Imposter phenomenon is an old friend of mine that pops in for a visit every now and then. Imposter doesn't care about my past and present growth or achievements. It is there mostly for one reason, to remind me that I am not good enough...gently whispering in my psyche, "who'd want to hear what you have to say anyway? There are people far better than you, far more qualified, far more articulate. What makes you think you're good enough?"
Over the years, I have learned to recognise the gifts that the Imposter offers. The Imposter phenomenon is defined as a sense of intellectual fraudulence, and an inability to internalise success and competency (Clark et al., 2021). For me, it wasn't just about recognising the Imposter, but also about questioning why it was showing up. Here's what I learned:
Imposter Mirrors my Own Beliefs Back to Me
You may have noticed that I use the term Imposter as if it has its own identity. Well, in my head it does. When I think about what Imposter might look like, it's a male form and reminds me of Slimer, the green ghost from the movie, Ghostbusters. The question is, how did Imposter get in my head?
Much of the time, Imposter is a reflection of my own beliefs. One of my strongest beliefs since childhood has been that I am stupid. This belief developed from a very young age and came from perceptions that I made about certain experiences. The narrative that accompanied this deep rooted belief would frequently ring in my ears when I first started to build my business.
It wasn't until I started working with EFT and Matrix-Reimpinting in a very focussed way, uncovering the beliefs and the subconscious memories, did I begin to recognise the roots of this belief and change it. The imposter still shows up, but far more infrequently. There's still some work to do:)
If This Sounds Like You…
1. Recognise that it's part of the journey of being a therapist. A lot of the time, as therapists we might feel like we ought to have all the answers, but the truth is that we're just as human as anyone else. I like the way Jane Travis puts it, "we're human first, counsellor second". It's also worth noting that although the literature exploring imposter phenomenon in mental health professionals is sparse, a recent study has found that imposter phenomenon has been associated with compassion fatigue (you can read more about that here).
2. You will make mistakes. We’re not perfect and making mistakes is part of the learning process. The important part is that we go easy on ourselves, reflect on our practice and continue building our art.
3. Keep a reflections journal. Keep a note of your thoughts and feelings as a therapist. How do you know you're experiencing the imposter phenomenon? What is your self-talk? Where do you feel it in the body? Describe your experience. This is something that you might want to bring up in supervision. Talking about it can really help us to recognise that we're not alone. A therapist's journey can be lonely at times, and having a good supervisor, mentor or your own Therapist tribe can really help.
4. Start to explore your Imposter through EFT (and Matrix-Reimprinting). EFT is a powerful tool that can help you to gain a deeper understanding about your relationship to your own Imposter.
Be Mindful About...
There were times when I felt that I wasn't good enough, but the reason behind these thoughts wasn't the Imposter. It was because I needed to upskill. I needed to be brutally honest with myself about my skill level, and note where I needed to put the extra work in. Upskilling, practice, mentoring and good supervision has been invaluable for me. Even today, as an EFT trainer, I still attend and observe other EFT courses. I am continually thinking about how to evolve my training, and how I can add more value. The more confident I feel about my knowledge, practice and experience, the less the Imposter shows up.
If This Sounds Like You…
1. Regularly check in with yourself and be brutally honest. Where do you need to further develop your skill? Sometimes this might look like gaining new knowledge or attending a refresher course, but at other times it may just be recognising that you want to upskill in the future.
2. Whilst this might sound contradictory to the point above, be mindful about examining the reason behind your desire to do another course. If it's coming from a place of desperation, i.e., the need to quickly learn a new skill because you don't feel good enough or smart enough, that may well be the Imposter making an appearance! There’s a difference between calmly acknowledging that you need to upskill vs. a sense a desperation about upskilling.
3. Ensure that you have some form of supervision/mentoring in place. This might be 1-2-1 supervision, group or peer supervision. Reflecting on our practice with others helps us to gain new insight and recognise areas for development.
References
Clark, P., Holden, C., Russell, M. _et al._ The Impostor Phenomenon in Mental Health Professionals: Relationships Among Compassion Fatigue, Burnout, and Compassion Satisfaction. _Contemp Fam Ther_ **44,** 185–197 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-021-09580-y
If you enjoyed reading this post, feel free to share it with friends!
The Art of EFT is free for everyone. If you would also like to receive it, then join below: