Impostor syndrome: how to cure?
Written by: Loris Vitry (holistic coach)
Validated by: Cathy Maillot (Osteopath)
Caution: If you have any medical questions or concerns, please speak to your doctor. Even if the articles on this site are based on scientific studies, they do not replace professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
In everyday life, you can meet people whose sense of modesty is literally excessive or even disparaging.
In this kind of case, the person is like a racehorse hidden in a donkey with the head of a mule.
Indeed, it may be a person prone to impostor syndrome.
Find out in the following lines what it is and how to cure this syndrome.
What is impostor syndrome?
The impostor syndrome is also called the autodidact syndrome.
It induces the one who suffers from it into a sickly feeling of doubt.
These doubts lead him to deny ownership of any achievement or accomplishment he has made.
Whether in the professional or private environment.
He attributes accomplishment to external factors such as luck, relationships, or a combination of circumstances.
The person who suffers from it thinks that they do not deserve the place they occupy and are afraid of being called incompetent.
This person lives in constant stress.
What are the symptoms of impostor syndrome?
Like all ailments, there are symptoms that can help spot impostor syndrome.
Having the fear of being exposed
Often accompanied by impostor syndrome is a fear of having one’s poor true identity exposed.
Despite the successes obtained, the person says he is incapable of having achieved them and is convinced that he is deceiving those around him.
Even when she receives a lot of compliments, she claims to be incapable and says she will be replaced soon.
Inflicting yourself with excessive pressure
The person suffering from impostor syndrome turns any task, even if it is trivial, into a big challenge.
The impostor tends to do proofreading several times although they are not necessary.
She can also make her feel very guilty if, for example, she forgets to remove the laundry from the dry cleaners or let a meal burn slightly.
In short, she sets for herself truly utopian life goals that will never be achieved.
She lives out of step with reality because her benchmarks are unrealistic.
Scuttling yourself
The impostor limits himself unconsciously and therefore provokes situations that confirm his imagination.
By doubting his abilities, he develops a bad self-perception which ends up causing his downfall.
Denigrate yourself all the time
The person with sham syndrome is their own enemy.
Whether faced with failure or success, in her mind, she says she can never be good enough.
She constantly humiliates herself for no reason and without anyone’s help.
She constantly inflicts stress on herself every moment of her life.
Don’t trust each other
Anyone can think of her as achieving extraordinary goals.
However, in his opinion, it is worthless.
By losing confidence in herself, she can give up on her plans even though they are dear to her heart.
The impostor denies all of his skills.
She thinks that everyone could be in her place and does not know how to accept compliments from others.
This feeling goes beyond false modesty because the impostor thinks he is being laughed at or lying to please him.
How to cure impostor syndrome?
When we observe the symptoms of this syndrome, we understand that the person who suffers from it is very attached to it.
However, there are several ways to cure impostor syndrome.
Diagnose the disease
To better fight a disease, it must first be diagnosed.
The same is true for impostor syndrome.
If a person who suffers from it discerns it, he will be able to heal better from this disease.
So instead of saying to herself “that she has not accomplished anything and that the results obtained are due to luck” she will say “that she finds it difficult to recognize the value of her results and her abilities”.
It is essential that the impostor stops thinking of himself as incapable.
Indeed, impostor syndrome is an inability to own one’s successes, not an inability to achieve them.
Stop fighting against perfectionism
It would be difficult to ask the impostor to root out his perfectionist character.
Indeed, this is not a totally bad attitude because it achieves great goals.
The only thing to do is to build better self-esteem.
Channel the inner voice that speaks
Impostor syndrome is characterized by the subject judging himself by speaking negatively to himself.
So one of the remedies is for the impostor to silence his inner voice as soon as he begins to humiliate or denigrate his results.
The impostor can also approach a close colleague or friend and confide in them his doubts.
By externalizing his feelings, he will be able to get rid of them.
If the inner voice persists, his good friends will be able to convince him otherwise.
Keep a memory of your successes
It is very important for someone who has it to keep memories of their successes.
He can create a special folder in which congratulatory emails will be stored for example.
Thus, as soon as the denigrating inner voice resurfaces, he will be able with this file, to remember his successes.
In addition, this person must learn to say “thank you” after receiving congratulations.
She should no longer reject compliments.
Dare to start
Having an idea without ever taking action can lead the impostor to disparage himself.
It will be all the easier if he’s with people he thinks are more capable than he is.
So the solution will be to take the risk and if necessary, get help from those around you to achieve your goals.
Knowing how to go beyond and accept your mistakes
The subject with the sham tends to cling to his failures.
Being human involves the possibility of making mistakes and so it is with the most successful people in the world.
It is essential to keep in mind that despite mistakes, great goals can be achieved.
This is because mistakes are a means of gaining experience and knowing what to avoid in the future.
In short, to heal from the sham syndrome, it all depends on work whose objective is to increase self-confidence and self-esteem.
By working to be better, the person subject to the sham will be able to cope better with their challenges.
However, as she progresses, she must learn to remember them.
This will allow him to come out of the feeling of mediocrity and failure.
In addition, she will be able to regain confidence in herself and thus better live her daily life.
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