Have you felt undeserving of the compliments you got? Did you ever doubt your accomplishment? Or simply felt like youโre not good enough? Itโs an unpleasant way to live with an inner bully, isnโt it? Well, youโre not alone. A lot of people go through these negative thoughts, a phenomenon called imposter syndrome. But how to defeat this Imposter Syndrome?
My breath tightened in my chest, my stomach lurched, questions pummelled my entire being, I was about to step on stage. What was nagging at me like my old Yiddish grandmother? I love and believe in the message and Iโm aย good public speaker, yet the fear that trembled through my body ripped me apart. All I could think about was what if they see me for the fraud that I feel I am.
Now, I was no fraud. Having spent decades working, 1000s of hours training, and even more than that living out the very words I was about to share, I knew that I could stand there and be present articulating the message the audience had come to hear.ย
So what was the problem?
Doubt. Doubt and Fear were the problems. Those nagging thoughts, โWhat if I look foolish?โ โWho am I to be sharing, anyway?โ
How many times have those thoughts or a variation of them coursed through your body? Perhaps during a sales call, an important boardroom meeting, or an interview for your dream job, the echoes of doubt and fear stream across your consciousness creating anxiety and lack of assurance.ย
Did you ever dream that the answer to defeating imposter syndrome would come from a childโs tale?
Let me remind you of the emperor who loved new clothes, and the swindlers who took the whole kingdom for a ride. What were the words that they used to reduce even the kingโs most trusted counselors? They would say to each one, including the king, โIf you donโt see the fabric, you are foolish and unfit for your position.โ Each one was so terrified of being โfound out,โ that none of them spoke up.
None of them except a child on the parade route. He was a game-changer! I want to be like that kid. That childโs message has reverberated through my life, teaching me many things.
โBe humble โ Not knowing something doesnโt make you a fraud, it makes you a student.โ โย Marie Forleo
What are they and how do they defeat imposter syndrome?
1. Know yourself
Remember how I began this article? Decades of work, 1000s of hours of training, a lifetime of living the talk, learn how to hold onto the effort and space you have taken to become that which you are. The child had nothing to lose, it wasnโt afraid of being โfoolishโ and โunfit.โ The child just was, the child saw what was true. See what is true about you!ย
Related: Traumatic Bonding: How A Narcissistic Relationship Is Similar To Stockholm Syndrome
2. Speak up
Amidst the crowd, the child raised its voice. Iโve learned to listen and discern the truth of those voices that come with the statements of self-doubt and fear. I have a strategy full of one-liners. I say back, โYup, I am afraid and Iโm going to show up anyway.โ โPerhaps, some of this confidence is a mask, that is okay, that gets to be here, too.โ โI am anxious.โ โI do want this job, life wonโt end if I donโt get it.โย
3. Pause
Donโt get caught up in the noise and focus on what is going on. Every one of us needs to learn how to pause, take a deep breath, and step forward discerning out what is really happening. Donโt take the proverbial swindlersโ voices as truth. Pause!
โItโs not what you are that holds you back, itโs what you think you are not.โ โย Denis Waitley
Beyond the message of the story, my work as a yoga therapist has taught me a few things, mainly getting into your body!
What? Yes.
Get into your body
How?ย
From a place of standing:ย
Bring your feet a little bit further than your hips distance apart. Press down through the soles of your feet. Not to the point of causing injury, but lock out your legs. Pressing down through the soles of your feet, lift through the top of your head.
FEEL your body in space. TAKE a deep breath. Arms are by the side of your body, not just hanging there. Bring intention into your arms. Lower your shoulders away from your ears. Push tips of fingers to the ground. BREATHE! Inhale in from the nose, exhale with the sound of โhaโ from your mouth. Repeat that a few times.
Notice shift in your body, in your being. Take your meeting, phone call, or interview from that space.
Related: 6 Yoga Mudras To Heal Common Ailments
From a place of sitting:
Place your feet down on the floor, about hips distance apart. Place your body about halfway in the seat, notice your sit bones in the base of the chair. Lift through the crown of your head, lower shoulders away from your ears.
Place hands on your knees or thighs. Closing eyes or leaving them open, take some breaths that are longer both in the inhale and even longer upon the exhale. Take your meeting, phone call, or interview from that space.
Related: Meditation For Beginners: Everything You Need To Know About Meditation
Learning how to be in your body, showing up authentically, standing in the excellence and the training of you, taking deep and long breaths, being honest, speaking the truth, are the tools that will defeat imposter syndrome and bring success into your life.ย
If you found the post helpful, let us know in the comments.
Written by:Elle Miller Originally appeared on: Addicted2success.com
Republished with permission.
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