Let's Talk: Imposter Syndrome
Rebecca
Have you ever felt like you weren’t “good enough” in your profession? Maybe you’ve felt like a fraud in the midst of professionals DESPITE having all the skill sets, knowledge, and experience required in your desired field. This, my friends, is imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome says that “you’re faking it” or that “you can never truly be an athlete, entertainer, influencer, or whoever you aspire to become.” It tries to tell you that all your accomplishments thus far were due to sheer luck or association. It can even produce feelings of inadequacy, anxiety, shame, and guilt. I need you to know that little voice that calls itself imposter syndrome is LYING to you. You are 100% capable of being who you know you can be. Before I give you some helpful tools to combat and silence this voice, let’s look at this from a Christian perspective.
The first thing you should know is that the devil is a useless vagabond with nothing better to do than to make people feel unworthy of who they are and who they’re called to be (especially since he forfeited his destiny). His goal is to make people shy away from their career aspirations, especially since he knows the audience and the impact attached to your life.
In the Bible, we see the devil use this tactic often! We also see humanity succumb to the doubts associated with greatness. An example of this would be Jeremiah. Jeremiah was a person that struggled with feelings of unworthiness as it relates to his calling (profession for this text). Jeremiah 1:5-7 reads, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” 7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, “I am too young.” Jeremiah had believed that he was “too young” or “inexperienced.” To be who God was calling him to be. Sometimes the title is scarier than the actual doing of the aspiration. Sometimes we look for validation that affirms that we are ready or legitimate in people. And sometimes, despite the outside validation, we still feel unprepared.
We neglect to see the truth, which is that God has already given us the skills and placed events in our daily lives as evidence of HIS validation. Later in the text, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you.” Don’t be afraid of the gossip, nor let the negative thoughts make you stagnant. Imposter syndrome produces fear. It makes you fear that someone will eventually find you out or discover that you are “not qualified” — but who said?! What evidence confirms that you are not capable? Doesn’t everyone have a starting point that confirms their profession? How can you ever work your way up if you haven’t allowed yourself to familiarize yourself with the new territory? It’ll be hard to understand why you have been placed there if you’re occupying your time trying to discover why you shouldn’t be there. Don’t let imposter syndrome or people disqualify you. It is God that qualifies you.
Ways to Combat Imposter Syndrome
Familiarize yourself with the signs of imposter syndrome
Inability to accept praise
Difficult and Impossibly High Standards for One’s Self
Feelings of Inadequacy (thoughts of not being enough)
Contributes Success, to “Being Lucky”
Fear of Expressing Confidence in Skills
Timidity in Expressing Ideas
Apologizing Excessively
Practice Self-Kindness and Love
It is imperative to be kind to yourself and speak with positivity. Having negative conversations with yourself can limit success. It is also detrimental to your physical, professional, and mental health.
Create Affirmations
Create affirmations that speak against those negative thought.
Say them once in the morning when you wake up, and before you sleep at night, so it is fresh in your mind.
Be consistent in speaking affirmations for 60 days! The goal is to develop a new habit and maintain that habit.
You’re NOT Alone!
A plethora of successful individuals have felt unworthy of their accomplishments and positions! Let that give you a sense of peace. This too can and will pass by applying the right tools.
Prayer
God is here to grant you peace! There’s nothing He cannot help you through.
Counseling
Counseling is a fantastic way to combat feelings of imposter syndrome. It promotes psychological fitness, helps prevent burnout, and produces longevity within one’s profession.
Success Journal
Keeping a journal of all your accomplishments and successes will help to silence any voice telling you that you have not accomplished anything.
Let's Talk: Imposter Syndrome
Rebecca
Have you ever felt like you weren’t “good enough” in your profession? Maybe you’ve felt like a fraud in the midst of professionals DESPITE having all the skill sets, knowledge, and experience required in your desired field. This, my friends, is imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome says that “you’re faking it” or that “you can never truly be an athlete, entertainer, influencer, or whoever you aspire to become.” It tries to tell you that all your accomplishments thus far were due to sheer luck or association. It can even produce feelings of inadequacy, anxiety, shame, and guilt. I need you to know that little voice that calls itself imposter syndrome is LYING to you. You are 100% capable of being who you know you can be. Before I give you some helpful tools to combat and silence this voice, let’s look at this from a Christian perspective.
The first thing you should know is that the devil is a useless vagabond with nothing better to do than to make people feel unworthy of who they are and who they’re called to be (especially since he forfeited his destiny). His goal is to make people shy away from their career aspirations, especially since he knows the audience and the impact attached to your life.
In the Bible, we see the devil use this tactic often! We also see humanity succumb to the doubts associated with greatness. An example of this would be Jeremiah. Jeremiah was a person that struggled with feelings of unworthiness as it relates to his calling (profession for this text). Jeremiah 1:5-7 reads, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” 7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, “I am too young.” Jeremiah had believed that he was “too young” or “inexperienced.” To be who God was calling him to be. Sometimes the title is scarier than the actual doing of the aspiration. Sometimes we look for validation that affirms that we are ready or legitimate in people. And sometimes, despite the outside validation, we still feel unprepared.
We neglect to see the truth, which is that God has already given us the skills and placed events in our daily lives as evidence of HIS validation. Later in the text, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you.” Don’t be afraid of the gossip, nor let the negative thoughts make you stagnant. Imposter syndrome produces fear. It makes you fear that someone will eventually find you out or discover that you are “not qualified” — but who said?! What evidence confirms that you are not capable? Doesn’t everyone have a starting point that confirms their profession? How can you ever work your way up if you haven’t allowed yourself to familiarize yourself with the new territory? It’ll be hard to understand why you have been placed there if you’re occupying your time trying to discover why you shouldn’t be there. Don’t let imposter syndrome or people disqualify you. It is God that qualifies you.
Ways to Combat Imposter Syndrome
Familiarize yourself with the signs of imposter syndrome
Inability to accept praise
Difficult and Impossibly High Standards for One’s Self
Feelings of Inadequacy (thoughts of not being enough)
Contributes Success, to “Being Lucky”
Fear of Expressing Confidence in Skills
Timidity in Expressing Ideas
Apologizing Excessively
Practice Self-Kindness and Love
It is imperative to be kind to yourself and speak with positivity. Having negative conversations with yourself can limit success. It is also detrimental to your physical, professional, and mental health.
Create Affirmations
Create affirmations that speak against those negative thought.
Say them once in the morning when you wake up, and before you sleep at night, so it is fresh in your mind.
Be consistent in speaking affirmations for 60 days! The goal is to develop a new habit and maintain that habit.
You’re NOT Alone!
A plethora of successful individuals have felt unworthy of their accomplishments and positions! Let that give you a sense of peace. This too can and will pass by applying the right tools.
Prayer
God is here to grant you peace! There’s nothing He cannot help you through.
Counseling
Counseling is a fantastic way to combat feelings of imposter syndrome. It promotes psychological fitness, helps prevent burnout, and produces longevity within one’s profession.
Success Journal
Keeping a journal of all your accomplishments and successes will help to silence any voice telling you that you have not accomplished anything.
Let's Talk: Imposter Syndrome
Rebecca
Have you ever felt like you weren’t “good enough” in your profession? Maybe you’ve felt like a fraud in the midst of professionals DESPITE having all the skill sets, knowledge, and experience required in your desired field. This, my friends, is imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome says that “you’re faking it” or that “you can never truly be an athlete, entertainer, influencer, or whoever you aspire to become.” It tries to tell you that all your accomplishments thus far were due to sheer luck or association. It can even produce feelings of inadequacy, anxiety, shame, and guilt. I need you to know that little voice that calls itself imposter syndrome is LYING to you. You are 100% capable of being who you know you can be. Before I give you some helpful tools to combat and silence this voice, let’s look at this from a Christian’s perspective.
The first thing you should know is that the devil is a useless vagabond with nothing better to do than to make people feel unworthy of who they are and who they’re called to be (especially since he forfeited his destiny). His goal is to make people shy away from their career aspirations, especially since he knows the audience and the impact attached to your life.
In the Bible, we see the devil use this tactic often! We also see humanity succumb to the doubts associated with greatness. An example of this would be Jeremiah. Jeremiah was a person that struggled with feelings of unworthiness as it relates to his calling (profession for this text). Jeremiah 1:5-7 reads, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” 7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, “I am too young.” Jeremiah had believed that he was “too young” or “inexperienced.” To be who God was calling him to be. Sometimes the title is scarier than the actual doing of the aspiration. Sometimes we look for validation that affirms that we are ready or legitimate in people. And sometimes, despite the outside validation, we still feel unprepared.
We neglect to see the truth, which is that God has already given us the skills and placed events in our daily lives as evidence of HIS validation. Later in the text, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you.” Don’t be afraid of the gossip, nor let the negative thoughts make you stagnant. Imposter syndrome produces fear. It makes you fear that someone will eventually find you out or discover that you are “not qualified” — but who said?! What evidence confirms that you are not capable? Doesn’t everyone have a starting point that confirms their profession? How can you ever work your way up if you haven’t allowed yourself to familiarize yourself with the new territory? It’ll be hard to understand why you have been placed there if you’re occupying your time trying to discover why you shouldn’t be there. Don’t let imposter syndrome or people disqualify you. It is God that qualifies you.
Ways to Combat Imposter Syndrome
Familiarize yourself with the signs of imposter syndrome
Inability to accept praise
Difficult and Impossibly High Standards for One’s Self
Feelings of Inadequacy (thoughts of not being enough)
Contributes Success, to “Being Lucky”
Fear of Expressing Confidence in Skills
Timidity in Expressing Ideas
Apologizing Excessively
Practice Self-Kindness and Love
It is imperative to be kind to yourself and speak with positivity. Having negative conversations with yourself can limit success. It is also detrimental to your physical, professional, and mental health.
Create Affirmations
Create affirmations that speak against those negative thought.
Say them once in the morning when you wake up, and before you sleep at night, so it is fresh in your mind.
Be consistent in speaking affirmations for 60 days! The goal is to develop a new habit and maintain that habit.
You’re NOT Alone!
A plethora of successful individuals have felt unworthy of their accomplishments and positions! Let that give you a sense of peace. This too can and will pass by applying the right tools.
Prayer
God is here to grant you peace! There’s nothing He cannot help you through.
Counseling
Counseling is a fantastic way to combat feelings of imposter syndrome. It promotes psychological fitness, helps prevent burnout, and produces longevity within one’s profession.
Success Journal
Keeping a journal of all your accomplishments and successes will help to silence any voice telling you that you have not accomplished anything.