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Living with Imposter Syndrome

Lou Willoughby on April 11, 2022

Imposter syndrome, that annoying devil on your shoulder telling you youโ€™re a fraud ๐Ÿ™Š I unfortunately am too familiar with this devil on my shoulde...
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leob

Seriously, why are people making such a big deal about the whole imposter thing? Assuming that you're sincere and not a fraud, then why would you have to think that you are one? Trust me, other people aren't gonna look at you and think "oh she's a fraud" ... could be me but I don't see the point, just give it a rest.

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louiseann93 profile image
Lou Willoughby

Hi Leob, thank you for your comment ๐Ÿ™‚ I understand not everyone will experience or understand imposter syndrome. It is a form of anxiety and so not everyone may experience it which is absolutely fine.
I think itโ€™s important to talk about personal experiences especially around mental health for others who have felt this way too.
Thereโ€™s a great podcast by Wes Bos that also discuss this if you ever want to look into it to understand it more ๐Ÿ™‚

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leob

Totally understood, no two persons are the same, thanks for pointing that out because it's easy to overlook - and my feeling is that you're probably doing absolutely great, no need for an imposter syndrome for you!

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Sherry Day

The little devil may never go away

It may not bo away, but does get better.

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Ben Halpern

+1

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louiseann93 profile image
Lou Willoughby

Yes 100%! ๐Ÿ™‚

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mephi

I think one has a higher risk of developing imposter syndrome with a higher number of people who think you can't be or shouldn't be what you are.
You get mixed signals and that isn't easy to deal with. Who is right? The person saying you have such a good understanding of programming, you have to do this or the person who told you to see no reason to even talk to you because you know nothing after years of learning?

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leob • Edited

"The more you know, the more you realize you know nothing yet", yes absolutely, but I don't see that as a problem, it's just a fact of life. And of course, yes, always keep learning.

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Tawhid

Recently, I also wrote a blog about coping with it

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Lou Willoughby

Ah, Iโ€™ll give it a read ๐Ÿ™‚ itโ€™s helpful to know others have experienced this also and learning tips from others! As awful as it is we can hopefully help each other ๐Ÿ™‚

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Tawhid

Yeah.

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Lou Willoughby

Hi Luke, thank you for sharing the Dunning-Kruger effect, Iโ€™ve never seen or heard of this before but makes sense! ๐Ÿ™‚ thank you !