No matter what you do at your place of work, the chances are high that you’ve suffered from a little to a substantial amount of “Imposter Syndrome” from time to time – an all-too-common phenomenon of consistently doubting yourself, your talents, your abilities and your accomplishments in your position.
This is a normal occurrence and it happens to all of us. But what happens when the doubt, insecurity and worry we feel about ourselves persist beyond the momentary, finite hesitation of Imposter Syndrome and begin impacting our performance and limiting our growth potential?
Worries and insecurities about our abilities, our age, our appearance, our mannerisms and even our engagement and leadership style can snowball into self-limiting beliefs that hold us back from exploring new opportunities, developing novel skills and growing in our careers.
The origin of these beliefs could stem purely from fear – whether it’s fear of being wrong, being embarrassed, making a mistake or losing a sense of control, or from negative experiences in and out of the workplace that have reinforced them.
Self-limiting beliefs are often driven by our upbringing, our culture, the society we live in and the experiences that shape us. They chip away at our confidence, preventing us from progressing, and turning into self-fulfilling prophecies that only serve to reinforce them.
They’re also entirely untrue, but they have a habit of sticking in our minds. Very often, we end up dragging them around with us, despite them serving no purpose nor benefitting us in any way.
If left unchecked, they can leave you feeling unfulfilled, unhappy and disengaged from your job – something that approximately 60% of people in the workplace suffer from according to the 2022 State of the Global Workplace Report.
The good news is that it’s possible to overcome and dismantle these self-limiting beliefs holding you back from reaching your goals in your career – but it will require consistent dedication and, at times, having hard, honest conversations with yourself.
What beliefs might be holding you back from growing in your career?
There are many reasons why we might find ourselves stuck in stifling, unproductive thought patterns that prevent us from putting ourselves out there and developing our skill sets. Regardless of what our beliefs are, they usually stem from fear – either a fear of something that could happen or a fear of something that’s already happened repeating itself.
This fear could stem from a conversation, a remark, feedback or commentary we’ve received about ourselves from people, especially authority figures at any point in our lives – it doesn’t have to have come from a manager or employer. It could have come from a parent, family member or teacher.
On a larger societal level, it could have been fed and reinforced through unconscious biases that still linger in outdated beliefs, attitudes and practices in different institutions, especially the workplace.
It could relate to your age, your gender, your appearance, your character and mannerisms or your ideas. “I can’t do this or volunteer and put myself out there for that because I’m afraid that my X/Y/Z will cause a negative or catastrophic reaction.”
Very quickly, these misconceptions snowball into self-limiting beliefs that become the very thing holding us back in our careers. Perception of reality becomes reality itself.
The most important thing you can do for yourself here is not to feel guilty or ashamed for having fears or self-doubts about your character or your abilities.
It’s more common than you might realise – a recent Gartner survey found that at least 50% of the leaders surveyed lacked confidence in their skills and abilities. This highlights the fact that self-doubt and self-limiting beliefs affect everyone, regardless of their position at their work.
How to dismantle these self-limiting beliefs
Before we dive into the “how” of learning to dismantle self-limiting ideas and beliefs, it’s first important to establish the “why” – the purpose. The purpose is not to dismiss these beliefs and feelings as invalid or inconsequential.
It’s about acknowledging them and the impact they’re having on your career growth and being able to recognise them for what they are – just beliefs, nothing more.
Define and articulate what’s holding you back
The first step to dismantling what’s holding you back is to know what’s holding you back. Having a clear understanding of every thought, idea and belief (whether it’s your own or someone else’s) that is or could be impacting your growth potential will allow you to determine what’s most affecting you and urgently needs to be addressed.
You can work with a professional here or do it by yourself – whatever makes you feel most comfortable. If you’re having trouble saying it aloud, write a list instead.
Understand the underlying fear driving it
Very often, it’s not necessarily the belief that’s directly holding you back, it’s the fear sustaining that belief that prevents you from changing, evolving or improving. So take some time to unpack that fear – what is it? Where does it come from? What’s its origin?
Putting a “face”, so to speak, to a certain fear can help you gain control over it. If it stems from a real-life experience like receiving negative feedback, ask yourself if that person was really in the position or the know to be making judgments about you and whether what they said was actually fair or accurate.
If you have a bad memory, such as feeling embarrassed or making a mistake in front of others, ask yourself if other people really saw it in the same light and to the same degree you did – chances are, probably not. And even if they did, do their opinions even matter? For one mistake you’ve made, you can probably count hundreds of times in which you excelled at what you did.
If it’s an inherent fear of something that could happen, question how likely it is that it would actually play out the way you imagine. Our fears can sometimes be rooted in scenarios that feel so real and probable to us, but, in reality, are unlikely to happen.
Visualise your worst possible scenario happening
Now, take the time to imagine these fears happening in real life – this can be tough, so be kind to yourself here. In the safety of your mind, allow yourself to visualise all the dire consequences that could happen should you choose to ignore your self-limiting beliefs.
Feeling embarrassed in front of co-workers, not knowing an answer or having an idea shot down, losing your sense of control over your work, being turned down or rejected in some way – whatever it might be, visualise it happening.
Visualisation can be a powerful tool for safely confronting fears and anxieties without having to confront them in real life and, in doing so, compartmentalise them. Recognise them for what they are – fears holding you back that you’ve proven you’re capable of overcoming.
Break down these beliefs through safe, gradual testing
Beyond dismissing your self-limiting beliefs, you can actively (but gradually) work to overcome them by associating them with new experiences and memories. It’s best to facilitate this slowly so that you feel safe and comfortable every step of the way.
Replacing old experiences you associate with a limiting belief with newer ones can also help with reframing that negative belief in your mind into a positive one. This change will feel liberating and definitive, as our brains can’t positively and negatively frame an experience at the same time.
Conduct a bit of “safe” testing within your role that relates to a fear you have. For instance, if you’re nervous about presenting in front of others and embarrassing yourself, ask a trusted colleague if they wouldn’t mind listening to you presenting and give yourself the freedom to make a mistake.
Incremental confrontations of whatever it is you fear can help you realise that experiencing it, in reality, is not nearly as bad as you imagined.
Seeing the physical evidence also really drives the point home in helping you to understand how limiting your self-beliefs can be – and that overcoming them can allow you to achieve incredible things in your job and career!