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Most of the time I just say "less qualified men have had way less anxiety signing up for more responsibility" to myself lol
And then I research. I look up the state of the art in the areas I'm supposed to have mastery of and I look up educational resources like YouTube videos and books and courses. I immerse myself in knowing more about how other people tackle the same task and use my anxiety to be proactive
DM me if you need specific tips on how to search given your particular role, but there's always something to reference, and a bit of digging will always help you get more context in a way that can relieve anxiety/paralysis
And I have an article for you that specifically talk about how we consultants are essentially all “imposters” and why it is ok. https://hbr.org/2018/07/how-consultants-project-expertise-and-learn-at-the-same-time?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=facebook&tpcc=orgsocial_edit
Depending on the role, look for people who you consider qualified for the role and talk to them about the issues and questions you have, find a way to move forward. You don’t need to have all the knowledge ready for everything, just the ability to find solutions.
One of the best things I ever saw was just adding "yet" to the end of those thoughts. " I dont know how to do X...yet" "I haven't built a strong relationship with that stakeholder...yet" "I haven't finished Y...yet" It changes the tone which helps shift mindset without thinking dramatically different things
You will be fine. The only advice i can give is u need to be okay with being uncomfortable. There will always be situations either at work or in our personal lives where it is new territory and we just don't know what is the best course of action. Trust yourself, you'll make mistakes, and learn.
Pro
I remember this, it will get better. I feel imposter syndrome is tied to overwhelm and lack of confidence. Something i learned to gain confidence is to start with organization, and focus on one small piece at a time . For example, maybe you’ve been given a complex workbook or database and it’s your task to interpret it or create reports. take a step back and learn and/or document what each table is for. Identify the inputs, dependencies and outputs and where does the data go next. Once you know the flow, maybe take a look at the formulas or code- but don’t get sucked in too deep. Be methodical about the review and remember it’s a finite amount of information to grasp if you stay focused. If you get stuck ask a colleague. Put some time on the calendar for your questions, not just a fly by. If you know the inner workings of the data set you’re probably ahead of a lot of others who rely on its reports.
Same with words. Sitting in meetings can be dreadful when it’s an alphabet soup of acronyms and people names and company names - mixed up with a bit of irrelevant history. I can imagine this being spoken at one of my staff meetings: “D&T left the PP&E off the balance sheet. Borgers said Paul messed it up in 2020 so we had to go to alt reporting, so SA - get us a new rec. for Q2”. In English that means “provide a list of equipment that the division owned as of June 30, but don’t rely on prior year data.” You might not understand it but you know enough to go to your boss “you need a rec for Q2, can you help me get started?” Keep in mind your colleagues might feel too busy themselves to want to stop and explain, but once they see you’re smart and can pick it up quickly, it will take things off their plate and they will be grateful for it.
Imposter syndrome is partially trying to appear you know things you don’t. Sometimes it’s better to pretend you know nothing, you’ll be surprised how much you do know, or can figure out quickly. Something I hear from my very experienced mentors is how much they don’t know about a topic, and they ask rudimentary questions.
Can’t say much other than I feel you girl
I had a lot of difficulty with impostor syndrome a few years back. I legit cried when I got my first 360 feedback because I had no idea my colleagues liked me so much.
I've learned to trust when people compliment me because sometimes my brain lies to me. These people see my results and think, not only is it good enough, it's pretty fucking awesome.
Solicit feedback regularly. Either they will validate your impostor feelings and will give you areas to work on, or they will validate that you're better than you give yourself credit for.
My therapist told me to write down the evidence of where I’ve been challenged and delivered good work every time I feel like this and then ask myself where is the evidence to say I can’t do the job. Not sure if this exercise might help you?
Impostor syndrome is very common and most people have experienced it at some point in time. Take comfort in this fact and know that it is also something that you can overcome with a little work. A few things to try:
1) Acknowledge your journey. Create your win list.
2) Use affirmations to require your brain and reframe your thoughts.
3) Assess for gaps in knowledge and/or experience and determine if additional work is needed.
I hope this helps and you can certainly reach out if you desire more assistance. Wishing you all the best!
The best solution for imposter syndrome is to stop thinking about yourself and just get curious. You’ll lead yourself through it that way.