How to Overcome Impostor Syndrome

In this course, we’ll teach you everything you need to know about overcoming impostor syndrome. But knowledge alone isn’t enough – you need to take action!

That’s why we created this editable workbook for you to download or print and fill in the blanks, so you know exactly what steps to take to reboot your mind and own your future.

Before we can overcome impostor syndrome, we need to first define what it is. Impostor syndrome is a psychological pattern characterized by doubting your accomplishments - often chalking them up to being due to luck as opposed to your talent or qualifications - and the persistent, internalized fear that you’ll be exposed as a fraud. More broadly, it can apply to someone who can’t internalize their successes. Do your symptoms point to you having impostor syndrome? How does your impostor syndrome manifest? Once you know if you have it, you’ll be prepared to kick it to the curb!

To help you understand your impostor syndrome, be sure to download our Automatic Thoughts worksheet. Fill it out before moving on to the next lesson.

One of the characteristics of impostor syndrome is feeling as though you’re wearing a mask to hide your true “incompetent” self. In this lesson, we’ll show you how you can change your perspective on the mask and turn it into something positive!

Now it’s time to learn the INSPIRE method! First up is I for Imperfect. Learn how to look in the mirror and appreciate yourself - flaws and all.

Along with the video lesson, you can download the Reframing Flaws worksheet. Every flaw has its flip side, and it’s important to see the good side of your traits. Fill this out before moving on to the next lesson.

Our second habit is N for New Focus. Here, we’re shifting our attention to our successes and how awesome we are. Complete the Accomplishments worksheet to list out as many of your successes as you can think of (don’t be afraid to use the back of the page!). This will help you see that you really are awesome! It will also be the foundation for the following lessons.

Once you have filled out your Accomplishments worksheet, you can move on to the third habit.

Part three of the INSPIRE method is S for Strengths & Opportunities. Now that we’ve looked at our flaws and shifted our focus on our accomplishments, it’s important to see what strengths we bring to the table. This is also a great chance to look at what opportunities you have to grow and improve.

Download the Strengths & Opportunities worksheet and fill it out. This will set you up when you get to the next lesson.

The fourth part of the INSPIRE method is P for Positive Learning. Whether or not you know as much as your peers on a particular subject, there are always opportunities for growth. Positive learning stems from these opportunities. In this lesson, we show you how to identify opportunities for growth and use them to learn new skills. Part of overcoming impostor syndrome is recognizing that you have room to grow and learning is always a positive thing.

To practice Positive Learning, choose one of your opportunities for growth. Choose the one you’re most excited to learn or one that seems easy or one that you have the resources to start working on right away. Make a plan so you can start learning this new skill - is there a class or webinar? A book you can read? Perhaps you’ll make your own course, so to speak, to practice something new, like Jia Jiang and his 100 Days of Rejection Therapy (read about that here: https://www.rejectiontherapy.com/).

The second I in INSPIRE is for Ignoring Social Media Traps. In our super-connected world, we can often see our friends’ successes and exciting lives as something we are failing to live up to. It may help you to step away from social media for a while so that you can focus on you. Even if you don’t disconnect, try to shift your perspective from jealousy to inspiration. Be happy for your friends and inspired to keep pursuing your own path.

Additionally, after watching this video, we have an activity for you: Create an inspiration board.

You can create either a physical inspiration board or one on Pinterest. Think of a theme for your inspiration board. For example, if you’re thinking about moving to a new home in the future, you might create an inspiration board about it to visualize how you’d like your future home to be.

To create one IRL, get a piece of poster board from a store such as Michael’s or Target. Find some magazines you like, then cut out words and images that inspire you, then glue them on your board. You have a lot of freedom to design your board how you want, so you can draw things in such as a timeline for your goal of moving to a new house, or getting the job you want in the future.

To create one on Pinterest, simply make a free Pinterest account and then create a Pinterest board with the theme you want. Search for images and graphics on Pinterest about your theme that attract you, then save them to your board.

Next up in the INSPIRE method is R for Recognizing Constructive Criticism. No matter how amazing we are, we all receive a bit of criticism from time to time. But remember that this criticism is constructive: It’s meant to help you grow and realize your full potential. It can be hard to feel good about yourself when you get constructive criticism, but recognize that this is another opportunity for improvement. It also shows that the other person believes in you - that’s why they’re giving you tips on how to be even better.

Download our Constructive Criticism worksheet. Fill it out before moving on to the final part of the INSPIRE method.

The last part of the INSPIRE method is E for Embracing Achievements. Remember that list of accomplishments you made? Now is the time to put it to good use. Never forget that you are incredible and you have accomplished a lot. Celebrate yourself when you succeed at something. Treat yourself and accept the compliments, because you did this! Keeping this self-appreciative attitude will help you remember how amazing you are.

That can be easier said than done. So to help you out, complete this activity: list every accomplishment at the end of the day for the next seven days. Download the challenge below, and share your favorite entries with us! Bonus points if you reward yourself for your hard work.

And there you have it: You now know the full INSPIRE method and are ready to kick impostor syndrome to the curb! Remember that this will be an iterative process. It will take time to develop each of these habits, and you may have to move back to earlier steps sometimes. But stick with it, because eventually these habits will feel like second nature. You’ve got this!

You made it to the end - congratulations! Thank you so much for being part of this journey to overcome impostor syndrome!

We’re so glad you joined us in this course. We hope you stay in touch with is.

If you have any questions, email us any time at courses@petite2queen.com.