Why impostor syndrome hits women and women of color harder

A feeling of incompetence and self-doubt structures the term impostor syndrome. Questioning if you are undeserving or having a fraud intellect may creep in only when you are underappreciated. A common phenomenon that we hear everywhere, be it work, home, or in society. Impostor syndrome, however, takes a significant toll on women, especially black women. Let us analyze what leads to it.

Say you are one female in your team. And your team succeeds in delivering a project where your contributions were commendable. However, in most successful parties, the team does not pay heed to your work and strengths. This makes you question your credibility. Impostor syndrome can influence a person’s psychology for all the wrong reasons. Therefore, we must address it with the first doubt of self-worth.

Reasons for Experiencing Impostor Syndrome

Lesser crowd

Earlier, women never came to the forefront of an organization. Hence people in the workplace never understood the need to appreciate women. Today, when the world brings in new women leaders, black women in top management, women pilots, officers, etc., it’s taking time for society to adjust to this positive change.

Biases

Mainly lack of roles and role models are the reasons for the bad feeling in women. Black and indigenous people suffer the worst as overall representation across all white-collar fields are shockingly low.

Microaggression

People often question others in lower jobs for their area of expertise just because they look a certain way or are from a minority community, which adds to a feeling of impostor syndrome.

Fitting in

Scared of being termed as incapable, people with impostor syndrome try to fit in the crowd. They secretly wish no one notices them, which fails them to bring out the best in themselves.

How to Deal with Impostor Syndrome

Learn how to deal with Impostor Syndrome in the following ways:

Convert the fear of self-doubt to a belief in yourself

It’s tough to find icons the same as you or from a similar background. Still, trust in your capabilities. 

No shame

It’s okay to feel what you feel. Don’t deny it. It is a thing and happens to many people. Speak up as and when the thought of self-doubt creeps in.

Focus on the positives

Self-doubt has the power to be of competititive advantage and can improvise on your weaknesses. So take the clue and head-on.

Prepare

Preparing for a presentation, an event, or an exam can take your stress away and can make you visualize success.

Pat yourself

For every little success, reward yourself. Seek and find out your answers. Build up your self-esteem.

Love yourself, and the rest will follow.

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