You are not alone!

Able's first LinkedIn article comes from our Director of Engineering: Pradeepa Dhanasekar. She brings her insight and strategies on dealing with imposter syndrome.

Lately, I think every one of us has heard about impostor syndrome, especially in tech. I particularly liked Adam Grant’s description of it as a paradox when he says, “If you doubt yourself, shouldn't you also doubt your judgment of yourself?”

On the one hand, I experience it regularly; on the other hand, I was raised in a society that emphasized consistently that I could do anything I wanted to do, with literally no limits. This means that when I fail, or fear failing, or think I’m not as good as my peers, it translates to “I’m lazier than my peers,” or “I’m not working as hard as my peers,” while still believing that if I did want to put in the effort, I’d do well.

We’re in a community of high-performing people.

It's very easy to look around at all the different things people are doing, think, 'Woah, why am I not doing that?', and suddenly feel very small.

But it's fiction. Nobody is doing all of it; there is no amalgamation of all those good things manifested through one person. It’s lots of different people bringing different individual strengths to their individual situations as those specifics require.

To deal with this, I asked myself, “what’s the worst that could happen”?

I wrote down that list and then realized that the worst that could happen would be that I would be “embarrassed,” but I also realized that the people who trusted me—the ones who truly loved me—would still go on loving and trusting me, because what I do is not who I am.

That’s the moment my relationship with fear changed; now, when I feel afraid, inadequate, or like I don’t have the answers, that’s when I know I have to step into it.

I know I won’t grow if I keep doing the things I’m most comfortable with. I’ll only grow during the times when I’m challenging myself.

All I need to do to step into anything these days is ask, “what do I have to lose”? (absolutely nothing!). But I always still feel afraid; it doesn’t go away; it’s just now the fear is the trigger to act.

As you start your day, take a moment and reflect on what you're comparing yourself to, and is it reasonable?

Is it the most relevant to achieving high performance in your context, with finite time and energy?

What are your strengths, and how can those be best utilized?

This should help put some focus and scope limits around your interest in self-improvement and permit yourself some kindness and comfort he

It's our job to perform to the best of our abilities, ask for feedback regularly, learn from mistakes, and build trust that our fellow team members will see something in us that we may not always see in ourselves.