10/19/2022

Four Ways to Combat Imposter Syndrome on Your Team

Watch for red flags

Giving employees confidence, reassurance, and support can be a challenging task for any manager, especially when employees may falsely perceive that they’re underqualified, lack necessary skills, or simply lucked out getting an assignment or promotion. Given the prevalence of imposter feelings, you’re likely managing people who feel this way.

For example, Mary (not her real name) was a talented professional working for a major corporation. She was hired out of college into a role that was somewhat related to her degree and was surrounded by colleagues who had graduated from more prestigious universities with degrees more directly related to their work. She worked her way up in her division, receiving stellar evaluations from her superiors and peers. Yet in her mind, she was in way over her head and her colleagues were much more knowledgeable. She was terrified that someone would find out how little she truly knew. This became even worse when she was promoted to manage her division.

Mary would stay up late at night reading leadership articles and technical handbooks to ensure she would always appear knowledgeable in meetings. Though she continued to receive stellar evaluations from her superiors and subordinates, this fear of being discovered as a fraud continually gnawed at her psyche. In short, she felt like an imposter.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Harvard Business Review.