The first time I sent a proposal to a potential client to pay for my coaching services I had a strong sense that they were going to say no. I told myself I wasn’t a professional coach, who was I to ask to get paid for this work. I got an immediate yes. This person had known and worked with me in another capacity and trusted me to be their coach more than I trusted myself at the moment. This person is still a client today who, I think it is safe to say, values working with me.
This is a common feeling when working on something new. Can you relate? Imposter syndrome is real and prevalent with many people that others would see as highly competent. So, why does this happen? Why do we doubt ourselves like this? It usually comes when we are doing work that is important to us that has an uncertain outcome. Especially when it is something new to us.
In my case, prior to starting this coaching business my recent experience was in a job where I am an expert. Over the years I have earned respect and trust from a lot of people. Professional coaching was new to me. I hadn’t earned a reputation yet and I hadn’t refined my skills to the point where I felt some level of expertise. Because there is always room for improvement and I continuously strive to get better, there are still days when I still have to fight the imposter syndrome feeling. However, the work is important to me and I know it is making a positive impact on others. This makes any feeling of imposter syndrome I have now much easier to overcome.
Do you feel like an imposter in any aspect of your life right now? If so, you are not alone.
In my podcast recommendation for this month you will hear from someone who none of us would think of as an imposter in her line of work. Reece Witherspoon is a guest on Adam Grant’s ReThinking podcast and talks about imposter syndrome. If you only have a couple of minutes, listen to what Reece says about her Oscar winning role in Walk The Line starting at about 11:30 in to the episode.
My book recommendation for the month is The Practice by Seth Godin. It has a fantastic perspective on what it means to be creative and the creative process. As the book title indicates, the core premise is to trust the process of bringing your idea to the world and not focus so much on the outcome. Godin asserts that imposter syndrome is a sign that you are a healthy person doing important work with an uncertain outcome and that it should be embraced.
One Small Step
This month, think about an area of your life where you might be feeling like an imposter and ask yourself a couple of questions. Is the work I am doing important to me? Is the work important to others? If so, how can you focus more on the process of the work rather than the outcome? The process, and your work on it, is the only thing you can control. As you keep working on the process the outcome you want will follow. Just keep going.