Imposter Syndrome: What It is, How to Cope With It

Everybody has imposter syndrome.

Now, before y’all start lynching me for insulting you or diagnosing you with an illness, take a moment to listen. Yes, everybody has imposter syndrome; it just varies from person to person.

Some people might be overwhelmed by it, while others experience it in just a few areas of their lives. A few even believe that they do not have it, that they are perfect and able to do all things whether Christ strengthens them or not. Oyinbo call these people narcissists, and the narcissism trait is itself a form of the imposter syndrome.

Like I said, everyone has it. Do you understand now?

What is imposter syndrome?

Impostor syndrome is an internal psychological experience that makes a person feel like a phony in some area of their life.

Phony there is a fancy word for fake, for the benefit of those that didn’t pay attention in English Grammar class.

Basically, what imposter syndrome does is make you feel incompetent at something, never mind that you might be a genius at it.

A short example: you’re good at creative writing. In fact, not just good; you excel at it. Your mind has a way of painting words into vivid images, your command of grammar is top-notch… you even know the difference between ‘been’ and ‘being’, as well as ‘I’m’ and ‘am’.

As I said, you’re very good.

However, you didn’t have any formal training. You were never an Art student, and you’ve never sat in a Literature class. Therefore, you always have this deep-seated belief that you’re not really good, despite the fact that everyone who sees your work says otherwise. To you, they’re only saying those because they’re your friends and don’t wanna hurt your feelings.

That is the imposter syndrome, and that’s yours truly in the example above. I was a science student who suddenly found out he was good at writing, but I didn’t actually believe I was good at writing. That is classic imposter syndrome.

Signs and symptoms of imposter syndrome

If you find yourself consistently experiencing self-doubt, even in areas where you typically excel, you have imposter syndrome. It may manifest as nervousness and restlessness, or even negative self-talk.

Symptoms of anxiety and depression also accompany imposter syndrome.

While impostor syndrome is not a recognized mental health disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), it is fairly common. An estimated 70% of people will experience at least one episode of this phenomenon at some point in their lives.

Psychologists Suzanna Imes and Pauline Rose Clance first used this term in the 1970s. Originally, the concept was thought to apply mostly to high-achieving women. However, it has evolved to become a more widely experienced phenomenon. Imposter syndrome can affect anyone, no matter their social status, work background, skill level, or degree of expertise.

In case you’re wondering whether you might have imposter syndrome, ask yourself the following questions:

Do you agonize over even the smallest mistakes or flaws in your work?
Do you attribute your success to luck or outside factors?
Are you sensitive to even constructive criticism?
Do you downplay your own expertise, even in areas where you are genuinely more skilled than others?
Do you feel like you will inevitably be found out as a phony?

Other common characteristics of imposter syndrome include:

Attributing your success to external factors
An inability to realistically assess your competence and skills
Overachieving
Berating your performance
Setting very challenging goals and feeling disappointed when you fall short
Fear that you won’t live up to expectations
Sabotaging your own success
Self-doubt

SEE: Can Cockroaches Live in Your Penis?

Types of Imposter Syndrome

Imposter syndrome can be broken down into five basic types:

The Expert

Feels like a failure for not knowing everything there is to know about a particular topic or subject, or for not having mastered every step in a process. Because there is more for them to learn, they don’t feel as if they’ve reached the rank of “expert.”

The Natural Genius

This type of person may feel like a fraud simply because they don’t believe that they are naturally intelligent or competent. If they don’t get something right the first time around or it takes them longer to master a skill, they feel like an imposter.

The Perfectionist

This type of imposter syndrome involves believing that, unless they were absolutely perfect, they could have done better. Perfectionism makes you believe that you’re not as good as others might think you are.

The Soloist

Some people hate asking for help. It may be because they’re not used to it, or they believe they can always do it alone, or because they have a painful memory of asking for help.

Whatever the case may be, if they eventually find themselves hard-pressed to ask for help, imposter syndrome could set in. Since they couldn’t get there on their own, they start to question their competence or abilities.

The Superperson

This type of imposter syndrome involves believing that you must be the hardest worker or reach the highest levels of achievement possible. If you don’t, then you must be a fraud.

Causes of Imposter Syndrome

While earlier research alluded that imposter syndrome was connected to factors like early family dynamics and gender stereotypes, subsequent ones have revealed that the phenomenon occurs in people of all backgrounds, ages, and genders.

Here are some causes of imposter syndrome:

Family upbringing

Family dynamics and upbringing can play an important role in imposter syndrome. Specifically, controlling or overprotective parenting styles may contribute to the development of imposter syndrome in children.

Personality

Certain personality traits have also been linked to a higher risk of experiencing imposter syndrome. These include:

Neuroticism: Neuroticism is one of the big five personality dimensions that is linked to higher levels of anxiety, guilt, insecurity, and tension.
Low self-efficacy: Self-efficacy refers to your belief in your ability to succeed in any given situation.
Perfectionism: As mentioned earlier, perfectionism plays a significant role in impostor syndrome.

New work or school opportunities

Imposter syndrome appears to be more common when people are going through transitions and trying new things. The pressure to achieve and succeed, combined with a lack of experience, can trigger feelings of inadequacy in these new roles and settings.

Social Anxiety

Impostor syndrome and social anxiety may overlap. For instance, a person with a social anxiety disorder may feel as though they don’t belong in social or performance situations.

While the symptoms of social anxiety can fuel imposter syndrome, this does not mean that everyone who experiences imposter syndrome has social anxiety or vice versa. People without social anxiety can also feel a lack of confidence and competence. Imposter syndrome often causes normally non-anxious people to experience a sense of anxiety when they are in situations where they feel inadequate.

SEE: Peer Pressure: How to Deal With It

Coping with imposter syndrome

This starts by asking yourself some difficult questions like:

What are my core beliefs?
Can anybody love me for who I really am?
Must I be perfect for others to approve of me?

To move past these feelings, you must become comfortable confronting some of the deeply ingrained beliefs you hold about yourself. This can be hard because you might not even realize that you hold them, but here are some techniques you can use:

Assess your abilities: Write down your accomplishments and what you are good at, then compare these with your self-assessment.
Focus on others: Try to help others in the same situation as you. This might feel counterintuitive, but the more you practice your skills, the more you will build confidence in your own abilities.
Question your thoughts: As you start to assess your abilities, question whether your thoughts are rational. Does it make sense to believe that you are a fraud given everything that you know?
Share your feelings: Irrational beliefs tend to fester when they are bottled up. Talk to other people about how you are feeling.
Stop comparing: Every time you compare yourself to others in a social situation, you will find some fault with yourself that fuels your imposter syndrome. This is especially prevalent on social media and the numerous fake lives people live to impress.

Take baby steps: Don’t focus on doing things perfectly, but rather, do them reasonably well and reward yourself for taking action.

Conclusion on imposter syndrome

It is normal to have feelings of self-doubt from time to time; it means you have some degree of success in your life that you are attributing to luck. Instead of feeling guilty, try instead to turn that feeling into one of gratitude.

Look at what you have accomplished in your life and be grateful for your achievements.

However, if these feelings of feeling like you are a fraud or an imposter persist, it may be helpful to talk to a therapist.