When is it the Imposter Complex and when is it… something else?
When is it Imposter Complex and when is it… something else?
That’s the question I wanted to explore with my podcast, Ready Enough, asking questions like, when is it the Imposter Complex and when is it the impact of racism? Or the impact of alcoholism? Or trauma? Or sexism? Or anxiety? Or transphobia? Or ageism? Or fatphobia?
And those are VITALLY important questions, to be sure. (That’s why I created a whole podcast devoted to discussions with folks with expertise in those realms. And more to come in the months to come, I assure you.)
As a thought experiment TODAY however, I invite you to consider this: when you think it might be something else, it might actually be the Imposter Complex holding you back.
For example…
When you don’t want to bother anybody by asking them to share your latest thing, is that thoughtfulness… or is it people pleasing?
When you decide you’re not quite ready to launch the course / speak to the audience / write the book / etc. is that a commitment to excellence… or is it perfectionism?
When you choose not to share your latest big win because you don’t want to make anyone else feel bad, is that humility… or is it diminishment?
Because, on the one hand, thoughtfulness, excellence, humility — all strong, positive values! They are reason 5476 that you are the amazing human you are.
But on the other hand, people pleasing, perfectionism, and diminishment CAN BE tools of the Imposter Complex to keep you alone and isolated, doubting your capacity, and out of action.
How do you know which is which?
When they become a problem.
When humility results in you doubting your capacity…
When an overcommitment to excellence keeps you out of action…
When thoughtfulness keeps you alone and isolated…
That, to me, is a bridge too far.
That’s when those qualities in you transition from being helpful to hindering your activation.
Beginning to recognize this is the first step, and if you’re following me, if you’re reading my emails, you’ve probably already begun to feel that itchy sensation that something is off. That what you’ve told yourself in the past (about excellence, or thoughtfulness, or humility, or any number of positive traits) might not be the whole story.
That’s good.
Because it means you’re no longer willing to settle. You’re no longer to stay out of integrity. You’re no longer willing to deny your bigness.
The next step is to begin to fill your toolbox with the tools that will help you unbridle yourself from the behaviours that no longer serve you.
That’s what my work is all about. Helping you to shift your identity into the one that is truer than the one you are currently standing in.
Click here for my free training:
Five ICONIC shifts leaders use to overcome Imposter Complex.