the way of their confidence and their strengths. Those doubts were in the way of my client finding the right actions to help them, and those doubts were throwing in a lot of distracting worries that weren't helpful.


Imposter syndrome thoughts can be a sign of progress – showing up right before a new opportunity or challenge, like they did for my client in this example. It's normal for high achievers to have doubts. And I have a better way to help you support yourself.


Check out my YouTube playlist on Imposter Syndrome to see if any of these sound like the way your self-doubt, or imposter syndrome messages, show up in your life.


If you're ready to empower yourself and lead with confidence, schedule a 90-minute confidence catalyst session with me to work on one challenge in your job. If you're not sure where to even get started and need some clarity, schedule a 2-hour ELI with me. Or schedule a time to talk about other options to work with me.




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