[ISBW] Deconstructing Imposter Syndrome

But the topic of imposter syndrome came up in the discord today and I wanted to break it down because I say this on the show a lot.

If you're new, welcome and listen.

And if you're not new, then just be patient with me.

But I started this show because I had a lot of fears that I knew academically were not founded in logic.

For example, Joining a writer's workshop will make other people steal your stuff and plagiarize you.

Getting a rejection from a magazine means you are now on a blacklist on their wall and they have an oath to never buy from you because your first story was so bad.

There's no way you're ever getting better.

And, you know, over the years, we've talked about a lot of other anxieties we have.

And here's a hint.

I still have them.

I do.

And I never know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing because I'm trying to tell you that they never go away.

But also, everybody's got it.

So you just kind of got to get past it.

And yesterday I met with somebody who's been giving me some creator type coaching.

There's someone who specializes in content creators online and handling all the stuff that is unique to that job, I guess.

When we were talking, we were going over what's holding me back, my fears, whatever, and realized that the imposter cop was there.

The imposter cop was there telling me that I was not interesting or creative enough to do anything experimental.

And it slows me down if I can sometimes...

It feels like I'm sneaking away from my fears when I kind of jump into a project.

Have you ever seen me launch a... podcast, or launch a live episode with very little prepared at all.

That's me going, if I sit down to plan it out, I will talk myself out of it and not do it at all.

So I have to jump in so all the water can come over me at once and I'll get used to it.

which doesn't feel like a good long-term solution, even though it does get me thinking very quickly.

But I think it's because of the imposter thing that I will jump into a project without a lot of planning.