Читать книгу Prep, Push, Pivot - Octavia Goredema - Страница 18

No one feels confident constantly. Whether you're the intern, the CEO, or somewhere in between, your confidence can sometimes take a hit when you need it the most. Work is called work for a reason. It's hard. It's tough if you feel others are advancing while you're wracked with self-doubt.

If you're suffering from a crisis of career confidence, identifying approaches to reframe your thought patterns will go a long way. If you find yourself undermining your experience, questioning your accomplishments, or feeling uncomfortable with recognition, you may be experiencing imposter syndrome. The term was coined by psychologists Dr. Suzanne Imes and Dr. Pauline Rose Clance in the 1970s. Imes and Clance identified a phenomenon occurring among high achievers who are unable to internalize and accept their success. Those affected often attribute their accomplishments to luck rather than to ability and fear that others will eventually unmask them as a fraud.⁸

Imposter syndrome is prevalent, and almost everyone experiences it at some point. Being aware of this doesn't necessarily make the feelings go away. My advice as a coach, and as someone who also deals with imposter syndrome on a regular basis, is to acknowledge the feeling but do your best not to let it hold you back. Don't let doubt control your actions. Talk it out with someone you trust. Release the pressure valve and alleviate the pursuit of perfection. This doesn't mean you should stop striving to do your best. Instead, you need to focus your mind on setting yourself up for success. A great way to kick-start this is to remember what you do well and what you've achieved in the past. When you're feeling low, it can be easy to forget all the great things you've done in the past.

Recognize and fully embrace your expertise and your accomplishments over the course of your career so far. We need to do this whether we're feeling inadequate or riding high. Your feelings about work can and will fluctuate, but your accomplishments are concrete. Don't forget them. Negative thoughts can snowball if you're feeling down, so if you feel your confidence is plummeting take time out and remind yourself of what you're great at and where you've been successful in the past.