Make Learning Your Superpower

Have you ever felt like an imposter? Has life ever thrown you a curveball, forcing you to ask yourself, "now what?" If you have, you are in good company.?

I recently had a delightful conversation with Pamay Bassey on my?Disrupt Yourself?podcast, during which she gave insight into her experience with self-doubt and her philosophy around learning. Her experience is a wonderful example of the seventh of the 7 Accelerants of Growth?: discovery-driven.

As an undergraduate student at Stanford, Pamay experienced imposter syndrome. When you are doing something challenging or new, it is tempting to assume you're the only one who feels the way you do. You may feel like you don't belong. We look around and think, "Everyone else gets this. It's easy for them but difficult for me."?

Who else is guilty of this? I know I am.?

But rarely is the impostor syndrome, or thinking that everyone has an easier time than you, accurate. Pamay shared that, years later, when talking with classmates, she learned everyone had experienced some level of challenge or insecurity at Stanford. She was so relieved to know she wasn't alone. Everyone had felt that way.?

Pamay found it to be such a weight off her shoulders that she has incorporated these discussions into her approach to leadership and mentorship. When she mentors students or works with employees, she is careful to remind them, "don't think you're the only one going through that." More often than not, everyone is doing the best they can, yet still battling uncertainty and feelings of insecurity.?

How can we combat this not only in others but in ourselves??

One place to start is to put learning at the center of everything we do - make?learning?your superpower. Or, in the language of the S Curve of Learning?, be discovery-driven. When we take the continuous learning approach, we realize we can learn through uncertainty, and it neutralizes the feelings of imposter syndrome. Discoveries are fuel to drive you up the S Curve to accelerate your growth.?

Don't be fooled; learning isn't easy. It's actually quite hard.?

"Not knowing is difficult."?Being at the bottom of the S Curve is difficult. It's a slog, and things you think should be easy can feel hard. But no matter how challenging it is, it will get easier if it's the right S Curve. Believing that it will improve starts with you and your mindset. Just like we heard from?Suneel Gupta, you must build conviction and confidence in yourself first. When starting a new role or finding yourself uncertain and at the bottom of the curve, Pamay's advice is to "just start to believe that you can be successful in that new role."?

You must start with yourself, but you can't do it alone. Too often, we forget the importance of having a team around us as we move along the various S Curves of life. There is always someone to help you and to believe in you, and successful disruptors look for others who will reiterate that message. Surround yourself with people telling you that you can do it, with people telling you how they did it so that when you step into that new role, you have as much confidence poured into you as possible.??

Being discovery-driven is an intentional decision. It's the difference between a veteran surfer picking which waves to ride and a rookie surfer who lets every wave push them to the shore. You don't passively wait for waves of information; you actively pursue the proper knowledge and discovery. When Pamay Bassey took the role of Chief Learning Officer at Kraft Heinz, she committed to learning something new every day and sharing it with the organization - she called it her 365 days of learning. By the 100th day, other people began to commit to their own learning journey, which created a culture of intellectual curiosity and continuous learning at Kraft Heinz.??

So, tell us.?

What have you learned today??

What will you learn tomorrow??

Who will you share it with??