Learn what is Impostor Syndrome, why it shows up, and how you can deal with it. Plus, discover why you're the perfect fit for your clients right now.
A couple of years into my freelance business, I had trouble taking the next big bold step to move my business forward because I didn’t feel like I was good enough. I needed to transition my freelance business into a creative agency yet struggled with all sorts of Impostor Syndrome negative self-talk.
When you’re doubting your own skills and value, it’s way too easy to get sucked into the rabbit hole of endlessly scrolling Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and even easier to get stuck in a dangerous game of comparison.
- When comparing my work with others, I was second-guessing myself and thinking, “They’re so much better and more experienced than I am. Am I even good enough to be doing this?”
- When seeing all of the amazing work others were doing, I was impressed, inspired, and honestly, a little envious, and on the tough days, that made my self-criticism and self-doubt worse.
Impostor Syndrome is a psychological challenge where qualified, skilled people not only doubt their own knowledge and skills but experience a strong fear that someone will eventually discover that they’re a fraud.
Some of the things that ran through my head when I was feeling like an impostor were:
- Why would someone ever hire me when there are so many other people who are more talented and more experienced?
- What are other people going to think and say? Who does she think she is?
- I don’t know enough yet. I’m not good enough yet. I need to learn more first and achieve more first.
Does any of that sound familiar?
My internal self-sabotage was trying to take over my mindset for success and use intimidation and fear to hold me back. But luckily, I didn’t listen (too much) because I had a champion in my corner (my husband Brian) who shared something with me that completely changed the way I think about myself and business.
“There will always be someone fatter than you and someone thinner than you. There will always be someone richer than you and poorer than you. There will always be someone better than you and worse than you. There will always be someone who knows more than you and less than you. GET OVER IT.”
— Brian Bourn
This statement changed everything and it’s something every freelancer needs to hear.
You are your own worst critic. You are more judgemental of yourself and much harder on yourself than you are on anyone else — and this behavior damages your mindset for productivity, marketing, client attraction, sales, business growth, and personal success.
Impostor Syndrome And Self-Sabotage
The most interesting thing about Impostor Syndrome is that it is most often felt by those who ARE highly experienced and definitely not impostors, frauds, fakes, or phonies.
- Real imposters don’t get impostor syndrome because they confidently fake it ’til they make it and believe they know everything they need to know. They’re also typically less experienced, which means they don’t know what they don’t know (or just how much they don’t know).
- Experienced people feel impostor syndrome because as you gain experience and learn, you discover just how much more there is to experience and learn. In other words, the better you get, the more aware you become of how far you still have to go.
- Also, skilled, knowledgeable, qualified, high-performing people tend to partner with and work with other skilled, knowledgeable, qualified, high-performing people — and when you compare yourself to someone like that, it’s easy to doubt yourself and feel like you don’t measure up.
Whether I’m working with a new freelancer who is just starting a business or a seasoned freelancer with years of experience, Impostor Syndrome is a reality that needs to be dealt with and managed to prevent self-sabotage and procrastination of progress toward a goal.
Impostor Syndrome is something I continue to deal with every time I step into the spotlight, speak at an event, deliver a webinar, show up to deliver training, or walk into a live event.
Over the years, I’ve learned how to deal with it and recognize it for what it is…
Impostor Syndrome Is A Test
Impostor Syndrome is a sign of how much you want something and how much something matters to you.
This is why it rears its ugly head before you’re about to take big bold action, before you put yourself out there in a big way or step into the spotlight, and during important transformational work that moves you and/or your business to the next level. It’s why it shows up when you’re doing creative work. It’s why it appears before you step into a conference room full of industry professionals, before you step on stage to speak, and before a big important meeting.
Impostor Syndrome keeps showing up every time you’re ready to level up as a test to see if you’re ready and willing to do the work needed to be who you’re meant to be and achieve your biggest goals.
The Truth About Impostor Syndrome
Many creative freelancers, self-taught professionals, and business owners shy away from claiming any type of expertise, calling themselves an expert, stepping into the spotlight, or owning their authority because they’re afraid…
- Afraid of judgement
- Afraid of what people will say
- Afraid of someone discovering they’re a fraud or an impostor
- Afraid of making a mistake
- Afraid of being called out by a “real expert”
Here’s the deal:
Most freelancers believe there can only be one person who reigns supreme as the number one most knowledgeable expert in an industry. But that’s not true. In every industry, there are experts at all skill and knowledge levels and you are one of those experts.
If you’re good at what you do and you know more about it than someone else, you have a greater level of expertise in that area than others. And to those who know less than you, you’re an expert.
This is especially true for creative entrepreneurs!
Claiming your expertise doesn’t mean you’re claiming to be the best in the world, the only expert that exists, or even the premier expert in your industry, it simply means you’re claiming to have more knowledge on a particular topic than someone else.
A true expert:
- Understands their current knowledge and skill levels.
- Knows their audience and offers help.
- Constantly learns from those who know more and are further along the same path so they can continue to grow and improve.
- Acknowledges their Impostor Syndrome as a sign of bold action and an up-leveling of themselves or their business and takes action anyway to avoid self-sabotage.
All Expertise Is Valid
If you’re a creative entrepreneur or freelancer who struggles to claim your value and define your professional worth, know this:
There is more than enough business to go around and there is more than enough room for multiple experts to exist on the same subject. Your work and its impact has value. Your skill, experience, expertise, and potential has value — and its value can’t be diminished by the existence of another creative entrepreneur or freelancer or the quality of their work.
Here are a few tricks to help you squash Impostor Syndrome:
- Learn to be comfortable with your expertise so you can find a unique position in the market you can own with confidence.
- Ditch the distractions and comparisons. Try pulling way back or taking a break from social media and limiting your consumption of email newsletters to keep your focus on your clients and your amazing creative work.
- Collaborate with other experts to improve your industry and your businesses collectively — partnerships are a great way to elevate your social and professional credibility.
- Read through your past client testimonials! Let them remind you of how great you are!
Don’t get frustrated or feel insecure because there are people who know more than you do, have more experience than you do, or are working faster than you are or getting more done than you are. And don’t let fear get in the way of taking action to achieve your goals and bring your big vision to life. Instead, own the experience and expertise you have right now and commit to learning from those ahead of you.
Remember:
- There will always be someone fatter than you and someone thinner than you.
- There will always be someone richer than you and poorer than you.
- There will always be someone better than you and worse than you.
- There will always be someone who knows more than you and less than you.
Get over it! The number one reason to ditch Impostor Syndrome is that you are incredible. You are talented. You are more than enough. You are a perfect match for YOUR clients just the way you are with the knowledge and expertise YOU have right now.
You are exactly what your clients need and you’ve got this!
Plus, I guarantee, while you look at other leaders or authority figures and feel Impostor Syndrome kicking in, someone else is looking at you and feeling the exact same way.
