Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
nytimes.com
Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
1–10 of 22 posts
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#2Neat read, but the moment of zen if you already know a bit about imposter syndrome is towards the end:
"One day, Buddha was teaching a large group, and Mara was moving around the edges, looking for a way into the group. I envision Mara rushing frantically back and forth in the bushes and trees, making plans to wreak havoc. One of Buddha’s attendants saw Mara, ran to Buddha and warned him of Mara’s presence. Hearing his attendant’s frantic warning, the Buddha simply replied, “Oh good, invite her in for tea.”
This story captures beautifully how we should respond to the impostor syndrome. We know what the feeling is called. We know others suffer from it. We know a little bit about why we feel this way. And we now know how to handle it: Invite it in and remind ourselves why it’s here and what it means. "
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#3What if she doesnt have Impostor syndrome and is an impostor?
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#4I have the don't-give-a-fuck-what-you-think syndrome. I'm fucken Moses. Who the hell are you, nigger?
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#5Neat read, but the moment of zen if you already know a bit about imposter syndrome is towards the end: "One day, Buddha was teaching a large group, and Mara was moving around the edges, looking for a way into the group. I envision Mara rushing frantically back and forth in the bushes and trees, making plans to wreak havoc. One of Buddha’s attendants saw Mara, ran to Buddha and warned him of Mara’s presence. Hearing h…
Quite often I have to willingly do the opposite of my reflexes to understand or evolve. Accepting weirdness, fear, and diving into it to get more data.
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#6After landing a highly prestigious position at a company with a great reputation, I spent the first months thinking that every person I spoke to, worked with, or passed on my way to lunch knew I didn't belong. I thought I would be found out at every turn. This added to an already stressful transition. Only gradually did evidence from positive interactions with others chip away at my self doubt. I never truly believed that I was as capable as my peers, but then again they were some of the most intelligent people I've ever met.
Truthfully, I'd rather face perpetual self doubt than be overconfident. People who consider themselves exceptional usually turn out to be under delusions of grandeur and the truly gifted are often surprisingly humble. Wanting to catch up to the latter group creates the drive that keeps me learning new skills rather than coasting.
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#7After landing a highly prestigious position at a company with a great reputation, I spent the first months thinking that every person I spoke to, worked with, or passed on my way to lunch knew I didn't belong. I thought I would be found out at every turn. This added to an already stressful transition. Only gradually did evidence from positive interactions with others chip away at my self doubt. I never truly believed…
I totally agree. We just finished our perf cycle here at the Goog, and in my self evaluation I rated my impact as "medium" on the various projects I worked on. (I started back in June, so I haven't been around very long, and I'm very much still ramping up.)
The peer evaluations I got all rated my impact as "important" to "critical". I don't feel like I did anything too outstanding; just doing what anybody would do, and I feel like I still have a tremendous amount to learn, and the senior personnel are still way ahead of me.
I definitely feel like a touch of impostor syndrome can be a help toward excelling, as long as it doesn't cripple you.
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#8After landing a highly prestigious position at a company with a great reputation, I spent the first months thinking that every person I spoke to, worked with, or passed on my way to lunch knew I didn't belong. I thought I would be found out at every turn. This added to an already stressful transition. Only gradually did evidence from positive interactions with others chip away at my self doubt. I never truly believed…
I totally agree. We just finished our perf cycle here at the Goog, and in my self evaluation I rated my impact as "medium" on the various projects I worked on. (I started back in June, so I haven't been around very long, and I'm very much still ramping up.) The peer evaluations I got all rated my impact as "important" to "critical". I don't feel like I did anything too outstanding; just doing what anybody would do, a…
A little imposter syndrome keeps you hungry.
A lot of imposter syndrome is paralyzing.
I had a very similar experience to you during my first performance review at Microsoft. Thought I was just scraping by, ended up getting a promotion.
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#9What if she doesnt have Impostor syndrome and is an impostor?
Well, that leaves either intentionally being fraudulent, or Dunning-Kruger.
Re: Learning to Deal with the Impostor Syndrome
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
I totally agree. We just finished our perf cycle here at the Goog, and in my self evaluation I rated my impact as "medium" on the various projects I worked on. (I started back in June, so I haven't been around very long, and I'm very much still ramping up.) The peer evaluations I got all rated my impact as "important" to "critical". I don't feel like I did anything too outstanding; just doing what anybody would do, a…
A little imposter syndrome keeps you hungry. A lot of imposter syndrome is paralyzing. I had a very similar experience to you during my first performance review at Microsoft. Thought I was just scraping by, ended up getting a promotion.
The 'lack of confidence' led me to mentally enjoy competitions because I then don't have to query people to know my place.