The Truth About Self-Doubt: Why Feeling Like a Fraud Means You're on the Right Track

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Feeling like a fraud despite your accomplishments? You're not alone, and it might actually be evidence that you're excelling. Today we dive deep into the paradox of imposter syndrome – that pervasive feeling that you don't deserve your success and everyone will eventually discover you're a fake.

The fascinating truth is that actual imposters don't experience imposter syndrome. Those confident "fake it till you make it" types rarely question their qualifications. Meanwhile, an astonishing 70% of us (according to the International Journal of Behavioral Science) grapple with self-doubt despite evidence of our competence. Even renowned figures like Brené Brown and Mel Robbins have admitted to these feelings.

What makes imposter syndrome particularly insidious is how it sabotages your potential in subtle ways. It causes you to hesitate when opportunities arise, downplay achievements as "just luck," overwork to prove your worth, avoid visibility, and sometimes even self-sabotage when success feels uncomfortable. I share my personal struggles with these patterns, including doubts about my qualifications as a coach and podcast host.

We examine the common triggers: perfectionism (setting impossible standards), childhood conditioning (where success wasn't celebrated), social comparison (especially in the age of curated social media), new challenges (when you're in unfamiliar territory), and even the strange phenomenon of discounting natural talents because they come easily.

The episode culminates with five actionable strategies to overcome imposter syndrome: naming it when you feel it, collecting evidence of your accomplishments, reframing failure as growth, stopping the over-preparation cycle, and practicing confidence even before you feel it. I also recommend two transformative books: "The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women" by Valerie Young and "Presence" by Amy Cuddy.

Remember, the vision you have for your life isn't accidental—it's a calling. And if you weren't capable of achieving it, the dream wouldn't have been given to you in the first place. Are you ready to stop doubting and start believing in yourself? Subscribe for more Monday Mindset episodes that will help you unleash your inner radiance.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to another Monday Mindset on
Unleash your Interradiance.
I'm Lisa, your Catalyst, life,wellness and Transformation
Coach, and today we're going togo there.
We are talking about thatsneaky little gremlin that loves
to show up uninvited every timeyou are about to level up

(00:22):
Imposter Syndrome.
And let's get one thingstraight right off the bat
Actual imposters do not haveimposter syndrome.
Nope, if you are sitting theredoubting yourself, questioning
if you're good enough, smartenough or worthy enough, guess
what?
That's actually a sign that youare legit.

(00:45):
Those fake it till you make ittypes.
They don't stress about thisstuff.
They're out there winging itwithout a care in the world.
So today we're going to talkabout why imposter syndrome
happens, how it's holding youback from becoming the person
you were meant to be and, mostimportantly, how to kick it to

(01:11):
the curb once and for all.
So let's dive in.
What is imposter syndrome andwhy?
Is it not not a sign of failure?
Let's get clear first on whatimposter syndrome actually is.
Imposter syndrome is like thefeeling that you are a fraud,

(01:36):
that you don't deserve yoursuccess and that sooner or later
everyone's going to figure outthat you've just been lucky this
whole time.
I kind of have that every nowand then, starting this podcast.
You know, do I know everything?
No, do I like to talk?

(01:57):
Yes, can I talk a lot?
Yes, but sometimes I'm like,should I really be doing this
podcast?
Because I really don't know ifI should.
I don't know if I'm qualified,I don't know if I'm worthy of
this, but guess what I am.
So the term imposter syndromewas first coined in 1978 by

(02:20):
psychologist Dr Pauline Clancyand Dr Suzanne Imes.
They originally studiedhigh-achieving women who felt
like they didn't deserve theirsuccess despite all of their
accomplishments.
But guess what?
It's not just women who havethis issue.

(02:46):
Men, women, ceos, celebritiesanyone and everyone can
experience imposter syndrome.
And here's a fun fact for youResearch shows that 70% of
people experience impostersyndrome at some point in their

(03:06):
lives.
That is based on theInternational Journal of
Behavioral Science.
But even people like MelRobbins, brene Brown and Jamie
Kern Lima have admitted thatthey have felt like frauds at
times.
So for all of us to experienceit, we're just normal, right,

(03:36):
but let's figure out how to getrid of it, because even I need
to work on my imposter syndrome.
But I want to share with youanother mind blower.
This was funny.
Studies show that people whosuffer from imposter syndrome
are often more competent andcapable than those who don't,

(03:58):
because self-doubt drives themto over-prepare and work harder,
which really sounds unfair,right?
Because we have impostersyndrome, so we're going to work
harder at what we're doing andwe're going to over-prepare, hmm

(04:19):
Well, so basically, I guess, ifyou're feeling like a fraud, it
probably means you're actuallykilling it.
But here's where it becomes aproblem, and so I can see that
because I prepare, even though Iprepare, I still feel like an

(04:39):
imposter a lot of times.
So to me it seems like I amworking harder, so I can
definitely relate to that.
So how imposter syndrome stopsyou from becoming the person you
were meant to be.
That's our next segment.

(05:04):
Imposter syndrome isn't justabout feeling insecure.
It's really truly a growthkiller.
It holds you back in like somereally sneaky ways that you
probably don't even realize thatit's holding you back because
it causes you to hesitate totake chances, because if you

(05:24):
fail, you'll think it'll provethat you were never good enough.
Do I still think that I willfail at what I'm doing as a
coach?
I will fail what I'm doing as apodcaster.
Yeah, there are days that Ifeel like I am not good enough,

(05:47):
but let me tell you how muchI've grown from this.
So it was worth taking thechance.
But you know, I reallyhesitated and I do still
hesitate.
The second one you downplay yoursuccess.
I guess I kind of just did that.
You tell yourself it was luckor timing instead of your hard

(06:10):
work and talent.
Number three you overworkyourself.
You do this and you're justtrying to prove that you belong,
even though you already do.
Number four you avoid thespotlight.

(06:34):
You like to stay small, afraidthat if you succeed, you'll
somehow be exposed as animposter.
You self-sabotage yourself Isnumber five.
Sabotage yourself is numberfive.

(06:57):
When things are going too well,you subconsciously mess things
up because success feelsuncomfortable.
Now let me tell you a littlesecret.
All the things that I justlisted I struggle with all the
time, all the time.
So if this sounds familiar toyou, it's brutal, trust me.

(07:19):
But the good news is you canbeat it, and you have to because
Because the version of you thatyou are meant to be, she's
waiting on the other side offear.

(07:42):
Now let's talk about commoncauses of imposter syndrome.
One which I struggle with isperfectionism.
One which I struggle with isperfectionism.
You set impossibly highstandards, even when you

(08:03):
inevitably don't meet them, andthat makes you feel like a
failure.
Even when you succeed, youfocus on the 2% that went wrong
instead of the 98% that wentright.

(08:23):
Two early conditioning.
If you grew up in a home wheresuccess wasn't celebrated I grew
up in a home where successreally was not celebrated or,
worse, you were criticized forfailing you learned that nothing

(08:44):
was ever good.
Number three is socialcomparison, social media.
Oh, social media does not helphere at all.
Everyone's highlight reelsmakes you feel like you're
falling behind, like they werelucky.

(09:05):
They just have it.
They have what it takes to dothis.
But you know what, if someoneelse has done it, you can do it
too.
The more you compare yourselfto other people on social media,

(09:26):
the worse you feel.
Four is new territory.
Starting a new job, a newbusiness or stepping into a
leadership role those are allscary.
Imposter syndrome loves to showup when you're in unknown waters

(09:47):
.
But you know what?
Put yourself in unknown waterseven more.
That's what you should do.
Number five success withouteffort.
If you are naturally good atsomething, you might assume it
doesn't count because you didn'tstruggle to get it doesn't

(10:13):
count because you didn'tstruggle to get it.
You know, some things do comeeasy for people.
Be happy about that, right.
Okay, now let's talk about fiveways to overcome imposter
syndrome.
Yeah, five ways.
One you have to name it.

(10:34):
Call it out.
Name it the moment you'refeeling it come in.
Call it out why, what, whyRight?
Say it out loud.
That's the imposter syndrometalking, not reality.

(10:56):
So just call it out.
Two collect receipts.
Keep an I win file of positivefeedback, achievements and
compliments.
I bet if you went right now andgo back for the past year,
write down all of the thingsthat were accomplishments for

(11:19):
you, I bet you forgot about allthose, or most of them.
Right, go back and look atthose, because when you doubt
yourself, it's fun to go backand read the evidence to show
you that you are capable.

(11:40):
Reframe your failure is numberthree.
Failure doesn't prove, isn'tproof that you are not good
enough.
It's proof that you're growing.
Every successful person hasfailed more times than you can

(12:03):
even imagine.
They have failed more timesthan you have even tried.
Or stop over preparing.
You know all these things.
All these things are so real tome because overpreparing.

(12:25):
Stop overpreparing, because youdon't need to have all the
answers before you start.
If you start before you'reready, your action builds your
confidence.
I did not have all the answerswhen I started this podcast.
I did not have all the answerswhen I started letter writing.

(12:46):
I did not have all the answerswhen I started coaching right,
no way.
But taking the action and goingforward builds your confidence
that you need Five.
Act like you belong because youdo.
Confidence isn't a feeling,it's really a choice and it

(13:15):
comes from within.
So when you walk into the room,act like you deserve to be
there because you actually do,take the chance and stop playing

(13:35):
small.
So what's it going to be?
Are you going to keep lettingyour self-doubt hold you back,
or are you going to trust thatyou have what it takes to make
that dream a reality, becauseopportunities are knocking.
The vision you have for yourlife is not on accident.

(14:01):
It's a calling, that littlething you have in your gut that
you've always thought aboutdoing.
Do it, do it.
You know that job that you werescared to apply for.

(14:24):
Just do it.
That business idea that lightsyou up.
Chase it that relationship thatfeels too good to be true.
Believe that you deserve it,because the truth is, if you

(14:47):
weren't capable, the visionwouldn't have been given to you
in the first place.
I have two book recommendationsthat I'm going to suggest you
get.
One is the Secret Thoughts ofSuccessful Women by Valerie
Young.
She has a powerful look atimposter syndrome and how high
achievers can overcome it.

(15:08):
And two, presence by Amy Cuddy.
In that book, she teaches youhow to learn, teaches you to
learn how to boost confidenceand trust in yourself in high
stakes situations.
So those would be both two goodbooks, and I will drop links to
those books in the show notes.

(15:32):
Okay, my friend, that's a wrapfor today's episode of Unleash
your Inner Radiance.
That's a wrap for today'sepisode of Unleash your Inner
Radiance.
If this episode resonated withyou and I know it probably
resonated with a lot of peoplecan you please share it with
someone else who needs to hearit?
And don't forget to hit thesubscribe button so that you

(16:06):
never miss a Monday Mindsetepisode.
Remember you belong here.
You already have what it takes.
Now it's time to stop and startbelieving.
So stop doubting yourself andstart believing in yourself.
Until next time, keep shining,keep growing and unleash that
inner badass.

(16:27):
You've got this.