Imposter Syndrome In Executives

More and more execs are suffering from this, why?

First identified in 1978 in a study on high-achieving women, Imposter Sydrome has risen to affect as many as 70% of workers (according to the journal of behavioural science) and is especially prevalent in executives.

Searches for Imposter Syndrome have surged in the past few years.

Could this be linked to our obsession with status, seniority, and accomplishment?

Undoubtedly.

In the recent past we typically compared ourselves with the peers we knew and met, today we are comparing ourselves with global superstars whom have perfectly curated and polished personas.

We all understand how young people are becoming depressed by comparing themselves with the Insta-famous lifestyle.

The same happens on the executive level by managers comparing themselves to rock-star CxO’s while recognising their own personal brand is mediocre at best. The feeling lingers that someday one of these superstar peers will show up within their company and push them back to the level below (where they feel they should have stayed given the ‘luck’ they had to get the role in the first place).

Add-in the increased risk of having a mistake spinning out of control in online media and it is not a surprise more and more executives are starting to get paralysed with feelings of not belonging in their seats.

What is Imposter Syndrome?

Imposter Syndrome is almost the opposite of the Dunning-Kruger Effect, which is where people estimate their abilities to be above average when perhaps they are below.

Imposter Syndrome, on the other hand, is defined as having two clear parts:

1. The feeling that one’s achievements are undeserved
2. The fear of being exposed as a fraud

It is categorised as a “psychological pattern” rather than any form of illness.

It is quite easy for people, despite their apparent success, to put it down to “luck”, a concept even more poorly evidenced than the syndrome itself.

What are the types of “imposter”?

There are five clear types of “imposter” according to various studies.

1. The Perfectionist — we probably all know someone like this. These are the people who beat themselves up over making even tiny mistakes.
2. The Superman (or woman) — these are the people who are desperate to prove that they are not an imposter, so they never take a day off, work too hard, and generally stress themselves out.
3. The Genius — those types who are just naturally good at most things, and really struggle upon feeling challenged.
4. The Soloist — these imposters never ask for help. Ever.
5. The Expert — these people overcompensate for their imposter syndrome by seeking ever-higher levels of training and qualification.

Any of those sounding familiar to you?

I have met a few of these types.

The superman (woman) typically has a way of not only stressing out themselves, but their direct reports as well. It is not uncommon to receive mails past midnight and having subsequent meetings regarding that topic at 7 the morning after.

If you happen to be led by one of these it is worth pointing out the effect they currently have on the team. You would be surprised with the positive effect it will have as they are focused on doing the right thing for the company, so they will not feel attacked yet will try to find ways of shielding the teams from their behaviour, which they still feel is necessary to proof their position is ‘earned’ rather than given.

The perfectionist and the expert are also no strangers to the executive committees yet they seem to struggle more with the feeling of ‘undeserved luck’. They have seen a fair share of peers that performed as well (or better in their eyes) yet dropped out of their shared rat race due to an external event, a poorly picked fight with a higher-up, or health issues.

Making it even harder for them to fully come to peace with their current role. They always seem to look behind their back for the re-entry of a peer of the past revealing them as fraudsters.

I mentioned the Imposter Syndrome to what I thought a perfectionist in the recent past and it helped to create an open atmosphere to discuss these feelings. For those working on Patrick Lencioni’s pyramid with their senior management, talking about these topics helps in building trust through vulnerability.

Way better than doing yet another escape room, speed dating or asking people to catch each other falling…

Are these feelings normal?

They absolutely are.

The rise of Social Media — including LinkedIn, alongside others like Instagram — has enabled us to constantly compare ourselves to our more (and sometimes less) successful peers.

Instagram and Facebook, in particular, have affected the younger generation, whereas adages such as “fake it till you make it” plague the minds of those climbing the workplace ladder.

A 2015 article by the Harvard Business Review referencing a survey of over 100 CEOs explains that — somewhat surprisingly — the number 1 fear of executives is being thought of as incompetent and that being exposed.

This fear then goes on to prevent executives from leading as effectively as they otherwise could, when they become “shy”.

One of the major reasons Imposter Syndrome hits executives so hard is that a chief way of overcoming it is talking about it.

In business, it is indeed lonely at the top. People may not open up to the CEO the same way they would with a peer and vice versa.

What can be done about it?

There is hope.

The first step to overcoming Imposter Syndrome for executives is to openly admit there’s an issue and acknowledge it, rather than hide away from it.

Seeking a mentor, and indeed acting as a mentor to others suffering, in the same manner, can be an excellent tool to overcoming this issue.

There are countless articles in which execs discuss overcoming Imposter Syndrome, and their advice generally sounds like this:

• Don’t compare yourself to others
• Weigh up your feelings with the facts
• Focus on your vision
• Accept even small victories
• Be grateful and express this gratitude
• Ask for help
• Strengthen weaknesses and acknowledge strengths

Importantly, it’s worth executives who feel like this reconciling themselves with past successes, and reminding themselves what they set out to achieve in the first place, along with why.

There will always be some challenge to overcome, so why create more with internalised strife and self-doubt?