This document discusses imposter syndrome from the perspective of a conference speaker. It begins with the speaker telling a personal story about feeling anxious, out of place, and like their success was due to luck rather than ability. It then defines imposter syndrome as a psychological pattern involving doubts about one's accomplishments. It notes that 70% of people experience it, especially in new environments. Key traits include fear of asking for help and seeking validation. Common expressions are disregarding code reviews and working late. Four "horsemen" that fuel imposter syndrome are identified as self-doubt, perfectionism, anxiety, and fear of failure. Ways to combat imposter syndrome include focusing on facts over feelings, saving positive feedback, stopping

1. © BJSS Ltd. 2020 Commercial in Confidence
IMPOSTOR SYNDROME IN THE IT WORLD FROM A
CONFERENCE SPEAKER’S PERSPECTIVE
Antonio Cobo - @Mind_of_AC

2. LET ME TELL YOU A STORY…
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3. @Mind_of_AC
FEELING ANXIOUS OUT OF PLACE
WORKING LATE DEPRESSED
OTHERS ARE AMAZING I’M ONLY BEING LUCKY

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INTERNAL CONFERENCE DAY

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6. LET’S LEARN MORE
• Pluralsight Scott Hanselman’s course
• Submit ideas not talks
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8. YOU SUBMITTED YOUR TALK LIKE I DID
THE PROGRAM COMMITTEE THINK IT WILL BE GREAT
SO DON’T WORRY, IT WILL BE GREAT
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9. ALL THIS TIME I WAS FEELING LIKE A FRAUD
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10. HAVE YOU EVER COMPARED YOURSELF WITH OTHER
TEAM MEMBERS AND FELT LIKE A FRAUD?
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11. HAVE YOU EVER FELT UNWORTHY OF YOUR JOB
PROMOTION?
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12. HAVE YOU EVER DOUBTED OF YOUR SUCCESSES?
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13. DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO COULD HAVE
ANSWERED “YES” TO ANY OF THOSE QUESTIONS?
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14. IMPOSTOR SYNDROME
It is a psychological pattern in which one doubts one's accomplishments and has a
persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a "fraud”.
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15. OCCURRENCE
70% of individuals experience impostor syndrome at least once in their lives
• New environment
• New city
• New university
• New company
• New country
• Underrepresented gender or ethnicity
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16. TRAITS OF IMPOSTOR SYNDROME
• Afraid (or feel shame) to ask for help
• Having an unfinished project cause it’s not perfect
• Can’t start a project cause don’t know how to start (procrastination)
• Other people are talented, I am just lucky
• Looking for external validation
• Disregarding positive feedback and only looking for negative feedback
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17. EXPRESSIONS OF THE SYNDROME
“I have been coding more than 20 years, my code is good, no need to review it”
“You want us to Opensource this… what if they find bugs?”
“I’ll go home later, just let me finish this” (most evenings)
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18. FOUR HORSEMEN OF
IMPOSTOR SYNDROME
• Self doubt
• Perfectionism
• Anxiety
• Fear of failure
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19. SELF DOUBT
• You feel you will never know enough
• Constantly seeking out training or certifications to improve or succeed
• Being in the role for some time but feeling you don’t know “enough”
• Feeling pressed to work harder and longer to prove your worth
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21. PERFECTIONISM
• Do you feel like your work must be 100% perfect, 100% of the time?
• Setting excessively high goals for yourself, and when not reaching it you
experience a major self-doubt.
• Having difficulty delegating… because it will not be perfect
• Success rarely satisfying, I could have done better!
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22. BINARY THINKING OF IMPOSTOR SYNDROME
PERFECT OR BAD
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23. PERFECTION IS THE ENEMY OF GREAT
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24. FEAR OF FAILURE
• Asking for help reveals their playing everyone
• Not applying for a job unless you meet every single requirement
• After being faced with a setback your confidence goes low with a feeling of shame
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25. ANXIETY
• Isolating from others
• Trouble sleeping
• Working more hours
• Reducing social life
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26. HOW DO I FIGHT IT?
• Facts vs feelings
• Save the positive feedback and check it from time to time
• Stop comparing
• Have someone to talk to
• Set yourself goals and deadlines (step by step)
• Be kind to yourself
• Walk (maybe with music)
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27. REMEMBER YOU ARE YOUR WORST CRITIC
YOU DESERVE YOUR SUCCESS
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28. IT IS LIKE A POISON…
A LITTLE BIT WILL HELP YOU DEVELOP IMMUNITY
AND BE BETTER
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