First, let me tell you a story.
Like many others, I’ve faced the impostor syndrome not once and not twice in my career. And, like many others I struggled to make it go away. Quite unsuccessfully, I must say. Eventually, it got me to an ugly point…
I was still working as an architect back then, and things were working really great for me. When you looked from the outside, that is. I was successful at my job for one of the biggest European firms, my bosses appreciated my work and the work of the team I was leading, the clients were happy with the results, and the serious money landing in my account each month was a solid proof of a job well done.
But that was the outside perspective; on the inside things weren’t looking that great. In fact, they were not looking any great at all. I was feeling more and more insecure, and more and more like a fraud. Now, the funny thing is, I knew I was a good architect – a damn good one, as a matter of fact. But that knowledge didn’t matter as much as the disturbing feeling that, surely, I was simply lucky rather than competent. I mean, tackling complex challenges couldn’t be really that easy, could it? So there certainly would be a day coming when they’d discover I was just a fraud and expose me as such to the world… That was not what I wanted at all, even though I never even tried to figure out the details about who exactly “they” were, what exactly could they have discovered, and – most interestingly – how the exposing to the world part might have gone.
I decided to do something. And since I’m not the ‘fake it until you make it’ kind of a person, it meant working longer, working harder, and fixing other people’s mistakes before anyone could even entertain the idea that those mistakes might have been mine. Sounds crazy? You bet! I really was having a hell of a life back then. Literally.
Finally, it got so bad that I needed a break in order to not fall apart. During my time off I was reading a lot, and one day I came across an old interview with David Bowie – and that was a serious a-ha! moment for me. See, one of the most talented, creative, original and brilliant people I could think of was, in fact, facing similar self-image problems as I did, and like me, he was hiding them behind obsessive work, in his case performing and writing.
That got me thinking.
And digging.
And after some time, I finally reached the point where I can say, “Yeah, I do have the syndrome, and I know how to make it work for me”.
Impostor syndrome is almost like a secret society of successful people who feel like they're going to be found out.
There are a lot of people dealing with impostor syndrome, more that you might think. And the funny thing is, the more intelligent, educated, skilled or creative one is, the more likely it gets that one day impostor syndrome will also knock on their door. Because it is only a little about what your job is (even though designers and other creatives seem to be a high-risk group here), and a whole lot about how perfect you want to be at it. You won’t hear it on the news, but if you look around you will find that many famous figures from various fields have faced impostor syndrome at some point in their careers. It’s not only David Bowie who openly spoke about his struggles; there are many others: Maya Angelou, Emma Watson, Neil Gaiman, Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey, Elon Musk, Tracy Chou… And then, of course, there are all those people who are not widely known, and those who prefer to keep their challenges to themselves. Believe me, the list is really long – and guess what? Your name might be on that list as well.
I think everyone feels like an impostor in their own life.
Well, I don’t really think that it affects everyone – there are individuals with an ego so huge they can’t get it through a door, and so totally certain of their greatness, that they are blind to their mediocrity and totally immune to impostor syndrome. But yes, there definitely are a lot of people feeling like impostors in their careers or lives. To many of them this situation is extremely unnerving, because they see it as a sign of weakness, or even as a handicap of sorts. And then they are so busy dealing with the problem and trying to fix it that they don’t even consider the feeling of self-doubt, insecurity, or even of being a fraud, might actually be something quite natural for us. I mean, for those of us who have some ambitions and do expect a lot from themselves.
The thing is, impostor syndrome is not only something natural for us, but also something that can be used to our advantage, and the names I mentioned earlier are clear examples of this. I mean, could all those people have achieved the success they have if their impostor syndrome were only holding them back?
See, things hardly ever are only black and white, and often, clouds have a silver lining.
Yes, impostor syndrome can indeed become a hindrance to success, but it can only hold you back if you allow it to – and you can choose to use it as a source of motivation instead.
Impostor syndrome is not a problem to be fixed, it's a problem to be owned.
“Fake it until you make it” – that’s a piece of advice commonly served to people facing impostor syndrome. The idea here is quite simple: you don’t feel confident and capable enough, so you pretend that you are. And then, one day (gods of miracles know when), you’ll wake up a new person, confident and capable indeed.
Really, how someone even got the notion that you could build confidence on faking, I simply have no idea.
Because ‘faking it’ is just that – a façade without the actual building. It not only does nothing to build your confidence, but in fact it can make the feeling of insecurity much worse. You know, when you are really faking, you can also be found out for real… Or you might start to believe your lies, which is not exactly the goal here.
And what’s the alternative? Well, instead of looking for a quick fix to the problem, it should make more sense to try to understand its nature. So let me ask you this: would we experience the frustration, feelings of incapability, and the fear of being a fraud, if we didn’t really care about our work? And if, somewhere deep inside, we didn’t believe in our potential for growth and improvement? Somehow, I don’t think so…
Impostor syndrome is a call to keep learning, growing and stretching. It’s not a sign of failure, but a sign of potential.
Now, it’s very likely that once you have faced impostor syndrome, you’ll have to deal with it throughout your life. It may sound like some bad news at first but, in fact, it could be quite the opposite. It is all up to you how your story plays out.
First, you need to realize there are two main directions you can choose to follow not only in your life, but in life in general. Let me be honest: whichever you choose, you can bump into impostor syndrome one day, but that doesn’t mean your choice doesn’t matter. It matters, and it matters a lot; it is the first step to building a mindset that will affect your reactions to feelings of incapability, frustration, and insecurity. And yes, also to the fear of being a fraud.
One way to go is doing your best trying to fit into some molds you think you should fit into in order to keep people around you happy and to become successful – in that exact order. For many people this approach works just about fine, but for some it doesn’t work at all. So if this is the approach you’re trying, and you feel you’re not making it because you’re not good enough to meet the standards that you are trying to meet, consider this: as humans, we are not made to fit molds and fit standards, we are made to be all unique. Standards and molds are only good for those people who, for whatever reason, don’t realize their own potential, who don’t feel the need to learn and grow, and – first of all – for those who are afraid of their own thinking process.
The other way you can take is the one of doing your best to reach your own full potential.This means continuous learning, growing, stretching, and thinking outside the box in order to tackle ever new and more complex challenges. I’m gonna be honest with you here: choosing this way will not prevent you from facing your impostor syndrome. In fact, you might be facing it even more and more often along the way, but the difference will be that with a growth mindset and not striving to fit anything that’s not your own, your focus won’t be so much on what piece of a failure you are, but rather on how much there is still to learn and how eager you are to learn it. You know what they say, the more you know, the more you realize how much you actually don’t.
Now, as I said: the choice is yours. But you can trust me on this: adopting growth mindset puts you well on the way towards embracing your impostor syndrome and making it your ally. All you have to do is acknowledge that your abilities are not fixed and that you always can learn new things, and to allow yourself to be curious. Remember, there are no wrong questions to ask, and the more questions you’re asking, the more you are finding out about things. Sometimes the questions you might consider the most ridiculous will be the ones that will bring you to the most creative solutions. It is important that you start to focus on your process rather than on the outcomes, and that you see new challenges as your opportunities for growth. And with time you will be, on the one hand, becoming less afraid of making decisions baaed on your own judgement, while on the other hand you’ll be becoming more open to feedback and constructive criticism – and all that because you won’t be seeking validation from other people, just opinions. But what’s most important, by focusing on growth, you will be shifting your attention from the feelings of insecurity and fear to the excitement of learning and becoming better and better each day.
As a designer you can seriously benefit from the inspiration and motivation that impostor syndrome can turn out to be. It’s never pleasant to face your self-doubt, but with the right attitude the result will be worth it.
When you see each project as a new opportunity to challenge yourself and expand your skillset, you give yourself the possibility to not only strengthen your abilities and reach new levels of your career, but also – or maybe first of all – to recognize more and more of your strengths and accomplishments, gain new confidence and boost your sense of self-worth.
And now, here comes the cherry on top of a pie. Understanding and owning impostor syndrome can help you become more empathetic and connected in your work. You can translate your internal struggles with self-doubt into a deeper understanding of others’ fears and insecurities, making you more attuned to your users and clients. Your sensitivity to people’s feedback and pain points can fuel your creativity and lead to delivering work that truly resonates and connects with your audience.
You’ll never find rainbows if you are looking down.
If you have experienced impostor syndrome yourself, then you know how unpleasant, frustrating – and even depressing – your feelings can be. And you possibly know how difficult and often unsuccessful is the fight that mindset, and how the feelings of insecurity and self-doubt can affect both your professional and personal life. But here’s the thing: the best way to deal with something you cannot get rid of is to learn how to live with it and use it to your advantage. It’s not always easy, but it’s really worth trying. Believe me, I have a lot of experience in dealing with impostor syndrome. Really. I’ve been there, I’ve done that, and I’ve learned my lesson.
And here is something for you to remember: some of the best designers have struggled with impostor syndrome, and have succeeded not despite their problem, but in fact, thanks to it, in a way. Because they’ve chosen to see it as motivation and inspiration, allowed themselves to think creatively, and they’ve learned to effectively use their personal experience to connect with their audience and come up with solutions truly responding to people’s needs.
So, if you experience moments of self-doubt on some regular basis, start working on your perspective and mindset. Then go ahead and then use every opportunity to build your confidence. Not just in your abilities, but also in the value of what you have to offer to the world. And start looking up, that’s where the rainbows hide.