Does anyone out there ever have impostor syndrome?
Merriam-Webster defines impostor syndrome as: a psychological condition that is characterized by persistent doubt concerning one’s abilities or accomplishments accompanied by the fear of being exposed as a fraud despite evidence of one’s ongoing success.
I struggle with it on an almost daily basis.
I am an editor. A colleague from one of my professional editorial associations once wrote on a discussion board, “Anyone can call themselves an editor.”
I took this rather personally. What kinds of qualifications and affirmation from others do I then need in order to christen myself an editor?
When I add more of my credentials to my LinkedIn profile, I sometimes fret about whether they will make me look better than I actually am, even though the credentials are one hundred percent genuine and I would never falsify my profile in order to make myself look better. The same goes for my NAIWE profile and those affiliated with the other organizations to which I belong.
Perhaps I see myself as inferior to my editor colleagues because many of them tout their accomplishments and skills to the rest of the organization–some intentionally, others not–and I measure my own against theirs.
There have been whole webinars and discussions in the editorial field about impostor syndrome, so my writing about it here probably pales in comparison to them. (Ha! There I go again.)
So what do I personally do about my own impostor syndrome?
For starters, the bulletin board right above my desk contains some things which remind me of my accomplishments. I have two emails from clients praising the editing work that I did for them. I also have certificates from editing classes which I have taken and passed. This way I can look up from my computer anytime and see some of what I have accomplished.
I also have a yellow sticky note posted on my bookshelf to the right of my workstation, on which I wrote, “[dollar figure of last year’s profit] DOESN’T LIE!” I can also look at the books for my business (I’m having a good year financially so far) and see how the money is growing.
Finally, and most importantly, I listen to the compliments, not only of clients, but also of family and friends. They are proud of me and do not hesitate to tell me so. I certainly am lucky to have a supportive network of people.
The trick to combating impostor syndrome, I believe, is to focus, focus, focus. Focus on the positive.
If you struggle with impostor syndrome, what are your techniques for fighting it? I would love to hear them.