Wow, you know...I hadn't thought about this before, but you're onto something here. Sometimes our imposter syndrome really is just us getting in our own way. But looking back on my experience with writing, content strategy, and inbound marketing over the past ~3 years, I can see a similar pattern to what you describe with your filmmaking business: I was convinced that content marketing, content strategy, and customer research were the path to the mythical land of 6-figure freelancing. At one point, I was going to stop writing altogether and just do the strategy and customer stuff. And I always felt like I had NO IDEA what I was doing. (Because I didn't. HubSpot certifications don't count lol.)
And then I started writing my own stuff again and doubled down on Being The Writer...and I don't feel that way any more. I still struggle with the fear that I'm taking the wrong approach to being a writer, but not with doubt that being the writer is what I should do. It's scary in the sense of being pushed out of my comfort zone...but it's exciting, too.
Love this. Definitely resonates w/ me in regard to moving away from a passion for restaurants and toward health and wellness. I still think imposter syndrome can be wrong in the scenario that you doubt real skills that other people see in you, but agree imposter syndrome could be telling you something when it’s less about skill and more about passion b/c other people can’t feel whether you have that genuine passion burning inside of you in the same way they can witness the skills you doubt you have. We can put on a facade of passion that people might fall for (the lack of authenticity triggering imposter syndrome), but when people notice we’re skillful at something, I think that’s pretty hard to fake, even if we don’t realize/believe we have that skill. Might have something to do with the subjectivity of skill as something evaluated by our environment (so an employer wants to hire you bc they determine you’re great at XYZ even if you don’t believe it) vs. the objectivity of that real passion inside of us. I’m rambling but maybe we need to ask ourselves whether our imposter syndrome is passion-based or skills-based? With the former being a nudge to reevaluate our path, and the ladder being a nudge to work through our ego’s doubting voice
Love this Rob. I’ve always been a bit wary of what they call the Imposter syndrome (a man made up name to say the least). I believe its just a sign or a message from our higher selfs that we are barking up the wrong tree, and stop and go within and feel, sense and hear what our bodies are telling us. The body knows. I tap into my body when I feel something off and have feelings of anxiety, worry or doubt. My body tenses up and I know with what I am doing is not the right path. When I am doing something right that is my calling or purpose, I feel relaxed in the flow and just feels so easy to do, as if I’m meant to do it.
Wow, you know...I hadn't thought about this before, but you're onto something here. Sometimes our imposter syndrome really is just us getting in our own way. But looking back on my experience with writing, content strategy, and inbound marketing over the past ~3 years, I can see a similar pattern to what you describe with your filmmaking business: I was convinced that content marketing, content strategy, and customer research were the path to the mythical land of 6-figure freelancing. At one point, I was going to stop writing altogether and just do the strategy and customer stuff. And I always felt like I had NO IDEA what I was doing. (Because I didn't. HubSpot certifications don't count lol.)
And then I started writing my own stuff again and doubled down on Being The Writer...and I don't feel that way any more. I still struggle with the fear that I'm taking the wrong approach to being a writer, but not with doubt that being the writer is what I should do. It's scary in the sense of being pushed out of my comfort zone...but it's exciting, too.
This is some "WuWei" stuff right there. The Taoists, Confucianists and others, even ya boy Bruce Lee knew about it!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_wei?useskin=vector
Excellent
Love this. Definitely resonates w/ me in regard to moving away from a passion for restaurants and toward health and wellness. I still think imposter syndrome can be wrong in the scenario that you doubt real skills that other people see in you, but agree imposter syndrome could be telling you something when it’s less about skill and more about passion b/c other people can’t feel whether you have that genuine passion burning inside of you in the same way they can witness the skills you doubt you have. We can put on a facade of passion that people might fall for (the lack of authenticity triggering imposter syndrome), but when people notice we’re skillful at something, I think that’s pretty hard to fake, even if we don’t realize/believe we have that skill. Might have something to do with the subjectivity of skill as something evaluated by our environment (so an employer wants to hire you bc they determine you’re great at XYZ even if you don’t believe it) vs. the objectivity of that real passion inside of us. I’m rambling but maybe we need to ask ourselves whether our imposter syndrome is passion-based or skills-based? With the former being a nudge to reevaluate our path, and the ladder being a nudge to work through our ego’s doubting voice
Love this Rob. I’ve always been a bit wary of what they call the Imposter syndrome (a man made up name to say the least). I believe its just a sign or a message from our higher selfs that we are barking up the wrong tree, and stop and go within and feel, sense and hear what our bodies are telling us. The body knows. I tap into my body when I feel something off and have feelings of anxiety, worry or doubt. My body tenses up and I know with what I am doing is not the right path. When I am doing something right that is my calling or purpose, I feel relaxed in the flow and just feels so easy to do, as if I’m meant to do it.
Love this Rob. Totally resonates. Maybe imposter syndrome is not your mind overthinking things but revealing some intuitive truth.
Synchronicity. Captured it.
Great essay, I’d say bang on with your intuitions about imposter syndrome. Thanks for writing this.