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.
Lizbeth Martinez
Overcoming imposter syndrome was not an easy thing for me. Actually, I still have days when it comes back and I have to find ways to convince myself that I am worthy and deserving of all good things. It all starts with practicing positive self-talk and reflecting on all of my strengths. I think about all of the things that I have achieved in my life and find ways to convince myself that I am worthy. I also have a great support system, which is my family and friends, whom believe in me and motivate me to continue achieving great things. Read more>>
Robin Eisenberg
I’m an artist and animator! I’m from Los Angeles originally, and lately I’ve been spending my time back and forth between LA and the midwest. I draw a lot of hot aliens living their lives. I try to make art that feels like cozy escapism – lush and cosmic and relatable. My art has been featured in collaborations with brands including Vans, Adobe, Thrasher, Apple, and Adult Swim. I also worked as production designer and co-producer on a new Prime animated series called The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy. I published a book called Cosmic Care with Chronicle Books in 2020. I also love painting murals, animating music videos, and giving workshops and talks. I’m very inspired by nature and outer space, as well as a love of sci-fi, fantasy, road trips, dogs, and listening to songs on repeat. Read more>>
Mònica Losada
It’s a work in progress! I’d say it’s a sum of factors: Reminding myself that no one has all the answers and that growth comes from being uncomfortable. Realizing that even the people I admire most have moments of doubt has helped me see myself with more compassion. Learning to celebrate progress rather than results. Last year Mònica would be proud of where I am right now and that’s more than enough. Knowing that setbacks are temporary and part of the process. Read more>>
Nikki Burfield
Most of my life I felt like I didn’t quite fit. I joined clubs, sports, had girlfriends, boyfriends- but something was just not right. I decided to transition to female and my life has become mostly about honoring my core identity. After coming out and working in a corporate environment again I noticed my new confidence and never felt fear that I was going to be found out. Read more>>
Thiery Sparks
Working with the medical side of Honduras Good Work for almost 18 years, I have had the privilege to volunteer alongside many extremely skilled and respected doctors, nurses, and medical professionals. I have no medical training myself, and it always felt like I was out-of-place assisting, translating, and now leading teams of people with much more experience and understanding than I. Read more>>
Gabe Fowler
As a lifelong nerd, I’ve never doubted my own interests and figured there must be others out there like me. Read more>>
Rebecca Jalbert-gonzalez
I wish I could give a different answer to this question, but the truth is that I still grapple with imposter syndrome. It’s a constant challenge in my life. No matter how many opportunities or successes come my way, I often feel like I don’t truly deserve them. I sometimes catch myself thinking that I’m just pretending, that I’ve somehow fooled people into believing I’m better than I really am. Read more>>
Jamie Kincaid
I’m not sure that any of us ever truly overcomes imposter syndrome. Those of us who deal with it – which in my experience is nearly everyone – simply find ways to push through it. It took me about a decade to actually make the decision to go out on my own and bet on myself. This was in part due to my imposter syndrome and my fear of losing everything I’d worked for. I’ve worked with coaches, surrounded myself with an uplifting and supportive community who is all rooting each other on as we chase our dreams, and worked really hard on centering myself and balancing my mental health. All of that collectively has helped me get through the moments where I felt like I was kidding myself, those moments when I was saying “who do I think I am?” Read more>>
Zere Amirbekova
It’s important to remember that imposter syndrome is a feeling, not an objective reality, and many people experience it at some point in their lives. When you find comfort and confidence within yourself, you no longer need external validation, and the feeling of being an imposter fades away. No one can define your worth unless you already know who you are and what you’re capable of. This is a principle I live by and believe in. Read more>>
Melanie Holbrook
Ah, imposter syndrome! One of the biggest things that will hold people back from achieving their goals. Imposter syndrome was something I dealt with in the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey, as I questioned if I was really capable of running my own business. My business coach had hosted a workshop around imposter syndrome where I learned more about this limiting belief. Read more>>
Elissa Deline
I think I’ll always feel like an imposter, at least a little bit. I’ve never felt I have a knack for photography, I just happened to fall in love with it. But I have to work super hard to make photos that look anywhere even close to how I’d like them to. For me, it has often felt like I’ve stumbled upon a sequence of happy accidents that work well together to form a cohesive narrative or make me feel something. While it may have been intentional the moment I took the photo, in my head it still lives as this random occurrence that landed in the direction I was hoping. I think a lot of creatives feel this way, but for the longest time I felt like I was the only one. Read more>>
Eisha Casimir
Overcoming imposter syndrome has been a journey. For me, it started with accepting that I belonged in every space l’ve worked hard to enter. I remember when HER’MINE was featured in the New York Post as one of the top 30 fashion shows at Miami Swim Week. At first, I was overwhelmed with excitement. I questioned whether I deserved that recognition but then I reminded myself of the sleepless nights, sacrifices, and vision that brought me there. I’ve learned to get rid of those doubts by focusing on the facts- what l’ve achieved and the positive impact I’m creating. Read more>>
Clarissa Gooding-aytch
Growing up in Kinston, NC, I often felt the pressure of being “enough” in spaces that weren’t built with people like me in mind. When I began my studies at North Carolina Central University (NCCU), I was surrounded by a community that nurtured my sense of self-worth and gave me a glimpse of what it means to thrive as a Black woman in academia. However, stepping into predominantly white institutions and professional settings after graduation reawakened that gnawing feeling: “Do I belong here?” Read more>>
Sarah Bingham
I don’t think imposter syndrome is something that’s overcome, I think it’s something that’s managed and eventually lived alongside, as terrible as it is to experience. You just have to make peace with it. Socially, we talk about imposter syndrome as something to beat, but I think it’s actually quite a normal experience. For some reason, it’s one of those things we still vilify and try to minimize the hell out of. I manage mine by setting it aside and doing business as usual. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s present or not. I still have to choose to focus on the task at hand, consult my own internal compass, my intuition, and continue putting one foot in front of the other. Read more>>
Matt Kollock
Here’s the big secret about imposter syndrome: Everybody has it, and no one ever overcomes it. The best we can do is project the appearance of having overcome imposter syndrome! But seriously, the truth is that imposter syndrome has been a big deterrent to me and the achievement of my dreams. However, I’ve come to understand that’s just part of the deal when you’re an artist. There’s really no escaping it. Read more>>
Hritik Mehta
Great question! I don’t think I completely have even now, but I guess I have learned to live and deal with it. At the start of every new creative endeavor, there is always that inner voice saying “You have no idea what you’re doing”, “Everything that you have done up until now was just a fluke”, and I guess every artist in some way suffers from this inner voice, but, have got to resist and fight back that voice and keep going. You will see a spark, a glimmer of light at the end of it. And then you go through the entire process all over again. Read more>>
Kelly Brouillet
One thing I wasn’t prepared for as I advanced in my career and grew my business was the rise of imposter syndrome. In my 20s, it was easier to be confident and ambitious, driven by the urgency to carve out a place in the world. But as I’ve gained more experience and success, I’ve found that doubt has an uncanny way of creeping in, even when you’re farther along the path. Read more>>
Amaris Davidson
I’ll never forget being on the set of How I Met Your Mother in full makeup, full wardrobe, yet silently praying that they didn’t find out that I was a fraud, a fake, an imposter. In truth, I had gone through the entire audition process and booked the role, which is why it was so weird that these feelings came rushing in so brazenly. When I first reflected on the experience, I don’t think I knew the phrase Imposter Syndrome, so I did what I always do when I don’t know something. I Googled it. When I read the definition, I knew immediately that this was not my first brush with Imposter Syndrome. I thought back to my first ballet class in college and being physically incapable of gliding across the floor for fear that everyone would know that I had never taken a dance class or auditioning for my first collegiate play, booking it only to lose my voice the week before opening from the sheer panic that the audience would know I was a self-taught singer. Read more>>
Tammy Ferris
I stood in the middle of a buzzing networking event, the kind of gathering I once dreaded but had taught myself to navigate. A few years ago, walking into a room like this would have felt impossible. My thoughts were a carousel of doubts: Am I qualified to be here? Who do I think I am to show up here? But over time, I pushed myself to step outside my comfort zone, meet new people, and learn from their stories. That effort has paid off in ways I never expected. I’ve gained so many wonderful perspectives and learned that there’s no one “right” path to success. Read more>>
Micah Huang
A question I often ask myself about Impostor Syndrome is: Do I actually feel like an imposter, or am I concerned that other people are going to perceive me as an imposter? I’ve experienced both types, and I’ve noticed a pattern: The first type, which might be termed Internal Imposter Syndrome, happens most often in situations that I’ve entered out of necessity, not by my own choice. I experienced this a lot at day-jobs I took in my teens and 20’s, starting in the service industry and then moving into education. I didn’t really want to be there, and sometimes I would take on multiple jobs at once, so I always felt disoriented, like I hadn’t learned the job properly. Most of my social interactions at work were shallow, and tended to be with other people who, like me, didn’t really want to be there. Read more>>
Hannah Oelz
Honestly sometimes I still feel a bit of imposter syndrome sneaking through. But I believe that having a a strong community of artists around me is a reminder that we are all in this together! We support and encourage each other and this helps me feel more confident in my career and the body of work that I am constantly creating. Also giving myself daily positive affirmations and reflecting on how much I have grown as an artist is a great way to curb imposter syndrome! Read more>>
Alejandro Goat
I think it is something that can never be overcome, the impostor will always be there criticizing everything we do or create, and society is part of it. From there it depends on how strong our will is not to stop and continue creating. Read more>>
Kevin and Bruno Merrill Payne and Lopez-Vargas
We’ve found our creative voice over the course of playing together for years, and writing the exact music that we want to hear. Once we started writing songs that express fully what we wanted to say musically and thematically, and once we saw that people resonated with our music on more than just a surface level, we realized we could fully lean into our creative intuition without any insecurities or hesitation. We didn’t really know what we were doing or where we were headed when we released our first few singles under the To Bloom moniker, but as we’ve progressed we’ve gotten so much more positive feedback than we ever thought we would, and its emboldened us to make our music even more visceral and vulnerable. Read more>>
Casey Morris
I think imposter syndrome is something that we all get from time to time. We can get past it with a certain aspect of our personal or professional lives, but then something else will come along and it comes flooding back. I think imposter syndrome is a good thing. It shows that we are constantly pushing ourselves to be better.To give a specific example, I’ve worked to overcome my imposter syndrome when it comes to public speaking. It’s a common fear, and for good reason. It’s hard to stand in front of an audience, be engaging, and feel confident in doing so. Read more>>
Jaewar King
As far back as I can remember, I was always an artist. I believe that imposter syndrome comes from insecurity and worrying too much about what others think. I sometimes give my inner critic too much authority because doubt is a powerful drug. I understand that learning how to acknowledge these truths helps us quickly move through and beyond these feelings winningly. Read more>>
