Do you ever feel like an imposter?

I was watching a video of a guy talking about his custom carpentry business that he had been successfully running full time for over twenty years. He revealed something that jarred me a bit when I heard it: even though he had been a professional carpenter for that long, he came into most custom jobs feeling like he didn’t really know what he was doing.

It struck a chord with me because there are many times in ministry I will enter a room and think, do I really know what I am talking about?

Imposter syndrome is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when an individual doubts their status, accomplishments, or value in spite of evidence that positively favors their competence or success.

This happens in many different arenas.

Do I really deserve this job I just got hired for?

Do I really deserve my significant other?

Is what I am doing making any difference?

Have I proven to the people I am with that I am worthy of the position I hold?

Am I smart enough or educated enough to answer these sort of questions?

Why do people experience this phenomena?

Upbringing seems to have a lot to do with whether or not someone struggles with this psychology. Growing up in a space that has high values for achievement and/or a space that is highly critical can feed this sort of feeling.

The modern world has benefited us in many ways, but has opened the ability for us to compare our lives to others in ways we never could before. This comparison game often causes us to over analyze our current position in the world.

Cultural pressures are huge as well. Church can be a place that weighs morality so heavily on it’s people that they become anxious about their participation in life, making sure to try not to mess up. Work culture can over-inflate the value of genius over the value of growth, thereby creating an anxious system where people feel like that must already be a top performer rather than work towards becoming one.

Become an overcomer

You must become someone who challenges your negative thoughts. So often, the person struggling will allow their mind to ruminate on the thing in which they feel they are not good at. Individually, the person struggling needs to develop ways to break this pattern of poor thinking and instead celebrate successes.

Finding a supportive community who will celebrate you and help keep your thoughts accountable is a huge advantage in overcoming this way of thinking.

Another good way of finding healing from this way of thinking is to become someone who enjoys learning. As you grow, avoid comparing your own journey to someone else’s.

Tweet of the week

If you liked this post, or you feel like it would start a good conversation, please share this with your friends and ask them to subscribe.

It would help me a lot. Thanks for reading!