In this week’s episode, I talk about imposter syndrome. According to its definition, imposter syndrome is; “a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist despite substantial evidence of success. Imposters suffer from chronic self-doubt and a sense of intellectual fraudulence that overwrites any feelings of success.”

In simple words, it means that you don’t believe in yourself.

You think you’re not good, worthy, or smart as the people around you. You doubt your capabilities and believe that others are better than you. I clearly remember experiencing these feelings when I was in college, even though I wasn’t familiar with this concept when I was much younger.

Recently, I did some research about this term and found out that 66% of women experience this at least once, in their lives.

Imposter syndrome became a hot topic on social media after Michelle Obama published her book in which she confessed that she also suffered from this psychological phenomenon. Remember, we’re talking about the First Lady of the U.S who has accomplished so much in her life. Another famous figure who suffered from imposter syndrome was Maya Angelou, a world-renowned American poet and writer. This shows how common the issue is, and thus we need to learn how to overcome it because it can be a limiting factor for us, and can completely hinder our growth and development.

To effectively deal with the issue, we need to find its root cause. None of us is born with this psychological pattern - it’s the society that pushes us on this path. In Western households, kids that grow up with alcoholic or abusive parents are at a greater risk of developing imposter syndrome and in Eastern households, it’s the continuous criticism and comparison with others that causes it. Henceforth, you might doubt your capabilities in every aspect of your life, including your finances and end up delegating the task to someone else. But you need to know that’s not true! You can manage finances just as well as anyone else.

So, how do you convince yourself to believe that? By fighting the thoughts inside your head that are telling you otherwise. Of course, this doesn’t happen overnight; you need to take baby steps.

Start with small things, like counting money yourself or learning something new about how money works perhaps read an article, watch a video but remember to take small steps. As soon as you start learning something new, know that you can tackle it and you can do it.

Remember, to overcome this, you need to believe that you can do things, you need to change your mindset and thoughts. 

Final Note:

To overcome imposter syndrome, you need to change your thought process; you need to start believing that you can do it. It’ll be a slow journey, but it’s worth it. Start by acknowledging the presence of the problem, and then slowly change your thoughts. Remember, you can do this. As Michelle Obama said, “keep trying and you’ll get there one day”.