Learning from one another is what BoldJourney is all about. Below, we’ve shared stories and insights from phenomenal artists, creatives and entrepreneurs who’ve successfully managed to overcome imposter syndrome.
Shenequa Johnson
I’ve struggled with imposter syndrome a lot, sometimes I still have it. One way I overcome it is by realizing it’s a normal thing, everyone is hard on themselves it’s a part of life. Another way is using a lot of positive affirmations and speaking life into myself. I am great at what i do and the world can/will see it. Read more>>
Savanna Westwood
Honestly, I do not think it ever goes away. There will be someone with more experience, a bigger or more successful business, or more knowledge. I think going into the mindset of, “You don’t know everything.” you should always be learning and willing to continue education in your field. Imposter Syndrome pops its head up less over time the longer you are in business and people in your field start coming to you for advice. Read more>>
Pete George
Imposter syndrome, to me, stems from the pressure to meet external standards. Embracing authenticity regardless of the situation helps evade the trap of presenting a false front that’s impossible to sustain. Simultaneously, directing attention towards being of service to others shifts the spotlight away from personal insecurities, fostering a focus on positively impacting others. Read more>>
Sara Waterman
This is a great question! I spent years battling imposter syndrome. I am pretty much entirely self taught. I learned photography thru trail and error and hours and hours of YouTube a night. I would almost feel guilty when people would pay me thousands of dollars to photograph their event. I would work so hard, and edit to the point of ridiculous. Read more>>
Zachary Rippy
I don’t think I have. I try to keep a healthy relationship with it! If I ever feel like I got it all down or I got it all right, then I know im faking it. For lack of a better term, “Having it” is a moving target. As soon as I feel good about something I’ve done, its time to move on and learn the next thing. It’s never time to enjoy or rest on my laurels. This is a young man’s game and im getting older everyday. Read more>>
Amy P. Kelly
I’ve been the only woman on executive teams and been grateful to have the opportunity for promotions where I did not have the complete array of professional experiences to fit the role. By growing into executive roles through personal mindset development, mentorship, and specific learning plans, I’ve been able to deal with the doubt and fear that comes when you step out and step up to make a bigger impact. I still deal with imposter syndrome and have an approach to work through, develop through, and walk through the challenge of this pervasive issue. Read more>>
Brandon Smith
Everyone has their skill sets and it can sometimes take a VERY long time to hone in on your craft or passion. I’ve never wanted the simple job or something that I wouldn’t enjoy. I like solving problems and as an audio engineer, 99% of the job is troubleshooting. Often, you are the only one who knows how to do a certain job during a show, and you don’t always have the luxury of asking for help or for answers when something isn’t working. Read more>>
Jaimee Jakobczak
If I’m being totally honest, I still struggle with this from time to time, but I’ve got a much better handle on it now than I did when I was younger. When you’re young you don’t realize how deeply media can impact your perception of the world you live in and I think one thing that was challenging for me is that I didn’t often see women in the types of roles I was interested in. Read more>>
Rachel Christopoulos
For me, Imposter Syndrome manifested itself with feelings of insecurity around sharing my work. While I was learning how to make my art and try to sell it at the same time, every time I would ask for the sale I’d feel like I was ripping people off. Like my work wasn’t worthy of being seen, shared, or complimented because I didn’t know how I’d made it and I didn’t even know if it was mine. Read more>>
Chad Treadway
Overcoming imposter syndrome is a daily battle, if I am being honest. I think anyone with any since of humbleness to them deals with it. We look to other experts and think, I’m not as good as they are. Why should someone believe or trust me? The key thing to remember is that if you have taken the time to educate yourself and put the work into it, you probably know more than 9 out of 10 people. Read more>>
Michelle Thomas Richardson
The short answer to tackling the feeling of imposter syndrome is to keep working. The more time spent working, the more comfortable you feel with titling yourself an artist. And eventually, you assume the role and it likely will become a defining part of who you are. Ultimately, if you believe that you are an artist, no one can take that away from you. Read more>>
Natasha Rivero
There was this Jay Shetty interview with Emma Grede I watched last year and she quoted her mother saying. ” You’re not better than anyone else, and no one is better than you.” She started saying that imposter syndrome is made up and that we all feel exactly the same deep down. We all want to work hard for the things we want and that it all comes down to respecting one another. Read more>>
Emil Gasparian
I embraced each shoot as a chance to grow, appreciating my unique perspective and trusting my years of experience to silence doubt. Every click affirmed my journey, erasing imposter shadows. Read more>>
BG Boyd
Honestly, I am still kind of trying to overcome it. There are so many talented artists in Tucson, and really, most of what I do is document their talent. So when I come back and look at my videos of their work, I can’t help but have the thoughts they are the talent, what am I? I am just making photos and videos of their awesome thing. Read more>>
Jerri Doran
I have come to believe that overcoming imposter syndrome is not a one and done experience. We are always working to be in balance with our ego and our higher self. This is a process that has been part of my journey. I have been a practicing shamanic energy healer for 15 years and a teacher of this ancient tradition for over 10 years. Read more>>
Jeremaine Luber
As a creative, I feel like having imposter syndrome is one of those qualities that will always be a part of me for the rest of my life. In my opinion, imposter syndrome is one of my greatest teachers as I grow as an artist. It’s a lesson that teaches me about presence, self-compassion and dedication. Read more>>
Lisa Goren
How do you overcome imposter syndrome? As someone who became an artist later in life (I didn’t start painting until I was in my 40’s), I’m always the artistic imposter! If you start from there, you really have no place to go but up. Imposter syndrome implies that the others around you are legit and maybe you don’t belong. Especially in a career where every single artist has their own identity and practice, this seems silly. If you’re thinking others belong, then you belong. Read more>>
Rachel Bridgwood and Lauren Anderson
As a person in a creative field, we get the feeling that imposter syndrome is something we will never fully conquer. There is a certainly a level of keeping our heads down, working hard, learning, growing, and adapting that gives us the experience needed to sift through the basic levels of imposter syndrome. This is certainly what we’d recommend for someone newer in the industry – focusing on yourself and your own growth to avoid having any time to even worry about if you are legitimate in your field or deserving of your successes. Read more>>
Christy Conoly
I overcame imposter syndrome during my tenure at an office job, where I had an enlightening revelation. Until that revelation, my perspective regarding launching a business was that it required substantial financial resources and was exclusively reserved for exceptionally brilliant individuals. However, my perspective shifted, as I observed constant turnover in the office, 48 employees within a mere 18 months to be exact, as well as witnessing a lack of common sense and inefficiency among the C-suite team. Read more>>
Lauren Dreher
I decided I wanted to achieve my goals more than I was willing to let imposter syndrome stop me. That being said, imposter syndrome has come at me in a lot of ways. People pleasing, self-diminishing talk, trying to be the overachieving superhuman. Ultimatley, something important to know about me is i’m still a work in progress and will always be with all of these things. What has saved me is having a shift in perspective. Read more>>
Wreck Wregular
Getting rid of bad habits that don’t contribute to your success. Creating distance with those who don’t reciprocate energy. Keeping an eye on your mental diet. Making sure you upholding the contract you’ve made with yourself to accomplish your goals. Tracking your process. And last but not least, knowing what to in your times of anxiety. Read more>>
Alexandria Higgs
Overcoming imposter syndrome involved a conscious effort to reinforce my self-worth. Reminding myself that I deserve to occupy the rooms and tables I find myself in, I go through a checklist of my skills, assets, and the journey that led me to my current position. Keeping myself grounded becomes crucial when imposter syndrome tries to surface, allowing me to maintain confidence in my abilities and the value I bring to various situations. Read more>>
Olivia Bain
In order to overcome imposter syndrome, I had to understand what in me was being triggered. I saw people living the lives I wanted on Instagram and had decided that Instagram was the problem. Instagram made people believe that if their life didn’t look a certain way, then it wasn’t worth sharing. It was so much easier to blame a platform for pushing people to curate images that did not reflect a true reality. Read more>>
Meg Stapp
I dealt with imposter syndrome from the moment I started my career in the arts. I didn’t attend a fancy art school, I didn’t take art classes, and I didn’t even take any classes growing up in the arts beyond what they taught in elementary schooling. Yet I knew I was always artistic and when I was wrapping up college I took up arts as a means of therapy and knew that somehow I was going to make a career out of it. Read more>>
Ashley Dowell
Imposter Syndrome is a big one for me, and to be honest, I can’t say that I have completely overcome it. I believe that my feelings of being an artist “imposter” more than likely stemmed from growing up in a low-income family with limited resources for art supplies or art education. I was homeschooled until 10th grade, attended a very small highschool, and went to an even smaller college. Read more>>
Sam Blakeslee
In any field, imposter syndrome is a fickle scenario. For me, I don’t think it is something that I have wholly overcome, but it is rather something that I try to acknowledge and work with whenever it inevitably shows up. As a jazz trombonist, composer, and educator, imposter syndrome has shown up in different ways and times in my life and has often lined up with the times when a new and significant opportunity has presented itself. Read more>>
Sara Bowersock
Ahhh…. good ol’ Imposter Syndrome! I actually want to talk about how I HAVEN’T totally overcome it, and how I don’t really think it’s something that ever totally goes away for most people who deal with it. However, I want to talk about how I’ve gotten better at handling it, and in a way, embracing it, because I think it might be helpful for people reading this who struggle. Read more>>
Jordan Beecham
Personally in my journey there was this beginning phase that was shrouded in ignorance. All I knew is that I wanted to be a storyboard artist. I knew the profession of storyboarding involved drawing and I loved to draw. When I first thought about becoming a storyboard artist I had heard about things like working long hours and needing to live in Los Angeles, those obstacles caused me to put that dream on pause. When it came time to revisit that particular career path after gaining experience in the professional world in other roles I did not realize the quality of work required to be successful. Read more>>
Jana Donohoe
Embarking on the journey of pursuing a degree in interior design was my first significant step in conquering the persistent shadow of imposter syndrome. While in school I discovered an inherent passion and capability within myself. The academic milestones became not only a testament to my growing expertise but also a powerful tool in dismantling the self-doubt. Read more>>
Laurent Pinabel
I don’t know if this syndrome can disappear completely… Thanks to the recognition I’ve received from my peers and the public over the years, I’m now able to overcome this syndrome in certain situations and at certain stages of my work. But like everyone else, I want to move forward and sometimes step out of my confidence zone to try things out, and that’s when the syndrome comes back. It’s a bit like climbing a staircase. Read more>>
Debrika Wright Person
One of the things that I had to do was to tell myself that I am worthy and super talented. I think about my many talents and accomplishments. I have worked very hard over the years and deserve to be where I am. Besides more people deal with the imposter syndrome than we think. Read more>>
Taylor Morrison
I haven’t entirely overcome imposter syndrome. I am very inexperienced in comparison to my peers in the Central Florida art community. I believe that it is completely natural to have insecure thoughts about your art from time to time. Personally, I battle these types of thoughts by being very proud of the creative concepts that I can come up with. Read more>>
Krishana Johnson-James
Imposter syndrome can pop up any time, but a growth mindset helps me be more open to taking risks and stepping outside my comfort zone. For example, I always wanted to write a children’s book. Many years ago, I made one myself at home, but I put it on a shelf. There was encouragement from friends to publish it in some way, yet I worried about what others would say. Read more>>
Angie Shell
I perceive imposter syndrome as something to be managed more than something to overcome. While it may not completely go away, by reflecting on your mindset and truly looking within, you truly can minimize the feeling that you aren’t deserving of your achievements. I always like to embrace my strengths in my work and the techniques I utilize that separate me from other artists. Read more>>
