The 3 Benefits of Impostor Syndrome

It’s one of the great challenges for leaders young and old: Overcoming impostor syndrome.

But the often self-fueled notion that it’s just a matter of time before our ineptitude is discovered actually has three key benefits, psychologist Adam Grant writes in his best-selling book Think Again.

Impostor syndrome can:

1. Motivate us to work harder“If we never worry about letting other people down, we’re more likely to actually do so,” Grant writes. “When we feel like impostors, we think we have something to prove. Impostors may be the last to jump in, but they may also be the last to bail out.”

2. Motivate us to work smarter“When we don’t believe we’re going to win, we have nothing to lose by rethinking our strategy,” he writes. “Feeling like an impostor puts us in a beginner’s mindset, leading us to question assumptions that others have taken for granted.”

3. Make us better learners“Having some doubts about our knowledge and skills takes us off a pedestal, encouraging us to seek out insight from others.”

In essence, feeling unprepared and under-qualified doesn’t mean we actually are — and, in fact, might actually serve us well in the long term.  

Humility and intelligence require recognizing our shortcomings and are often great motivators to over-prepare and outwork our competition.

Realizing we might not know something or that we may not be the most brilliant person in the room doesn’t have to mean we’re insecure or that we lack confidence.

These feelings can inspire us to be more efficient and achieve what we couldn’t have otherwise.

We’re not trespassers if we’re in a room we don’t feel qualified to be in. In fact, we’re right where we should be — and our own self-doubt might be the motivators that extend our stay.