Do You Ever Feel Like An Imposter?

Achieving our dreams and goals often means we have to put ourselves out there more and be in the public eye. For a lot of us, this is way outside of our comfort zone, especially if you're an introvert. We're afraid of getting judged or criticised by people.

This usually manifests as imposter syndrome. We think “Who do you think you are to do this? You're not talented enough, attractive enough, smart enough, educated enough, successful enough, etc.”

There are two aspects to imposter syndrome. The first is that our achievements do not determine our worth as people. It's really unfortunate that our society judges the value of a person by their productivity and accomplishments. So we fall into the trap of basing our self-worth on something external, like achievement or success.

We think we have to justify our existence with achievement. But something loved you enough to give you the gift of life. You didn't have to prove your value or your worth. You were given existence and you do NOT need to justify your existence. Existence itself esteems you because you exist. Just let existence justify itself and base your self-worth on your existence.

Don't ever think that just because not everyone likes your music, or because you haven't made it big yet, that your life doesn't have value. You have inherent value as a human being because you're alive. You are enough.

The second part of this is that if you're trying to do anything meaningful or ambitious in your life, you will have people criticise you. But the people who criticise you will be the armchair critics of the world, the people who are doing less than you, those cold, timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat, as Teddy Roosevelt said, because they don't have the courage and conviction to pursue their dreams and goals.

Your peers in the arena who are getting their hands dirty working towards their own goals aren't going to criticise you. Because they understand the courage and the effort that's required to take action. And they will champion you and support you. What you're making isn't for everyone anyway. If you try to please everyone, you please no one.

The way to overcome imposter syndrome isn't to stop caring about what other people might think. It's to care more about your mission and purpose and your own conviction.

If you have a fear around being more public and more influential, that's just a story you're telling yourself. You tell yourself a story that you're inadequate or inferior in some way, or unqualified, and that people are going to criticise you for that. And you have fear around being criticised or ridiculed.

That story is all about you. But what if you changed the story so instead of it being about you it was about other people?

The way to step beyond your fear and your imposter syndrome is to realise that you are here to serve others through your gift.

When we have imposter syndrome, we're making it all about ourselves. When we make our art, our music, our business, our product, our service, our message about ourselves, we're being selfish and we're not able to serve people at the highest level.

The author Daniel Pink says “If you have something that you think benefits the world, you have a moral obligation to bring it to people.”

The highest act of service that we can offer is to become a role model for what is possible. There's a lot of negativity and fear in the world, especially at the moment, but even under normal circumstances. But by showing up and being vulnerable and authentic, with our imperfections on display, then we can show other people what is possible for their own lives.

You're always going to have fears. Progress always involves risk. Taking action and showing up on stage, in writing, and on social media is scary.

Our biggest challenges often represent our biggest opportunities for growth. Change the story that you're telling yourself around imposter syndrome. Flip the script. It's not about you. It's about serving others. Your mess can be your message. People need to hear your message. Make a commitment to get that message to people so they can benefit from it.