The silent struggle of a small business owner: Imposter Syndrome - What I Wish I Knew Earlier
You may have never heard of the term impostor syndrome before, but it’s usually used a lot in entrepreneurial information, media and publications. I must say it’s not something that I’ve ever felt outside of the small business world.
Now, I’m just going to speak from the heart here, from my own knowledge and from my own experience of imposter syndrome and shine some light on how it can show, and how to manage those feelings. I’m definitely no psychologist I am by no means credited in this area, so everything discussed here is from personal experience and what I find works for me. I have no credentials in this area, but these are the things of work for me to help me overcome this feeling of not being good enough.
Impostor syndrome, also known as impostor phenomenon or impostorism, is a psychological occurrence in which people doubt their skills, talents, or accomplishments and have a persistent internalised fear of being exposed as frauds. reference.
Now I must say that I never really felt much of this before which is surprising, given my competitive nature of always showing or competing with my horses or sports teams, or even just with myself to be the best I could possibly be, so I was really surprised when I actually felt this truly for the first time. It wasn’t building a website, it wasn’t doing graphics and it wasn’t selling my jewellery online. It was taking photos which is such a strange thing because naturally, photography is such a creative outlet that yes, there are certain circumstances that make a good photo and a bad photo, but a large portion of photography is creative vision and expression. However, after I picked up my camera to capture images for a task I felt terribly, terribly not good enough.
I was always worried that I didn’t have the best gear or I didn’t know enough about my camera or I didn’t know if I was going to get the right shot for the person that I was charging hundreds of dollars to. I don’t know why I felt this way because I know that I was prepared as possible, know that I was charging what I was worth. I know that I had researched and practised and learnt and done all of the things in my power to make sure I delivered a quality result. Yet, I still felt like I was not good enough. This wasn’t something that was conveyed to me by my clients or any other photographer, I knew was a generalised feeling that I created myself, which is super strange again because it’s not something that I felt before I didn’t really know how to handle it. I’ve never been good at understanding why people would feel a certain way about a task that I think they were really good at. Now I find myself not only understanding more but being able to sympathise.
After identifying that what I was feeling was indeed, impostor syndrome. I had to find a way to remove that feeling because I didn’t want to hinder my ability to market, sell, and most importantly, deliver for the clients. So I set about working out how I can actually solve this problem and also press on this feeling when it inevitably arises again.
3 Anti-Imposter Activities
Plan & Prepare - Normally, I am pretty type A so planning and being prepared is something that comes naturally to me. However, I felt like I really needed to be additionally prepared to manage the intrusive thoughts. Being extra diligent to collect information about the clients Ill be shooting was really important to me so I could go in there with confidence and then in turn ensure they felt comfortable and enjoyed their shoot. Taking the time to outline my plans and make an effort to educate, plan and practice always makes me feel better, reminding me that again - I am good at this.
Review your past success - As small business owners we are always quick to achieve something and move on to the next idea without really giving your achievements and goals the celebration they deserve. Review your past work that you loved and better yet - review those raving client testimonials and reviews.
Take a breath - Yep, it’s that simple, we are busy being busy, am I right? You cannot achieve quality work stressed, worried and frazzled. It sounds crazy to say the best way to speed up is to slow down, but it’s the truth. Personally, I love walking my dogs, grooming the horses or doing a little bit of yoga in front of a blogilates video on the tv.
So how does this look weekly?
I believe that different parts of life require different actions. Here are my favourite tools that help me keep on top of my imposter syndrome at this very point in time:
My weekly planner from Whistle&Birch - It’s a great handmade, Australian owner small business that has so many customisable features to suit your brain and work week. I personally love the “study planner” layout as it gives me a weekly overview and a checklist on each 2-page spread. Enough structure and freedom for me to achieve my work and personal goals.
Taking time to update my client forward portfolio - Most people build a website and don’t realise that you actually get better at your job very quickly, meaning. you need to update and review your portfolio regularly. Even though this is another task people would usually say they don’t have time for, I look forward to regularly updating my design and photography portfolios to remind myself of the growth and achievements I make monthly and the impact I have on the clients Im lucky to work with.
Working not at your desk - “So where am I going to work Sheridan?”, you say. Anywhere but at your desk, not on your bed though. Recently I have been making an effort to work from our outdoor dining table, a local cafe and my new favourite spot: a designated co-working space. I always feel so much more professional and creative when I change up my workspace and utilise the flexibility that being a small business owner should allow us.
Does any of this sound familiar to you? Do you have some great ways how you manage this? Or maybe you don’t experience Imposter Syndrome and have a different view or struggle. I hope this little list from my brain this week helps you perhaps manage your thoughts and perhaps lift your spirits if it has reached you a just the right time.
