Impostor Syndrome: You Are Not Alone

What is impostor syndrome, and how can I combat it?

Most college students have suffered from some form of impostor syndrome. The nagging thoughts that pop up telling someone that they are not as smart as everyone thinks they are, or that they are just scraping by. Many people have private feelings of doubt in their skills or that they are just a fraud that will be found out sooner or later. These feelings of inadequacy compound over time and can feel unbearable, but impostor syndrome is not a disease or disorder; these feelings can be worked through.

Experiencing impostor syndrome is common. There are five primary types of impostor syndrome: Perfectionist, Natural Genius, Super-person, Soloist, and the Expert. Let's look at each a bit more in depth.

Perfectionist

The perfectionists set unrealistic expectations for themselves and worry that others will see their flaws. This toxic cycle of setting unrealistic expectations and eventually falling short leads to a loop of overworking, fearing failure, and discounting your own achievements.

Examples in the Media:

• Criminal Minds
  • JJ, Spencer, and Derrick
• Brooklyn 99
  • Amy Santiago
• The Big Bang Theory
  • Sheldon Cooper

Breaking the Cycle:

• Keep track of your achievements, and go over how hard you worked to get to where you are.
• Change your mindset to a good-enough one, and aim for excellence rather than flawlessness. 
• Embrace the chaos of life and know that not everything can be perfect.

The Natural Genius

The Natural Genius expects to get everything right the first time and grasp new concepts easily. Any hiccup in a process you expect to get right the first time can cause a lot of turmoil; any competence should come effortlessly. When presented with challenges, the natural genius tends to resort to avoidance and feels embarrassed when not completing something on the first try.

Examples in the Media:

• The Big Bang Theory
  • Sheldon Cooper
• Mr. Peabody and Sherman
  • Mr. Peabody

Breaking the Cycle:

• Change to a growth mindset can help combat this type of impostor syndrome.
• When making mistakes or not grasping a new topic immediately, remember that mistakes are part of the process and lead to more learning than getting something right the first time. 
• Redefine confidence and remember that mastery takes practice.  

The Super-person

The super-person can be very stressed, and feel they should excel in every task they are part of, and often face burnout. Every role that they are given needs to be executed flawlessly: parent, supervisor, student. When confronting this pattern of impostor syndrome, people often have trouble saying no to new tasks, hide their struggles, and internalize their stress.

Example in the Media:

• Encanto
  • Luisa

Breaking the Cycle:

• Maintaining a healthy life balance is difficult for people experiencing this type of impostor syndrome.
• Listing what can be done in a reasonable amount of time is a useful tool for realizing their workload. 
• Reframe competence. That you don’t have to do something by yourself to complete a task well.
• Set  boundaries. Say no to tasks you know you can’t complete 

The Soloist

The soloist thinks that needing help is shameful, and they need to do everything on their own. Asking for help is seen as a sign of weakness or fraud in this form of impostor syndrome.

Examples in the Media:

• Megamind
  • Metro
• House
  • Dr. House
• The Lord of the Rings
  • Frodo Baggins

Breaking the Cycle:

• Normalize asking for support and that not every task needs to be done by yourself.
• Start small, delegating smaller tasks and building up to working with others in your support system.
• Reframe your mentality, and realize that everyone needs checks and balances to grow personally and professionally. 

The Expert

The Expert believes they need to be knowledgeable in every part of their work or task. The overindependence that the experts experience can isolate them and lead to burnout. The expert can feel really inadequate when comparing themselves to others. Remembering that you can continue learning and growing can help with some of these feelings.

Examples in the Media:

• Modern Family
  • Claire
• Brooklyn 99
  • Amy Santiago
• Parks and Recreation
  • Leslie Knope

Breaking the Cycle:

• Redefine expertise. Instead of needing to know everything, knowing how to find information and being able to continuously learn makes you more of an expert.
• Shifting mindsets instead of being an expert, adopt a humble realist mindset; focus on finding information, not knowing it off the bat. 
• Track your achievements: Know what you have accomplished and how you can continue to accomplish by learning and growing in your life. 

Putting the Pieces Together

People feel several of these forms of impostor syndrome, and you are not limited to one kind. For example, you could experience both perfectionist and soloist impostor syndrome at the same time. Maybe you noticed that a lot of the ways you can break the cycle of impostor syndrome recur across several patterns of impostor syndrome. Most of the time, you won’t feel one type of impostor syndrome at an isolated time. Working through your feelings with those around you, with support and trust, can help you find the coping mechanisms that will best help you break these stressful cycles. 

When you are feeling impostor syndrome, look back at how hard you worked to get to this moment. You put the work in; keep going. By no means are we saying that working through impostor syndrome is easy or looks the same for everyone. Everyone experiences college differently, and the “right” way for you to combat feelings of impostor syndrome is specific to you. We at Academic Peer Coaching hope these tips help you manage any feelings that may arise. 

Remember that you are not alone. Talking out your experiences and understanding your feelings can help. If you want additional support, Weber State University provides free counseling to active students.

Appointments can be made through the Weber State Counseling site (https://www.weber.edu/counselingcenter/) or by phone at (801-626-6406).

The Counseling Center's office hours are Monday - Thursday: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Friday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. for the Ogden campus and Thursday: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. for the Davis campus.