You’re more capable than your brain sometimes lets you believe
If you’ve ever thought, “Any day now, they’ll realize I have no idea what I’m doing,” then you’re in good company.
Imposter syndrome shows up in subtle ways. Not just as insecurity, but as overpreparing for presentations, second-guessing your decisions, or downplaying your achievements when someone compliments you. It convinces smart, capable people that their success is luck, timing, or a fluke.
The problem isn’t that you have imposter syndrome. It’s that you might be believing the wrong stories it tells you.
Here are three of the biggest lies, and how to reframe them:
1. “Everyone else has it figured out.”
They don’t. Most professionals are quietly trying to navigate uncertainty, too. They’ve just learned to do it with confidence. Instead of comparing your behind-the-scenes to someone else’s highlight reel, focus on your progress. Growth doesn’t require certainty; it requires curiosity.
Reframe: “I don’t need to know everything. I just need to keep learning.”
2. “If I were truly good, this wouldn’t feel so hard.”
Challenge and discomfort are signs of growth, not incompetence. If things always felt easy, you’d be coasting, not evolving. That uneasy stretch you feel? It’s your capability expanding.
Reframe: “This feels hard because I’m leveling up, not because I don’t belong.”
3. “I got lucky.”
Luck might open a door once. Consistency keeps it open. Your work ethic, ideas, and resilience are the reasons you’re still here. So instead of discrediting your wins, dissect them: what skills, choices, or relationships helped you succeed? You’ll likely find a pattern that looks a lot like you.
Reframe: “I created the conditions for this opportunity.”
Imposter thoughts don’t vanish overnight. But every time you catch one and reframe it, you weaken its hold.
So the next time that voice whispers, “You don’t belong here,” remind yourself that you already are here. And you earned it.
Until next time…
Mal
Founder, The Ideas Accelerator
Helping you grow your career with strategic insight and smarter tools.