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Have you ever battled imposter syndrome as a creative? How did you go about it? Did you stop creating content or you just didn’t pay attention and you moved on?
What does being a creative mean? You are a creative if you create something for people to engage. It could be podcast episodes, YouTube videos, articles, tweets, name it.
Imposter syndrome also known as fraud syndrome is the internal experience of believing that you’re not deserving of the commendations from people that think you’re competent and are good at what you’re doing.
This imposter syndrome makes you look down on your competence, and give accolades for your hard work and achievements to external factors or luck, but yourself.
How do you identify that you have imposter syndrome as a creative?
To know if you have this syndrome, you could ask these questions.
Do I attribute my accomplishments to external factors or luck and sideline my efforts?
Am I uncomfortable with receiving commendations and eager to hear the bad things people have to say about my work?
Am I a perfectionist?
Do I mount pressure on myself to do more to earn the validation of people?
Do I think I’m not enough for a job and undercharge for it?
Do I stress over things that are not meant to rile me up?
What are the effects of battling imposter syndrome as a creative?
You lose your self-worth
It’s hard to be productive because of your perfectionist mentality
You undervalue your work and talk down your efforts and achievements
You are always on edge waiting for someone to badly criticize your work and tell you that you didn’t do well
As a creative, you think it’s humility when you attribute your wins to external factors or luck but disregard your efforts to put everything together
You allow your past mistakes to haunt you and deprive you of the right to do your current work properly. You allow your past mistakes to hold you down
You feel like a fraud and think it’s deceptive of you to create content because you feel unworthy of the opportunity to engage people with your content
You aim at getting certifications because you think it will gain you acceptance in the society.
Types of imposter syndrome
To deal with imposter syndrome as a creative, you should know the types. This will channel your effort to get better in the right direction.
There are several different types of imposter syndrome. Dr Valerie Young, an expert on imposter syndrome, categorized this condition by subtype. “Each subtype is defined by a unique type of individual that falls under the umbrella of imposter syndrome. Most people who struggle with this syndrome fall into one or a mix of these subtypes.”
The Perfectionist –This type of imposter syndrome affects someone who wants their ideas to be perfect before they get to work. They want to figure it all out before they start. The perfectionist represents a person who sets unrealistically high standards for themselves. This creative strives to give their absolute best to their content without any room for lapses. One perk of this type of imposter syndrome is that it could impose a great cost to their mental health.
The Superhero- The Superhero loves to push really hard because they feel less and believe that they’ll find acceptance in their pushing really hard. A person with this kind of imposter syndrome often struggles with feeling inadequate relative to fellow creatives. Their inspiration for pushing so hard is trying to measure up at all cost. For instance, someone seeking to get certifications in every course possible just to earn the validation of people and to give the “I am the hero” impression.
The Natural Genius- The natural genius represents a person with imposter syndrome that not only struggles with perfectionism but also sets out to achieve all their goals. If they achieve 95% of their goals, they will beat themselves up for not being able to complete the 5%. These people feel unworthy, guilty and shameful if they cannot easily complete a task or achieve a goal at the first try.
The Soloist- The soloist represents a person with imposter syndrome that finds it difficult to ask others for help. They always think that no one will do it better than them. They see it as a moment to prove their worth to people and let them know that they are independent. They don’t think that any other person is as competent as they are. In fact, they believe that they would ruin things for them. When things don’t happen the way they want, they get really upset and pained. They have extreme difficulties asking others for help. Perhaps they may feel that others are not as competent as themselves or that they must prove their own worth through their productivity.
The Expert-The expert talks about people with imposter syndrome that believe that they must know the answer to every question. And if they don’t, they feel disappointed in themselves. They always want to acquire more knowledge to boost their ego. They may feel like they are less experienced than their colleagues if they do not know an answer or have knowledge on certain topics.
How do you deal with imposter syndrome as a creative?
Dealing with imposter syndrome as a creative is not impossible. But it requires you to be intentional about tackling it.
Know your beliefs and connect to your real self. Ask yourself real questions.
Am I worthy of love?
Must I be perfect for others to approve me?
Use social media healthily
Assess your abilities
Talk to people who can help
Stop comparing yourself
Don’t overanalyze your work
Get comfortable with receiving compliments especially when you’re deserving of them
Give yourself accolades and reward yourself for a job well done. Acknowledge that you’ve done well
In conclusion, stop creating for the wrong reasons. As a creative, you might have to deal with this syndrome in one way or the other, but remember that you can always navigate life as a creative who has a healthy mindset.