Surely you've heard about it or maybe you've faced it without knowing about it. But the Impostor Syndrome is a reality that affects most people, especially, but not only, people with creative jobs. Even professionals with proven experience in different fields such as health and education have reported suffering from it at some point in their lives.

These days, while sharing in a space with some friends, someone said: "We can't all be wrong, someone has to be doing it really wrong". But what's behind all this? I hope you'll join me in finding out in this little personal approach.

Getting to know the false imposter

During the research I did to write this article, I consulted several bibliographies to find the most accurate concept and explanation and, although several sources emphasize more some points and feelings, this has been the most accurate and interesting explanation I have found.

The impostor syndrome is like a dark shadow that stalks those who have managed to stand out. Despite their results and accolades, people who experience this psychological phenomenon are trapped in a cycle of doubt and constant fear of being discovered as imposters. They tend to attribute their success to luck or external factors, rather than recognizing their own abilities and efforts.

- Victor Martinez Perez, et al. "The impostor syndrome: when success is not enough to feel fulfilled." The Conversation, March 08, 2024.

The first studies on this topic date back to the 1970s, initially focusing on women who had achieved professional success in business and research sectors, but with the paradigm shift in research the spectrum has broadened beyond genders and professional sectors.

We have to keep in mind that the Impostor Syndrome is not a mental disorder and is not recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), therefore, there is no medical prescription or detailed methods to detect it.

So how do we know if we are believing the impostor?

Often, people describe it as feeling like a "fraud" in their daily activities and even hobbies. They can feel enormous pressure and overwhelm, the pressure they feel under can be so great that they even turn down activities that bring them enjoyment and joy for fear of failing or not meeting expectations.

It would seem that this syndrome would only attack people who are starting out in some activity or facing the world of work for the first time, but on the contrary, it highlights that most successful people with great achievements and activities are the most vulnerable, attributing their successes to luck or chance. They even come to believe that they are not entirely honest about their knowledge and skills. They are often very perfectionistic people who reject help from the outside, seeing accepting help as a deficiency in them.

People suffering from Impostor Syndrome always believe they are not giving their 100% or that they can be better, turning this into self-defeating and even self-sabotaging feelings.

How do I know if I suffer from it?

Let's answer this simple questionnaire:

• Do you feel you have had no significant accomplishments in your life, daily activities or work?
• Do you feel uncomfortable or try to change the conversation when you are praised?
• When you fail at a task, do you think it is due to your lack of ability or commitment?
• Do you need everything to be perfect the first time to prove to yourself that you really know what you are doing?
• Have you felt that your career and study choices are not the right ones?
• From a young age have you been required to be the best or to excel in study or extra activities?
• Have you given up any creative activities or hobbies because you weren't good enough?
• Are you frustrated or afraid of being corrected?

If you answered yes to most of these questions, welcome to the imposter club. It is normal to sometimes feel doubtful or insecure about our abilities, the important thing is to know our strengths and weaknesses to work on being better, but when this affects your normal development and causes feelings of guilt, frustration and anxiety, it's time to take action.

Imposter syndrome and social networks.

We are often hugely bombarded with images and videos of totally perfect and talented people on our social networks, just swipe a few Instagram reels, and we can't help but compare ourselves and even feel afraid of never becoming like them. It's okay to compare yourself, but if it causes you to feel inferior and develop imposter syndrome you better take action. A few quick tips:

• Don't spend too much time in front of this content, limit your time or simply block whatever makes you feel bad.
• Remember that social networks only show a part of reality, behind those people and those talents, there is a creative process often plagued with errors and mistakes, a learning process that has taken time and resources. Many times people only show the final and perfect result, causing us a distortion of reality.
• Share your achievements, no matter how small they are, there will be people who will be motivated by your experience and ability.

Social networks, with limits and always used from inspiration and not from comparison, can help us a lot. Change the questions Why don't I have as many followers as she does? Why can't I be as productive as he is? Why don't I draw like she does? a: I'm going to work on my content to reach more followers, I'm going to improve my methods and approach to productivity, I'm going to keep practicing to become like him.

Fighting the Imposter

Lastly and for the sake of brevity, I would like to leave you with some tips that you should put into practice:

• Understand your emotions and identify your real difficulties, always from objectivity.
• Talk about it with those closest to you.
• Celebrate your past and recent achievements.
• Find balance in your routine to practice gratitude with yourself.
• Look at your mistakes as the perfect opportunity to improve yourself.
• Don't get carried away by emotions.
• Avoid comparisons and practice inspiration, learn about the accomplishments and failures of others and how they have come through in spite of it.
• Reward yourself for every difficulty and challenge overcome.
• Accept compliments.
• Seek professional help if you feel you can't handle the situation or it is affecting your daily life.

There is nothing wrong with experiencing the Impostor Syndrome, perhaps all of us at some point in our lives are dragged by these emotions, the important thing is to know ourselves and understand how valuable and unique we are, as well as our stories of life and overcoming. You are not alone, work with your emotions and seek support whenever you need it.

I want to sincerely thank you for taking the time to read this article. Your support means a lot to me and motivates me to continue sharing content that may be useful and interesting to you. Best of luck.

I apologize if there are any grammatical errors, English is not my native language, I have tried to be as careful as possible.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Images Used
ESP: Ediciones en GIMP por mí. Todos los recursos son originales, a menos que se indique.
ENG: GIMP edits by me. All assets are original, unless specified.
Imagen de Pexels en Pixabay
Imagen de Ted Erski en Pixabay
Imagen de Engin Akyurt en Pixabay
Imagen de Gerd Altmann en Pixabay
Bibliographic Reference
Víctor Martínez Pérez, et al. “El síndrome del impostor: cuando el éxito no basta para sentirse realizado.” The Conversation, 08 de marzo de 2024

Article first published on my personal blog at HIVE.