Get rid of your Imposter Syndrome
Susana Passinhas
UX Design Educator, Mentor and Coach | Founder @uxuiwithsusanapassinhas
In the past years, the Imposter Syndrome has been a recurring topic in talks and articles but only in the past months I have noticed how much impact it has on Designers (especially on young ones).
Sadly, we often feel insecure or lack the confidence to trust our own skills and capabilities, and/or we feel we are not worthy of recognition and praise.
What is Imposter Syndrome?
Imposter syndrome (IS) is a behavioral health phenomenon described as self-doubt of intellect, skills, or accomplishments among high-achieving individuals. — National Library of Medicine
But why do we experience it, if we spend years studying and practicing and we do courses and read books and so on? Why do we feel we don’t know enough, or do enough, or even deserve recognition? Why do we doubt ourselves so much?
Let's rewire
Do you feel you are not enough?
Stop comparing yourself with others
All your life you were probably being compared by others or you compared yourself with other people, am I right? Everybody has their own journey and their own pace — and that is more than natural as a human being. Learn to be comfortable with the thought that we all evolve differently and you are not comparable with anybody, you are unique, we all are!
Do you feel ashamed when you don't know something?
You don't (need to) know everything and that is fine
Nobody does! Acknowledge that you don't know everything, that you will be learning your entire life — like everybody else. It's okay to not know something, it doesn't make you a bad person or a bad professional, accept it and move on. Decide whether you want to learn about it or not, you choose how you occupy your beautiful brain ;)
Do you feel that you need to be the best at what you do?
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You don't have to be the best
Nobody does! Once I heard somebody saying these words that got stuck in my mind: "Don't try to do the best, just do your best and your life will be successful". If you live by this mantra I promise you that your life will be so much more enjoyable and you will not doubt yourself not even once!
Do you feel you are not worthy of recognition?
Yes, you are. You deserve that and much more
We deserve everything good in our lives. I am not sure who came up with this idea that life is supposed to be really hard and only then you would deserve acknowledgment. Let me tell you something, life is supposed to be easy and everything you do should come naturally to you, we are meant to thrive naturally, so accept others recognizing when you shine!
Rewire your brain and thrive!
Rewiring your brain can move you from a state of anxiety and fear to a state of bliss. Let's rewire our brains one at a time ?
Note: I am not a Therapist or Coach nor a Health Professional, my advice is purely based on my life experience and on the perspective I live my life by.
This article is also in Medium
I am training the new generation of High-Quality UX/UI Designers | Follow me on Instagram at uxuiwithsusanapassinhas | Connect with me on LinkedIn
I always write my articles on Notion first ?
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1 年Great article, Susana! Another thing for us to remember is that the fact that you're feeling the dreaded Imposter Syndrome means that you're a functional human being pushing yourself outside your comfort zone. BUT Imposter Syndrome can be crippling, but we don't deserve to suffer! I put together a workbook of tactics that have helped me overcome imposter syndrome. I've shared it here in case anyone needs an anti-IS boost: https://sheakarssing.com/beating-imposter-syndrome-workbook/
Great perspective, Susana! Building a supportive design community can be a powerful antidote to Imposter Syndrome. Encouraging open dialogue among designers could make a real difference in reshaping our mindset.