Impostor Phenomenon aka Impostor Syndrome
The Online Etymology Dictionary defines an impostor as:
impostor (n.)
1580s, "swindler, cheat," from French imposteur (16c.), from Late Latin impostor "a deceiver," agent noun from impostus, contraction of impositus, past participle of imponere "place upon, impose upon, deceive," from assimilated form of in- "into, in, on, upon" (from PIE root *en "in") + ponere "to put, place" (past participle positus; see position (n.)). Meaning "one who passes himself off as another" is from 1620s.
I also like the ring that charlatan has 😉:
charlatan (n.)
"one who pretends to knowledge, skill, importance, etc.," 1610s, from French charlatan "mountebank, babbler" (16c.), from Italian ciarlatano "a quack," from ciarlare "to prate, babble," from ciarla "chat, prattle," which is perhaps imitative of ducks' quacking.
Impostor or charlatan...either way I've struggled with feeling like this ever since I started studying software programming. Now, I'm not trying to stab anyone in the back or take credit for someone else's successes or falsify skills. Nevertheless, I cannot escape sensing that I am a deep fake from time to time. However, I am learning to embrace it.
Back in 1978, clinical psychologists Pauline Rose Clance, PhD and Suzanne Imes, PhD coined the term "impostor phenomenon" in their study of female professionals who dealt with the experience of feeling as though they were not qualified to have the jobs they did and just duped everyone(Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice, Vol. 15, No. 3, 1978). Through the years this concept has trickled down to us as it is now most commonly called - impostor syndrome.
It is more accurate to call it a phenomenon or experience because it can be common to others in similar situations - in other words, it's 'normal'.That is why impostor syndrome is not really a syndrome; you do not suffer from an abnormality or condition. Feeling this way, in fact, can be a good thing if you can tame and control it. Let's learn some strategies to combat the feeling that you're a phony or just got lucky 🍀.
Knowing is half the battle
In Harvard Health Publishing, Peter Grinspoon, MD states, "Cognitive distortions are internal mental filters or biases that increase our misery, fuel our anxiety, and make us feel bad about ourselves." (How to recognize and tame your cognitive distortions). Elsewhere, Anna Womack, PhD shares in her article Do You Feel Like a Fraud? Maybe It’s Impostor Syndrome (MCCBT Blog), "Typically, people who experience impostor syndrome have self-doubt or second-guessing thoughts that make negative assumptions, minimize accomplishments or disqualify the positive. These are sometimes referred to broadly as cognitive distortions." She goes on to identify some examples of how this plays out in our minds:
- “Everyone else knows more than me. I shouldn’t be here.”
- “I’ve only worked here for a few years, I’m not good enough to apply for a promotion.”
- “I’ve had some training in this area, but my colleague is better at this than me.”
But, just knowing that this is a distortion and not reality empowers us. Yay!
Womack and Grinspoon don't leave us hanging with just identifying the problem, they also offer practical solutions to challenging and taming this specific cognitive distortion as do other specialists that I'll share with you.
Fight the faker fear
“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”
― Frank Herbert, Dune
Regarding knowing being half the battle, Grinspoon adds this, "A big part of dismantling our cognitive distortions is simply being aware of them and paying attention to how we are framing things to ourselves. Good mental habits are as important as good physical habits. If we frame things in a healthy, positive way, we almost certainly will experience less anxiety and isolation. This doesn’t mean that we ignore problems, challenges, or feelings, just that we approach them with a can-do attitude instead of letting our thoughts and feelings amplify our anxiety."
As far as framing things in a healthy positive way goes, we need to fight the temptation to "compare and despair" as media consultant Susan Harrow shares with Forbes contributor Mark DeVries. When faced with those who are "impressive" Harrow says, “Instead of staying in the feeling of jealousy or less-than-ism, replace it with a generous thought about the person who has triggered you. Research confirms that this will instantly make you feel good, which is reflected in your energy that others perceive.”
Good mental habits are as important as good physical habits.
Others are not a threat. I can appreciate those who are more fluent in a coding language than I am or who grasp concepts more readily than I do. They can help to set a bar or benchmark for me that I perceive as a good standard to motivate me, not drive me to despair.
Clinical psychologist Jessica Varland, PhD notes that, "You don’t have to lower the bar, but adjusting your standards for success can make it easier to see and internalize your accomplishments. Vanderlan suggests focusing on your progress rather than aiming for perfection"(Palmer).
Building on this idea of progress over perfection is the idea of celebrating successes and victories. Did you make it from phase 1 to phase 2? Put a check ✔️ by that! Why not create a physical reminder of those things by way of a checklist or a journal of victories? These facts can help quell the impostor feelings. Professor of educational psychology Kevin Cokley, PhD reminds us that, "The accomplishments don’t have to feel significant. “It can also be little things that, taken together, show you to be an incredibly competent, high-functioning professional..."(Palmer).
Don't forget, small iterations are like practice reps that, done properly, yield big results over time as they are repeated. “Creating practices that you do daily become embodied with consistent iteration so the moments you get triggered happen less often and lessen in intensity,” says Harrow. Remember, you can't eat an elephant in one go. But you can eat a whole elephant one bite at a time. 🐘 Steady and consistent reps...
Which brings me to this. Stop beating yourself up for a misperceived lack of ability or progress and quit being hard on yourself by playing mind games or letting systemic barriers or unrealistic expectations within your family or culture hold you back. Surround yourself with community who support your goals and, as writer Chris Palmer notes, "cultivate self-compassion." To paraphrase something that Susan Harrow said, "You don't have to lie to yourself and say your bold or confident when you're not. But you can tell yourself, "I don't know how to do this...yet I'm going to ask, research and learn how." That is a positive and healthy mindset.
Stop beating yourself up!
Finally, embrace and accept that the impostor experience will come and go through different periods of your life when making career and social shifts. But, you no longer have to fear it! 🎃👻
Having good mental habits, charting incremental improvements and progress(sometimes big ones!) to track the facts, and surrounding yourself internally and externally with a compassionate self and others will help mitigate those negative feelings and lessen their frequency.
Cheers to you!
Sources:
DeVries, H. (2022, December 21). 3 Ways To Let Go Of Imposter Syndrome And Shine In The Media Spotlight. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/henrydevries/2022/12/21/3-ways-to-let-go-of-imposter-syndrome-and-shine-in-the-media-spotlight/?sh=74b39cec650b
Grinspoon, P., MD. (2022, May 4). How to recognize and tame your cognitive distortions. Harvard Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-to-recognize-and-tame-your-cognitive-distortions-202205042738
Palmer, C. (2021, June 1). How to overcome impostor phenomenon. APA.Org. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/06/cover-impostor-phenomenon
Womack, A., PhD. (2022, March 6). Do You Feel Like a Fraud? Maybe It’s Impostor Syndrome - MCCBT Blog. Manhattan Center for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. https://www.manhattancbt.com/archives/6758/impostor-syndrome/
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