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I don’t belong here
What to do about your imposter syndrome
Imposter syndrome is a relatively newly understood phenomenon. It’s the secretly nurtured fear that the only reason we’re here is that someone made a mistake and that any day someone is going to point to us and declare “you don’t belong here”. It leads us to self sabotage because of the emotional energy we spend being on edge. Waiting for the revelation and rejection of those around us. It’s a lonely road to walk. Everyone around us seems so accomplished, so together that we must be the odd one out.
When I walked through the door at Google I felt this acutely and continued feeling this every day for the following ten years. I also came to realise I wasn’t alone. Nobody really felt like they deserved to be there. I was in a presentation on the topic where it was introduced to me for the first time and I saw a room full of senior people start nodding their heads. As 300 people collectively had the same epiphany “so this is why I’ve been feeling this way” then looked around and realised they weren’t alone any more. It was then I realised that the people who don’t feel this way are the ones you have to worry about. Anyone who operates without self doubt is also likely to operate without conscience.
Having imposter syndrome doesn’t mean you’re broken. It just means you’re human. That still means we have to walk the lonely…
