Impostor syndrome

Overview

Impostor syndrome is a psychological pattern in which, despite objectively having plenty of ability and achievements, you feel your success comes from luck or chance rather than skill, and you fear that someday the "real you" will be found out. Psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes proposed it in 1978.

Impostor syndrome isn't a formal mental disorder. It's a psychological tendency that many people experience to some degree. It's especially likely to show up when you enter a new environment, get promoted, or find yourself in the spotlight.

Question boxes and impostor syndrome

There's a pattern in which people who answer questions in a question box fall into impostor syndrome. You gain followers, you get more questions, and your answers start going viral. Objectively, it's a success. But you feel "my answers aren't that great," "they just happened to land," or "there are people who know much more, so should I really be the one answering?"

Impostor feelings get stronger especially when a specialized question comes in. "I'm not an expert, so is it okay for me to answer this?" "What if I say something wrong?" A paradox follows in which this fear lowers the quality of your answers. You lack confidence, so your answers turn vague, and vague answers make you lose even more confidence.

Living with impostor feelings

You don't need to "cure" impostor syndrome. If anything, having impostor feelings at all is a sign of humility and a drive to improve. The problem is when those feelings take over and make you hold back.

An effective approach is to record the facts. "This month I answered X questions." "This answer got X likes." "A sender sent me a thank-you message." Your feelings say "I'm nothing special," but the facts show "I'm giving value to a lot of people." When feelings and facts contradict each other, training yourself to trust the facts is the best way to deal with impostor syndrome.

You don't need to aim for the perfect answer. "Answer sincerely, from your own point of view." That alone is enough. A question box isn't an academic paper.