Starting your first job in a completely new industry can be both an exciting and challenging experience. (For me, it was stepping into the world of finance.) It is very common to encounter something called imposter syndrome, which is a persistent feeling of inadequacy despite evidence of your skills and qualifications.
In this guide, lets explore the unique aspects of imposter syndrome, understand its impact, and see what we can do to try and overcome this.
The Impact of Imposter Syndrome:
- Undermined confidence and self esteem
- Increased stress and anxiety
- Impeded professional growth and career advancement
- Hindered decision making and taking calculated risks
What Imposter Syndrome Looks Like At A New Job:
- High Expectations and pressure to perform in a potentially regulated industry
- Comparisons to colleagues or industry experts
- Fear of making mistakes or mismanaging any type of important matters
- Difficulty internalizing accomplishments and attributing them to personal competence
Strategies to Overcome Imposter Syndrome:
- Recognize and acknowledge imposter syndrome
- Challenge negative self-talk and replace it with positive affirmations
- Focus on your strengths and expertise
- Seek support from mentors, supervisors, or even your peers in the industry
- Continuously learn and stay updated with current industry trends
- Embrace failures as learning opportunities
- Set realistic goals and celebrate achievements, no matter how small they are
Building Confidence and Resilience:
- Invest in professional development and training opportunities
- Seek feedback and constructive criticism to grow
- Network and build relationships with experienced professionals
- Engage in self-reflection and journaling to identify imposter syndrome patterns
- Practice self-care and maintain a healthy work/life balance
Encourage open conversations about imposter syndrome, you might not be the only one who is dealing with this! Reaching out and starting those conversations can and will encourage change. If multiple people are feeling the same way and you all speak out about it, the people in higher positions will start to question what is going on, and what they can do about it to make everyone feel better and more confident in their roles.
After having these open conversations, try establishing a buddy or a mentorship program to provide guidance. This will foster more and better teamwork between the newer people who have joined your, and the more experienced seniors. They can show the newer people what has helped them be successful in their roles, and the newer people can maybe give their insight and fresh perspectives to foster a well-rounded learning environment! You can't say something doesn't work unless you try it! Having these new and different conversations may help with lingering questions or doubts in someone's mind.
Recognize and celebrate your peers! Did they just accomplish something small? Did they just finish a huge task or report that took them weeks to do? Acknowledge them! Praise them! Do you know that they are going through a hard time, and its very obvious they did what they could to get ready and show up to work? Praise them! Praise even the smallest accomplishments of your peers, because that will help them succeed as well. And who knows, it might also be happening to you someday as well.
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Originally Posted by infestedvirus
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