Early one morning, many years ago, I was called into the CEO’s office for a meeting, the purpose of which was not disclosed to me. It had been 15 years since I had graduated from university. During that time, I had already worked for several pharmaceutical companies and entered the ranks of middle management—a relatively successful career start. During the meeting, the CEO told me that I was being promoted to a North American vice president role. It was a big promotion and increase in responsibility.
I will never forget the drive home that evening. You might assume that I was elated by the news, but I wasn’t. Instead I was filled with feelings of anxiety, insecurity, and dread. I didn’t think I was worthy of or ready to take such a significant career step. My new leadership team would all have at least 10 more years of experience than me. How would they receive the news of some upstart as their new boss? Before my first day on the new job, I contemplated how badly I was going to fail.
The feelings I experienced are referred to as leadership imposter syndrome. New and tenured leaders often struggle with leadership imposter syndrome. It is characterized by feelings of self-doubt and uncertainty, and a lack of confidence, regardless of past successes and accomplishments. Furthermore, it is accompanied by fears of being discovered as a fraud or undeserving of an opportunity and lacking the requisite skills and abilities to do the job, irrespective of the evidence.
Most people have an innate negative bias and tend to focus on weaknesses over strengths. This mindset can be crippling and can lead to self-sabotage and stunted growth. It can also adversely impact relationships. The paradox is that impostor syndrome is not unusual among high achievers. Research has found that 65% of professionals suffer from some form of imposter syndrome. It affects female and male executives alike, and less than 5% of employers address the syndrome with their employees.
Your success thus far has been the result of people noticing your abundance of strengths and accomplishments, not failures and weaknesses.
What can someone do to overcome these feelings and lead fearlessly? First, you need to acknowledge and understand imposter syndrome. Your success thus far has been the result of people noticing your abundance of strengths and accomplishments, not failures and weaknesses. Don’t undervalue the external validation you received. Focus on your unique value proposition. Don’t feel like you must have all the answers. Embrace vulnerability, and treat mistakes as learnings that will make you a better leader. Celebrate growth, not perfection.
If you do experience these feelings of uncertainty and fear, view it as a good thing. Lean into it, rather than give into it. View imposter syndrome as an opportunity for growth, change, and improvement. It can be a source of motivation. Practice positive self-talk, have some self-compassion, and reframe your negative thoughts. Finally, surround yourself with support, and leverage your relationships, coaches, and network.
Truth be told, I wrestled with my own imposter syndrome for much of my career, all the way to the C-suite. I had the good fortune of advancing early and rapidly, but the imposter feelings followed me up the ladder. I had to continuously work to surmount them, refusing to let my imposter syndrome derail me. If you have had these same feelings, know that you, too, can overcome them.
