Impostor Syndrome could be holding back your brightest employees

Here’s how to help them stop feeling like frauds and start owning their success

Most of us—70%, in fact—have felt impostor syndrome at some point in our lives. The feeling of being a fraud, of not really deserving a seat at the table despite intellect and achievements, or of feeling like any success is just down to luck, might come and go or it might be with us all the time—and it definitely holds us back at work. Impostor feelings paired with an environment that doesn’t feel psychologically safe can wreak absolute havoc on mental health and productivity. As a leader, there are some things you can do for your employees and teams to help them begin to overcome their impostor syndrome.

As a leader, be authentic about your own impostor feelings

There’s a good chance you have had impostor syndrome at some point in your life. Sharing your experience shows a vulnerability and authenticity that will let your teams know that they are not struggling alone, and often the first step in other people overcoming their impostor syndrome is hearing it acknowledged by someone else. Bring it up at your next team meeting or have a fireside chat with an entry-level employee about impostor feelings.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Think about how you praise people for their accomplishments

Don’t reinforce the idea that their success was due to luck, charm, or some sort of miracle. Instead of saying, “The clients just love her!” or, “I don’t know how he does it!” or, “They’re a rockstar,” specifically point out the skill and intelligence it took to achieve their success. “She takes the time to build good relationships with her clients, which takes a detailed knowledge of their needs and incredible empathy. Because of her hard work, we closed that deal,” or, “He consistently brings in the best candidates because he knows how our business works and who would be a good culture add,” or, “They answer the most help desk tickets every month and have the highest customer service rating because they have the technical skills to solve problems and the people skills to make everyone feel understood.” Sure, it’s a bit more work to actually figure out why someone is so good at what they do, but if you help them battle their impostor feelings, they’ll be more confident in their abilities, take more risks, and have better mental health at work.

Give them the tools they need to reframe their thinking and overcome impostor feelings

People can change their behavior and thinking patterns with training. Share articles like this, this, or this. Or even better, host an action-oriented workshop. Impostor syndrome is a pattern of thinking and behavior that is hard to break, but there are tools people can learn to help them do it.

Have impostor syndrome? Join me for my next Defeating Impostor Syndrome workshop. Ready to help your teams break free from impostor feelings? Partner with me to help your teams unlearn their self-limiting thinking and kick impostor syndrome to the curb.