1. A Nerd Girls presentation
The
Imposter
Syndrome
The
Imposter
Syndrome
Jennifer stevenson
Sr digital advisor
Microsoft digital advisory Services

2. Gabriella Davis
Credit & acknowledgement
Original content and presentation by Gabriella Davis, Technical Director of The Turtle Partnership, was
delivered @ IBM’s CONNECT 2017 IN SAN FRANCISCO, CA.
Gabriella is a co-founder of the nerd girls group. Nerd Girls is made up of women in technology-related
fields, who CAME Together after recognising the small number of women attendees at technical conferences,
to provide support and encouragement to women across the technical
conference-going community. The group focuses on inspirational topics that
promote empowerment, personal development and mentorship.
Gabriella Davis has more than 20 years of global experience within the
collaborative and social technology space and is a recognised social
software expert. In 2016 Gabriella had the distinction of being one of the
first recipients of IBM’s Lifetime Champion award for social business.
Gabriella’s current portfolio of expertise includes - design, development,
deployment and administration of collaborative and social infrastructures,
single sign-on solutions, Security and privacy strategies, and the secure
utilisation of IoT technologies.

3. JENNIFER STEVENSON
Jennifer Stevenson has over 20 years of international experience focused on the enhancement of the human
experience through the purposeful and intelligent use of intuitive, immersive and inclusive technologies.
Jennifer is currently a Senior Digital Advisor with Microsoft’s Digital Advisory Services, where she focuses
on helping Microsoft’s Retail & Consumer Goods customers evolve their digital Retail Experience strategies.
Jennifer actively promotes the importance and relevance of building a Connected Consumer Experience that
delivers end-to-end value, to both retailer and consumer.
Jennifer is a frequent speaker on the topics of: Women in Technology, the
Evolution of the Enterprise Architect, the Power of Mentorship, Creating
Compelling Digital Stories, Collaborative Empowerment, Collective Knowledge,
the Connected Experience, Cultural Change Management, the Future of Work and
successful Digital Business Transformations. In addition, as Jennifer becomes more
involved in the Retail sector and works to build out her Digital Retail footprint,
she has been engaged to speak on the topics of… The Connected Consumer
Experience, Digital Retail Technologies – Now & Next, and Microsoft’s Digital
Retail Point of View.

4. storytellers
Gabriella Davis - Technical Director, The Turtle Partnership
Maureen leland - Chief Architect, IBM Connections AppDev
DEVIN OLSEN - Senior Consultant, RedPill Development
Kathy brown – senior consultant, psc
Jennifer stevenson – sr digital advisor, Microsoft
TONY HOLDER – Sales manager (na), panagenda

5. also known as fraud
syndrome or the impostor
experience, is a concept
describing individuals who
have an inability to
internalise their
accomplishments and have a
persistent fear of being
exposed as a "fraud"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impostor_syndrome
Imposter Syndrome

6. I’m supposed
to be the
expert at this
I have no
idea what
I’m doing
So much
pressure!
1st JOB
career
End of 1st JOB
How did I
swing this
new job?
2nd JOB

7. Own & Embrace It
Understanding that
some of your
behaviours are
driven by Imposter
Syndrome allows
you to adjust and
adapt
Gabriella Davis

8. Maureen leland
Things that are easy for us make us
feel of less value. The better you
are at your work, the easier it is and
as others talk about struggling you
can feel like more of an imposter.
Challenging yourself and meeting
those challenges helps to
strengthen confidence and feelings
of success
Challenge Yourself & Keep Moving Forward

9. You don’t have to be the expert on
everything. Attempting to bluff your
way through a piece of work because
asking questions feels like failure will
lead to failure. Ask questions and
learn and if no-one else knows the
answer then you’ve identified a
problem in the project plan
Say “I Don’t Know” & Ask Questions
DEVIN OLSEN

10. Talk To Others About It
Everyone suffers from Imposter
syndrome to one degree or
another. Without turning every
conversation into a therapy
session, be prepared to
acknowledge to others after
an event that you felt
challenged by it or that you
are challenged but confident
doing something new
Kathy brown

11. Hand Out Praise
TONY HOLDER
Saying “thank you” or
acknowledging someone else’s
work makes that person feel
good, makes you feel good and
can change the dynamic in a
group. If people are supporting
and recognising each other’s
work there’s more
opportunity for open
communication and less for
things to go wrong

12. “Write Down All The Good Things”
Jennifer stevenson
Imposter syndrome is very much about highs (ego) and lows
(imposter). By recording and storing all the successes and
thanks, no matter how small, you will find it easier to fight
the imposter. You’ll also find it easier to stand on those
achievements when talking to others

13. THANKS FOR LISTENING
REMEMBER… COMBATING THE Imposter
Syndrome BEGINS WITH ACKNOWLEDGING YOUR
ACCOMPLISHMENTS, LEARNING FROM SETBACKS
AND MEETING CHALLENGES HEAD ON
DON’T LET THE ‘LITTLE VOICE’
DROWN OUT THE BIG ROAR INSIDE!

14. Help us support Nerd Girls. Money raised
from our Zazzle store goes towards
funding badges and stickers for events
around the world!
http://www.zazzle.com/nerdgirlsgroup