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You Deserve This! – Dealing with Imposter Syndrome at Workplace
“Nothing can harm you as much as your own thoughts unguarded” – Buddha
According to Google, the definition of imposter is “a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others” with synonyms like – pretender, hoaxer and fake. This definition might remind many of us of some spy movies or crime novels where a character assumes false identity for the purpose of deception. However, for some people this term hits much closer to home.
According to a study conducted by Roar! Training to provide insights into confidence levels of employees, a shocking 96% of workers have experienced Imposter Syndrome within the workplace. This new data was collected by polling 202 workers in UK, out of which, it was found that only four per cent of workers felt confident in their working lives. This can have several negative outcomes in the workplace and hence it’s high time the topic of Imposter Syndrome becomes a part of important discussions among all employers. By trying to understand the syndrome, employers can help reduce its incidence at work.
What is Imposter Syndrome?
Imposter Syndrome, which is also known as imposter phenomenon, imposter complex, fraud syndrome or impostorism, is a psychological pattern where a person has pervasive self-doubt, insecurity and a strong belief that their accomplishments and successes are due to luck rather than their abilities and knowledge. The syndrome was first described in 1978 and was believed to only affect professional women. Although the effect on marginalized groups is more intense, subsequent research showed Impostorism affects a wide range of people be it different genders, occupations or even cultures. It is also estimated that 70% of people will experience at least one episode of Impostor Phenomenon in their lives. Most people experience the symptoms for only a limited period, such as for the first few weeks of a new job, but for others, the experience can last lifelong.
Some of the factors contributing to the emergence of Impostorism are:
- Perfectionism – Many people often have a perfectionistic tendency which makes them set high and unrealistic goals for themselves and when these goals are not fulfilled, it leaves them feeling overwhelmed, disappointed, and a failure.
- Need to be special – People who have been among the toppers in their school years later realize that there are many exceptional people, and their own talents are not atypical. This results in them dismissing their talents.
- Social anxiety – This makes a person compare themselves to their co-workers or friends and ties them to the fear of performing poorly in comparison.
- Ambiguity – There is a feeling among people that they are proceeding forward without a clear-cut plan, trying to figure out things as they go and hoping to somehow do well enough at the end.
How Imposter Syndrome affects Employees?
Imposter Syndrome can have a drastic effect on how employees interact with their careers and the opportunities that they take. The Roar! Training data revealed, over 50% of respondents admitted that they had turned down work opportunities due to lack of confidence. This syndrome can also reduce wellbeing of employees and can increase the chance of them experiencing acute or chronic mental health issues. It also isolates many individuals and negatively impacts their interpersonal relationships. Finally, due to the fear of failing, employees are less likely to chase innovation, which naturally carries with it a high chance of failure.
The susceptibility to Imposter Syndrome depends mainly on how a person defines their value. If someone self-defines value based on their ability to create value, then they tend to feel more confident as long as they are contributing towards their work. On the other hand, those who place value on their hard work, education, or their position in the organization are more likely to feel as though they are not achieving on the same level as their peers.
How to Combat Imposter Syndrome?
Some ways in which professionals can work on overcoming symptoms of Impostorism are:
- Seeking Confidence – Self-Confidence can be regained by remembering all the positive impacts, accomplishments, and meaningful contributions, and not comparing them with others. This helps in looking at ourselves as a powerful contributor who deserves to be in the room.
- Finding a Mentor – While facing a new situation, getting insights and support from someone who has already tackled a similar situation can be helpful.
- Getting Therapy – Dealing with negative self-doubting thoughts can get very difficult at times and in such cases, hiring a therapist should not be stigmatized.
- Setting Realistic Expectations – Setting unattainable standards and expectations and blaming our limitations for our failures should be avoided. Failures are a part of life.
- Acknowledging Insecurities – Learning how to accept and not judge or define ourselves based on our insecurities is important to accept ourselves for who we are
- Becoming Self-Aware – Catching ourselves sneaking into negative thoughts and replacing those thoughts with positive confidence-building ones can help tackle the syndrome in an early stage
How can Workplace Leaders Help?
Apart from individual efforts, it is also essential for Managers and HRs to work towards creating a working environment where imposter syndrome ceases to exist. Some steps that can make this happen are:
- Providing Support – Having honest conversations and listening intently can help team members adjust inaccurate self-assessments.
- Focusing on Inclusion – Assessing biasness in the workplace culture and creating a measurable impact on the employee’s everyday experiences by making them feel included can have a big impact on employees.
- Tackling Illusions – Keeping ‘never let them see you sweat’ attitude away from the organization’s culture plays a significant role in creating healthier expectations in the workplace.
- Educating People – According to a study, merely learning about impostor syndrome and knowing that even others experience the same anxiety and behaviour patterns can give relief to sufferers. Hence, having an ‘awareness week’ for impostor syndrome can be a good idea.
- Helping Connect with Internal Motivators – A research in 2013 found that nurturing intrinsic motivation can help address impostor syndrome and it can be achieved through close coaching and relationship-building.
Conclusion
Labelling ourselves with imposter syndrome for simply being unsure or anxious about some work decisions can make us feel heavy but it is important to understand the symptoms and challenge the voice of our inner critic by reaffirming that we are worthy. This will result in not just better productivity and working life but can also improve overall mental wellbeing.
References
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2019/06/07/15-ways-to-overcome-imposter-syndrome-in-the-workplace/?sh=5087a70f30cc
- https://hbr.org/2021/07/end-imposter-syndrome-in-your-workplace
- https://www.leadmd.com/best-practices/blog/imposter-syndrome-in-workplace/
- https://www.hrone.lu/actualites/96-workers-have-experienced-imposter-syndrome-work
- https://psychcentral.com/lib/impostor-syndrome#takeaway
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