Self-doubt and imposter syndrome have stopped far too many talented folks from going for their goals and reaching their true potential. Our hope is to host conversations that inspire folks to overcome imposter syndrome and help others as well.
Amber Michael
Imposter syndrome is such a funny thing. The lies our brain tells us to keep us “safe” from some imaginary harm. Where your brain is an overzealous security guard, constantly on the lookout for non-existent dangers. Instead of fleeing from a ferocious tiger, we’re braving the wilds of public speaking, seeking promotions, or in my case, casually mingling with top-tier celebrities on film sets worth more than a small island. Read more>>
Noa Sade
I love this question since so many talented individuals are struggling with it and as a coach one of my passions is to relieve my clients from this indeed crippling syndrome. So Ill start with the end, I didn’t fully recover from it, but I have reframed it and made it my friend. Read more>>
Ian Davis
I believe that imposter syndrome comes from how you view the world and the leaders around you. Everyone gets a version of it, and I can say that I’ll never truly overcome it, because that would mean I’ve stopped challenging myself. Read more>>
Faithe Williams
“Why would someone want to hear what you have to say?” is the grand question that comes across my mind more often than not. I remember when I first started to create content, I was a newly licensed Realtor looking to gain clientele so, of course, my first thought was to heavily market myself on social media. Read more>>
Chase Parker
My journey in art began from a lowest low out of nowhere. I was just fortunate enough to recognize the opportunity. I had just gone through several life altering events that left me with nothing. Together, my daughter and I had to start life over. Read more>>
Sabria Sparrow
There are so many mindset shifts that have helped me overcome imposter syndrome. The first has to do with my identity and perceived positionally within society. I’ve mentioned this before, but especially being young, black, and a woman, you are often constantly sent signals, whether you consciously pick up on them or not, that you don’t belong in the spaces that you’re in. And for a long time, I believed that. Read more>>
Violet Vonder Haar
In September of 2021, my wife, Phylshawn and I jumped in, head first, into the nonprofit world, and decided to open a community music school in our beloved small midwest city, Columbia, MO. I remember when we signed the lease on the 336sqft space that desperately needed a remodel, how terrified and excited we were. Read more>>
Travéy
Honestly, I never really did. I come from a place where people tear you down before they build you up, so accomplishments aren’t praised often by the peers around you if they aren’t involved. What I can say is that being in those situations helped me build a stronger foundation for what I believe in. Read more>>
Shawn O’Donnell
I don’t think the imposter syndrome ever fully goes away. There will always be someone else who’s better, faster, stronger. The way I like to have a healthy relationship with this phenomenon is knowing that while you may always feel inferior in some way, no one will ever be as good as you are at being yourself. Read more>>
Aroon Duncanson
Great question! I’ll be honest – imposter syndrome hasn’t completely vanished. It pops up in waves, sometimes even weekly. But here’s the thing: I think those waves are actually a good sign. Owning a social media agency is all about keeping up with the ever-changing landscape. If I ever felt like I knew everything and imposter syndrome disappeared entirely, I wouldn’t be as driven to constantly learn and improve for my company and clients. Read more>>
Cat Wood
Like many women and disabled people, imposter syndrome (IS) has been a running theme throughout my adult life. More recently, I have overcome IS by reframing it from ‘syndrome’, to ‘negative experiences that became my sense of self’. With this new-found perspective I found the power to let those experiences go. Read more>>
Pam Malcontento
One day my daughter called me out on my uncertainty and told me that I had imposter syndrome. Once I thought about it and spent some time researching behaviors of this I knew she was right and I worked to power past that and vowed to leave those thoughts and behaviors in the past. Getting immediate feedback on my products when people are in disbelief and tell me that it’s “fu#$ing delicious” is one way to move pat imposter syndrome! Read more>>
Elina Kozino
I’m afraid that the most honest answer to this question is this: if impostor syndrome exists, you live and work to overcome it almost constantly, but it is precisely this syndrome that makes the value of your achievements much higher than without it. Read more>>
Kristin Lee Geiger
What a good question! Imposter syndrome is something SO many of us deal with! As much as we might value a fancy degree, certificate, or even praise that suggests we’re an “expert” at something, putting all of that knowledge into practice in the real world or turning it into a saleable product is such a different thing. Read more>>
Katy Lipscomb
This is something that I’ve talked about a lot with my peers, friends, and even my clients, so I’m thrilled that you asked. Imposter syndrome, or the inability to believe that your success is deserved, is honestly something that I continually struggle with, but it has gotten much better over time. Read more>>
Sarah Kuhn
I grew up loving and fascinated by fashion, the art of creativity and producing something so beautiful. Literally wearing art. I always had a sense of style and fashion, but didn’t think much of it. I went to college for science as that was also intriguing to me. After graduating with a degree in biology and a Masters in Counseling Psychology, I worked in that business for a bit and then stayed home with our children. Read more>>
Nicholas Brezzell
Experience. I been lucky to work with some pretty awesome people. Senators, Admirals, Scientist, and athletes. Supper productive people. Ive come to find out that im no different than them. Im good at what I do. And no matter what anyone says, that can never be taken from me. Read more>>
Eleanor Hancock
For me, overcoming imposter syndrome has been less about eradicating it and more about learning to use and grow with it, transforming it into a tool rather than a barrier. Some might say I’ve always been a bit of a perfectionist, a people pleaser, and not one to take risks without a guarantee of shiny success. It’s in my wiring. Read more>>
Felipe Amaya
Overcoming impostor syndrome can be a daily challenge for me. I tend to be a bit of an overachiever, which can be a double-edged sword. It motivates me to constantly push myself, learn new things, and create new art. At work, this drive propels me to find innovative solutions and optimizations for common tasks and production problems. Read more>>
Kathleen Isaac
I have always been a quiet, shy, introvert. Growing up, my teachers would constantly give feedback that I should speak up more and this created internal pressure to use my voice, which ultimately kept me more silent. Interestingly, I was still identified as a leader and people seemed to listen when I did speak up. Read more>>
Katie Yarnold
For many artists, the way that imposter syndrome manifests itself is an apprehension around identifying as an artist. I’ve heard dozens of incredibly creative people say “I’m not an artist” because they don’t make money from their art, don’t make enough artwork, or simply think their art isn’t “good enough.” The truth is that anyone who makes art is an artist! Read more>>
Katrina Widener
Imposter syndrome is an incredibly hot topic in the entrepreneur world, but what I find so interesting is that so many people connect to other phrasing of the same topic so much more viscerally — self doubt, shame, embarrassment. low confidence, etc. My personal experience with imposter syndrome comes in two parts: how I have overcome it myself, and how I work with entrepreneurs to work through it in business coaching. Read more>>
Dre Donoghue
I’m not sure that it is ever possible to fully overcome imposter syndrome unless you truly don’t care a bit about what others think of you(which I still do). But, I have learned throughout my career as a hairstylist and educator that having a strong foundation can carry you through almost any situation. Read more>>
Cécile Charlotin
Imposter syndrome is such a real thing, especially in the world of fashion and lifestyle influencing. For me, it was all about finding my own voice and embracing my unique perspective. I had to remind myself that nobody does “me” better than me. When I started I wanted to just post pictures of my outfits online. Read more>>
Caroline Frost
Imposter syndrome harvests its strength and yields to its weakness in its ubiquity. Everyone feels like an imposter most, if not all, of the time. In undergrad, I was required to write a thesis paper to complete an intensive research assignment as a graduation requirement. Read more>>
Melissa Rooney
Throughout my life, I have tried to present myself the way I think people need to see me in order to be successful, particularly when it comes to my writing. This means I either 1) let them assume that my writing financially supports me (isn’t that the American definition of success?) or 2) avoid the subject altogether. Either way, this approach breeds imposter syndrome. Read more>>
Patrick Adams
It’s hard to enter into a world such as a musical community with so much talent already present and names already established. You need to do something to be visible right away. That was my journey into the world of making children’s music. Read more>>
Megan Chovanec
I think everyone experiences imposter syndrome at some point in their lives. Questions like, ‘Am I good enough?’ or ‘Will I live up to everyone’s expectations?’ often float through our minds. These questions arose in my own thoughts a few months ago when I was laid off from my graphic design job. Had all my hard work been for nothing? Read more>>
Crystal Oakes
I overcame imposter syndrome by gathering knowledge! Knowledge about my areas of expertise of course, but also knowledge about how others like me feel about their own imposter syndrome. I also love having the knowledge of how and why others in my industry are doing things the way they do. This helps me to see what is out there and also solidify how and why I do things the way I do. Read more>>
Annie Davis
This is such a great topic! I think most of us who strive to truly make an impact in the world struggle with this issue in some form. My own personal journey has been fraught with battling negative self taught and head trash. It’s a daily war with the demons in our own heads that tell us we are hacks, not good enough, not smart enough, not pretty enough, not funny enough, not talented enough, etc. Read more>>
Jie (Jennie) Gao
I distinctly remember the first time I had imposter syndrome. I was at my dream school – Duke University. Everyone back home thought I was brilliant, but I was struggling. My high school in South Carolina did not prepare me for the academic rigor of Duke, and so many of my classmates received much better preparation at nationally ranked high schools and private schools. Read more>>
Elijah Rhea
At this point, it wouldn’t be too far off to say that many of us are multihyphenates. Juggling the responsibilities and expectations of the different roles we play as artists, creatives, professionals, and leaders in numerous spaces. Read more>>
Sanket Dikshit
While we think that inspiration at times looks a lot like copying, it is true that the line between inspiration and copying is very thin. When I want to shoot something, this is what my process looks like. I look at images made by artists who I draw inspiration from and then dig deep into my own life so far. Read more>>
Liz Putnam
While I would love to say I’ve overcome imposter syndrome, it’s a work in progress! I have an engineering background. College and even the engineering real-world had metrics in place for my progress – grades, tests, projects, performance evaluations. But I’ve since moved out of engineering, and become a self-taught photographer, leaving all those metrics behind. Read more>>
Tara Larrick
The short and sweet answer to the how did you overcome imposter syndrome question is, I didn’t fully. I don’t believe that this is something that you ever really overcome if you are truly growing and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone. When I first started editing videos I was in the 7th grade, but it was just a fun way to express my creativity. Read more>>
Anastasiia Filonenko
Impostor syndrome is a really nasty thing that hits when you least expect it. The best thing that helps me personally is not those classic “esteem yourself”, “think about your strengths”. It doesn’t work for me. Read more>>
Ilaria Serantoni
I believe we are the biggest obstacles to ourselves, especially as creatives. We can hardly have an objective opinion on our work and skills. I’m still afraid that the people around me will discover that I’m actually not as good as they think. But then I ask myself, is it really like that? If I remove fear from my thoughts, what remains? Read more>>
Alessandro Gracy
Imposter syndrome was something I constantly struggled with at the start of my business, I overcame it by acknowledging my achievements. When I sat down and started to realize that each customer of mine put their faith in my and my team, it became a reassurance in what I built. Read more>>
Ruth Anna Evans
I won’t say that I’ve completely overcome imposter syndrome, but most days I feel that I have a right to be doing what I am doing based on the talent and grit I bring to the table. I’m just really lucky in that I like my own work. When I create something, I can objectively see its flaws so that I can fix it, but in general, I just really am in love with my art. Read more>>
Meghan Dwyer
Imposter syndrome is something that came very naturally for me. I used to be terrified to put myself out there – to expose myself to judgments or criticism from others, especially doing it in the vulnerable way that I do. Read more>>
Tyra Perry
By allowing myself to thrive in talents that I know are God given, I have been able to overcome imposter syndrome. In addition to that, I taught myself to live by a “safe to fail” mindset. By doing so, I can give my all in everything I do without the fear of failure holding me back. Read more>>
Dr. Suzanne Adams
Imposter syndrome? It’s like an old shadow that dances beside me, always there, but I’ve learned to make peace with it. Rather than conquering it, I’ve embraced its presence, acknowledging its whispers while I focus on the beautiful moments that unfold when I’m with my family, a new mother, a baby, or a child. Read more>>
Lara Heimann
I believe the feeling of imposter syndrome shows up when you don’t feel confident about what you are teaching or demonstrating. My work ethic has always stemmed from curious inquiry and a non-attachment to being perfect or ‘knowing it all’ with the belief that we will never come close to having all the knowledge, expertise, or wisdom to make that claim. Read more>>
Domonique Boone
Burnout is real. I always encourage entrepreneurs to stay true to yourself. You have to be authentic in every situation. Never change who you are for anyone. Read more>>
Jennifer Railey, D.C.
Being a young professional out of school it was very difficult to feel like I deserved the title of doctor. The realization that someone’s health is in your hands was also very eye opening. People trust you and to live up the an expectation of being a healer and possibly being the answer to someone’s prayer was humbling. Read more>>
Mondrekio “Drake” Robertson
This is a great question because I’m not sure if ever did overcome it. I believe that I work very hard to not let imposter syndrome keep me from achieving my goals, but there are definitely times when it strikes. For me, the best thing to do is really have a strong support system and also really believe in what you are doing. Read more>>
