June Monthly Newsletter (+Weekly Post)
June Monthly Newsletter (+Weekly Post)
12 ways imposter syndrome manifests in your life.
Hi all, if you are a free subscriber who doesn’t want to receive a preview of the weekly posts, please sign in to your Substack account and change your notification settings so you still receive the monthly newsletter and be in the now when I launch COMMUNITY EVENTS later this summer (subscribers get first dibs!)
In May, I did ELEVEN corporate workshops for many different companies, like LinkedIn, SONY, Momentive, Athena Health, and more. I was even invited (pinch me!) to speak at a White House Forum event (start at 42:00), and I did an Instagram live with the Sikh Coalition. I love doing these, but also really want to be invited into these spaces year round, not just in May. If you are looking to bring me into your company, you can learn more here.
I facilitate these workshops on how culture and identity impact mental health, productivity, and workplace relationships, focusing on the AAPI and first- and second-generation immigrant experience. And one of the most popular themes that runs through (and that I get asked about) is imposterism, or the imposter sydnrome phenomena. So, you all voted and asked for us to explore this in depth in June!
Imposter syndrome, or imposter phenonemen, originated in the 70s and was coined by two psychologists who observed the struggle in high-achieveing women (surprise, surprise). Of course now, there’s an understanding that everyone can struggle with this and everyone does to some degree.
Imposter syndrome is such a broad and common topic, but here’s how we’ll break it down and explore it this month:
Today: Do you struggle with imposter syndrome? Here’s a brief checklist.
June 9 weekly post: Culture, Family, Race, Identity, and Imposterism (this will be a BIG one).
June 11 at 1pm ET: 1/2 Community Conversation Club on Zoom (link to be provided next week to paid subscribers)
June 16 weekly post: Different traits related to imposter syndrome and how they impact you + unpacking imposter syndrome at work
June 23 weekly post: Advantages of imposter syndromes + tips, tricks, and reflections on navigating it
June 25 at 1pm ET: 2/2 Community Conversation Club on Zoom (link to be provided later this month to paid subscribers)
Imposter syndrome is real. It presents itself as feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt regardless of evidence of success, intelligence, or competence. Here are 12 ways it can show up for bicultural/multicultural folks. >>
As a person of color, you may have had to create the space for yourself rather than it being readily available or accessible to you. And because spaces weren't made for you, you may feel like you don't belong in them. (You do.)
Often people of color are told -- overtly and subliminally -- that they don't belong. You may feel like a "fraud" because you’ve been made to feel like you slipped through the cracks into positions and institutions that weren't meant for you (because they likely weren’t created for you).
Children of immigrants are often socialized in one environment and raised in households with a completely different environment. Straddling two identities and cultures can compound imposter syndrome and make it hard to feel like you really belong -- no matter how hard you work.
You may encounter microagressions on a daily basis nurturing the negative self-talk. Add in the fact that sometimes immigrant parents resist and reject acculturation. Or the fact that systemically, institutions and workplaces aren't created by or for us. Then you have the intersectionality of being a woman or LGBTQ+ or are minoritized in another way.
Then you have the societal and cultural dialogue that may compound your imposter syndrome as a child of immigrants. Without any room to fail, children of immigrants are often held to an unrealistic standard of success that doesn't allow for any mistakes. This can feed your perfectionist tendencies that are utilized as an attempt to combat your imposter syndrome.
Children of immigrants can often be told the narrative that if you can't be them, beat them. So there's an expectancy to do the thing, pursue the career, have the job where you can work your way up and be the expert in the field. Chasing levels and next goals can feed our sense of urgency and hustle culture.
Children of immigrants can often feel like their parents have struggled "worse" or "more" and thus, asking for help or assistance is unavailable. Add in the feelings of not totally belonging somewhere, and you can be left feeling like you have to "get there" on your own, prove you belong and be grateful you are there.
Often children of immigrants are raised in cultures where hardships and struggles are not openly discussed. Or in certain environments where you are the only person of color, you don't have the support in place you may need, so you feel like not only do you have to do it well, you have to make it look easy.
As one of the only in a room, you may feel like you have to represent an entire group/population and this can feed your core belief that you are not allowed to make any mistakes. You feel the need to constantly over-prepare and over-achieve in order to uphold or maintain the reputation of your community.
As a child of immigrants, you may have been taught that your parents and elders know what's best and this may have nurtured a sense of insecurity in being able to self-advocate, speak up, or take up space.
You may not have been taught how to “fail” or make mistakes, or that these are a normal part of success and pursuing achievement and growth. So when things don’t go according to plan or as well as you want them to, you feel like a fraud and failure.
You were taught what “success” looks like, and you weren’t encouraged to hone your own natural skills or pursue learning new skills outside of this box. So you berate yourself and feel like a failure if you can’t “meet the expectations” that have been placed on you.
Readings and Resources:
Stop Telling Women They Have Imposter Syndrome
How to combat motherhood imposter syndrome
Why imposter syndrome isn’t just a personal problem
Check out the Imposter Syndrome Institute
Tell me in the comments: What questions do you have about imposter syndrome and want to see answered this month?
I wasn’t familiar with Imposter Syndrome before reading this, but much of what you wrote makes me think the experiences third-culture kids go through, regardless of skin colour or sexual orientation. I don’t mention this to devalue the role race and sexual orientation play, but to highlight that people who look like they have “institutions” designed for them might not.