I have Imposter Syndrome. What is it and how can you manage it?

2. An Imposter’s Journey
Into InfoSec
@stuhirstinfosec

3. Disclaimers;
I like memes.
I don’t take myself too seriously.
I have Imposter Syndrome.
@stuhirstinfosec
#imposter-syndrome

4. Who Am I?
@stuhirstinfosec

5. What is Imposter Syndrome?
@stuhirstinfosec
SHOW OF
HANDS
PLEASE!!!
#imposter-syndrome

6. What is Imposter Syndrome?
@stuhirstinfosec
“I don’t deserve
to be here”
“I’m lucky”
“I’m out of my
depth”
“I feel like a
fake”
“I’ve bluffed my
way into this”
“I’m going
to get ‘found
out’ soon”

7. What is Imposter Syndrome?
@stuhirstinfosec
Impostor syndrome (also known as impostor
phenomenon, impostorism, fraud syndrome or
the impostor experience) is a psychological pattern in
which an individual doubts their accomplishments and
has a persistent internalised fear of being exposed as
a "fraud"

8. @stuhirstinfosec
THE 5 TYPES OF
IMPOSTER
#imposter-syndrome

9. The Perfectionist
@stuhirstinfosec
You set your
goals too high -
when you don’t
reach them, you
think you’re a
failure

10. The Superman
@stuhirstinfosec
You work crazy
hours to make
up for your
perceived ‘lack
of ability’

11. The Genius
@stuhirstinfosec
The idea that by
having to work
hard at
something, that
in itself is failure
Should you
expect things to
be ‘easy’?!

12. The Individualist
@stuhirstinfosec
That if you have
to ask for help,
you’ve already
failed
“I can do this
myself!”

13. The Expert
@stuhirstinfosec
You’ve ‘tricked’
your way into
your job and will
be ‘found out’ at
some point
You’re waiting
on the ‘tap on
the shoulder’!

14. What Is It Connected To?
• Family expectations
• Overprotective parent(s) or legal guardian(s)
• Graduate-level coursework
• Racial identities
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Lower trait self-esteem
• Being a perfectionist
• Excessive self-monitoring, with an emphasis on self-worth
@stuhirstinfosec
#imposter-syndrome

15. Why is Imposter Syndrome so prevalent in
Security/Tech?
@stuhirstinfosec

16. @stuhirstinfosec
SECURITY
& TECH
ARE
HARD!

17. @stuhirstinfosec

18. @stuhirstinfosec

19. @stuhirstinfosec
It’s taken me 3+ years
just to be ‘ok’ at AWS

20. @stuhirstinfosec
BUT I QUESTION WHETHER I KNOW WHAT I’M
DOING AND WHETHER IT’S GOOD ENOUGH!
Decided to create a new role in
the company to manage AWS
Security across 4 brands……

21. Of course it’s not just all
about ‘products’ or
‘solutions’….
@stuhirstinfosec

22. @stuhirstinfosec
Incidents Compliance
FirewallsMalware Bots
Phishing
3rd Parties
Cloud
Pen Testing
Risk
Cryptography
IDS/IPS
Threat
Modelling
Networking
SIEM
Encryption
Secrets/Cred
s
Authentication
Access
Endpoints
Vulnerability
ManagementWAF
DR

23. @stuhirstinfosec
MODERN BUSINESS IS OFTEN
COMPLEX, TAXING, EXHAUSTING AND
DEMANDING
It doesn’t matter what your role
is….
#imposter-syndrome

24. WHAT ABOUT
PERSONAL LIVES?
@stuhirstinfosec

25. @stuhirstinfosec

26. @stuhirstinfosec

27. @stuhirstinfosec

28. @stuhirstinfosec

29. IMPOSTERS CAN
MAKE IT!!!
YOU CAN MAKE IT!!!
@stuhirstinfosec

30. WHAT CAN YOU DO
ABOUT IT?
@stuhirstinfosec
#imposter-syndrome

31. 1. Give up caring whether you are ‘right’ or ‘wrong’
2. The other people in the room often don’t know
the answer either
3. The worst outcome is nowhere near as bad as
you think it might be
4. Seniority is not a sign of someone being ‘better’
than you
@stuhirstinfosec

32. 5. People are learning from you
6. Keep learning
7. Understand that you will fail.
Repeatedly.
8. Remove ‘luck’ from your accomplishments
9. Try and embrace praise
@stuhirstinfosec

33. Is It Actually A Bad Thing?
@stuhirstinfosec
It’s not all
negative….

34. @stuhirstinfosec
CONTROL THAT EGO!

35. @stuhirstinfosec
STAY HUMBLE!

36. @stuhirstinfosec
“SYNDROME”?!
No wonder there is discomfort in suggesting you are an
Imposter!

37. What else has helped me?
@stuhirstinfosec
• Public Speaker
• Run Security Scotland Meet Up
• Run the AWS Security Slack Forum
• Regular LinkedIn ‘Brain Farter’
#imposter-syndrome

38. What has helped?
@stuhirstinfosec
Research!!!!

39. What has helped?
@stuhirstinfosec
Not enough hours
in the day!
#imposter-syndrome

40. Reading has helped me!
@stuhirstinfosec

41. My thoughts to leave you
with;
YOU can (and probably are
doing!) these things
YOU are awesome
YOU are helping shape our
online world for generations
to come
@stuhirstinfosec