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How can I recognise imposter thoughts in myself? · Wellbeing Solutions - Ask A Counsellor

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: How can I recognise imposter thoughts in myself?
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: So everyone will have a completely unique imposter profile.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: In a previous podcast I mentioned five imposter types, but in this podcast I'd like to change that to five different things our mind does when we're in imposter mode just to highlight and categorise those thoughts more easily.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: So number one, imposter thoughts.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: We can attribute, sometimes attribute any success we have to just luck.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_00: So you may find yourself thinking I only got the job because they needed someone fast, or the presentation went well because the audience was easy, or I got my promotion because I know so and so or the timing was right.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: So number two, fear of being exposed.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: So thoughts coming from these fears may sound like everyone here is much more experienced or qualified than I am, and they'll soon be able to see through me.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: Or I'm gonna fail at this and others will then discover how bad I am at the job.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: So number three, discounting praise and rejecting positive feedback may manifest thoughts like oh they're just being kind or oh they they say that to everyone or they're just saying that because they feel sorry for me.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: Number four, when we overprepare, our thoughts can sound like if I revise and learn everything, then they can't catch me out, or I need to do that course to be better at my job.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: So always wanting to learn and never feeling quite that you know it enough to be good.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: Or I need to know the answers, all of the answers, otherwise I'm just a failure.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: And the big one, oh I should have known that, you know, we look back with regret, oh you punish yourself for not knowing everything.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: So number five, perfectionism, and those thoughts can sound like that past score of 98% was just not as good as hundred percent, and I still feel disappointed that I didn't get hundred percent, or I could have done much better.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: Or if I don't do this as well as can be done, I'm substandard, I'm just not good enough.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: Or I shouldn't be here as I only scraped by the entrance exam, for example.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: So of course all of those thoughts are in the context of work or education.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: However, it's important to remember that imposter syndrome can come into relationships, so and these thoughts might look like what do they see in me, or it won't be long before they discover my flaws and they'll just leave.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: Or comparing yourself to the ex, you know, how can I compare with their ex.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: So imposter syndrome thinking can increase anxiety and it move you closer to lower self-esteem and low confidence.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's really important to identify your patterns of negative thinking.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: So when these thoughts come up, these imposter thoughts, try and write them down.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: So there you may be able to identify patterns and triggering situations, which if you can predict, you can go into maybe with some positive affirmations or some alternative self love based thoughts, so self compassion.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_00: I hope this has been interesting and helpful, and thank you for listening.