It's Hard to Be Humble in the Search for 'Perfect in Every Way'

Battling imposter syndrome brought on by TGTBT job opps and less-than-perfect recruiting practices

I’m flipping through my LinkedIn feed this morning as I do more often than I probably should. In this regular scenario I try to remain semi-focused in a shallow-browse mode as a means of coping with the FOMO, self-doubt, envy, and other negative sentiment I tend to feel after consuming too much social media. When will I learn?

My notifications of late are unusually high, the majority of which are positions for which my profile has been deemed a ‘good fit’. No surprise to me, they are predominantly for varying levels of Creative Director positions, but also for positions ranging from marketing manager to strategist to CMO. For the most part, each every seems to make me feel special or at least wanted in some way. If for only a micro-second, until it doesn’t. Cue all the emotions that contribute to that uncomfortable state of feeling like poser.

Funny observation:

This morning, after catching up on all the new opportunities that LinkedIn had curated on my behalf, I was making my second coffee when a song popped, what I thought was randomly, into my head. It’s a song I hadn’t heard in ages: “It’s Hard to Be Humble” by Mac Davis (I had to Google who the singer was). Here’s the kicker, the full lyric goes like this: “Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble… when you’re perfect in every way”. Wow. The human mind is a fascinating thing isn’t it? Somehow, subconsciously, my brain made the connection between some deep-seeded emotions I was feeling at that moment and a country & western song from my childhood I’d completely forgotten about. It was so bang on!

Funnier still:

I’m gainfully self-employed, therefore not looking for a job. Why would I be looking for a full-time position? I work for myself, and I wouldn’t have it any other way… Ok. Truth be told: I’m ALWAYS and always have been looking, whether consciously or not. In fact, no matter how happy or fulfilled I’ve felt in various roles throughout my career, FOMO has always been my thing (even before it was a thing). Admittedly, I don’t think this will ever stop and I’m ok with that. What I used to label as ambition in my big-shot agency days, I now recognize as fear. Fear of not working, not finding work, and just not being good enough to earn a living doing so. Tapping into that universal fear of that seven-letter F-word I will not name. (hint: it ends with ‘ailure’).

Hilarious, but not really funny at all:

Even if I WAS hoping to get hired for any position thrown my way by LinkedIn, I have no reason to believe that I would ever get it. Why? In my less-than-humble opinion there are a few likely outcomes:

1. ?No human being can even conceivably live up to the role description in the job post, and the position remains vacant
2. ?If by some rare chance a candidate actually does fit the role, they’re likely already in a better and higher-paid position, and feel insulted for being bothered
3. The recruiter does find and hire what seems like the ‘perfect’ candidate, but it soon becomes apparent by both employer and employee that expectations cannot be mutually met for any number of reasons.

Whatever the scenario, it’s rarely a recipe for success for all parties involved. Worse, it leaves an endless sea of disappointed, frustrated, and often exhausted candidates in its wake. This guy included – and I’m not even looking. I kid you not, I know people who’ve lost the fight after 10+ interviews for a single position!

Cue Imposter Syndrome symptoms...

And that’s what this is all about. At a time when everyone is being told that things are looking up and post-pandemic opportunities are just around the corner, there’s also a high likelihood of not getting noticed. Not because you’re not a worthy candidate, or a highly capable professional and member of society, but because our industry has created recruitment practices that make it virtually impossible to feel confident about our respective value. Regardless of where the fault lies – I think we all play a role – it happens, and like us humans, it's far from perfect.

I’ve been noticing a lot of data and articles these days about how pervasive imposter syndrome has become, particularly in the marketing and creative industry, and the negative impact it can have on one’s ability to remain confident and authentic while selling oneself in any credible way. It’s not good for the talent economy, it’s definitely not good for mental health, and I believe that it’s a root cause of what we all know as ‘Imposter Syndrome’. As someone who has and continues to experience this angst at some level, I think it’s important for us all to recognize its key triggers. Especially if the impending hiring boom that the Marketing Gods are predicting is true.

Make your brand accountable

My advice: Focus on your brand. Give it a job to do. Be it personal, business, or something in between, now is the perfect time to make sure your brand is doing what you want it to do. What is your brand’s role? Start defining it now. Is it to rebuild, refine, expand, or simply reinforce your offering and its unique value to your target audience? Aim to make that decision sooner rather than later, if only to alleviate the pressure on you, or should I say the imposter within.

Avoid getting caught up in the triggers that losing to your competitors can ignite. Instead, focus your energy on building your brand, defining its contribution to the business, and making it accountable for specific outcomes, and may I recommend starting small. Not only will shifting this accountability from you to your newly defined living and breathing brand ensure success, it also will deliver the added perks of longer-term stability, and most important – your sanity.

Aaah. Mental wellness. In my humble opinion, nothing else really matters.

Now go get focused and stay safe!

I'm here if you need me, and happy to help.

SP Wiseguy out!