Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Denver McQuaid. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Denver, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Overcoming imposter syndrome is simple in theory but takes mindful work in practice. There are two fundamental ways I’ve found that work best in silencing the inner critic and getting out of your own way. As a Creative entrepreneur with ADHD I relate deeply to that various mental hurdles and bursts of motivation that often leave us feeling stuck in the mud.
The first thought that’s important to keep in mind is according to various research papers including from the National Library of Medicine, roughly 62-70% of people experience imposter syndrome in some fashion. What this means is it’s an extremely common and shared experience amongst a majority of the US population. Statistically speaking, we can’t all be in over our heads with no experience so maybe we’re just in our heads instead.
The second and arguably more important thought to keep in mind is the best cure for imposter syndrome is experience. Confidence comes from experiences. Silencing the inner critic comes form experience. Courage and trust are bolstered by experience. The only way to gain experience is to do the damn thing. Whatever said “thing” may be.
Not to rip off Nike but Just Do It. Make bad art. Do mediocre work. Now don’t confuse this mentality with accepting mediocrity as success, but see this as your minimum threshold. Make the work exist then refine and polish it. Lower your barrier of entry and try as many times as you possibly can. Success is the summit of the mountain of failure.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
For the last 5 years at Digital Magician Studios, the team and I have helped major brands, startups, and celebrities grow their social media presence online with viral content strategy, thumb-stopping paid media, and high end visual effects content. We specialize in Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube content strategy helping brands big and small success online and demand attention that turns eyeballs into dollar signs.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
If I was starting from scratch today the most important piece of advice I could give is to not care what a single other person thinks. From strangers on the internet to the people you went to high school with. No one doing more than you will ever look down and judge you for trying. No one doing less than you has an opinion worth internalizing.
From there I would focus on what you’re passionate about. Is it a specific skill set or hobby? Are you an expert in an industry who can distill your advice into repeatable bite-sized formats? Do you simply enjoy creating art or making people laugh? Whatever hybrid mix of these questions you gravitate towards the most is your personal brand.
Build structure that allows for flexibility to adapt and evolve as you gain more data. And speaking of data, do not care about the numbers or “flops” on your pages until you’ve made at least 100 pieces of content. Everything until that threshold is simply practice for you. Once you reach 100 posts you’ll know what’s working and what isn’t. You only need a 1% success rate to find your path. From there double down and iterate on what works.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
We are always looking to expand our network of Content Creators for Influencer campaigns, Creatives & Artists to help with video editing and photography, as well as passionate founders & marketers looking to scale their brands on social.
Whether you’re a team of 1 or a Fortune 500 brand, we have strategies and data to help you scale online.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://denvermcquaid.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/denvermcquaid
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denvermcquaid/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@denvermcquaid
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
