I took this commission over the holidays and it really made me think a bit more about the notion of imposter syndrome. I had been using that term in casual conversation for years now. I reference it when discussing just about anything that I create and I doubt that it’ll fully go away anytime soon. Despite a growing list of accomplishments and dozens of satisfied clients, that devil on the shoulder still enjoys dropping the random “you’re not good enough”, “with this one, everyone will know you’re a hack”, and of course “you should just stop while you’re ahead.”
It’s also something that I’ve been hearing from several friends as well, so I know that it’s a relatable subject. Here’s what people don’t ever hear though… my mental reaction when I hear them explain that they suffer from it as well. “Wait, what? You? Imposter Syndrome? Are you nuts? Look at your accomplishments. This is absurd! You are amazing and your history backs it up. How can you possibly be this insecure? If I had even a sliver of your talent it would be amazing!”
I guess what I’m getting at, is that it’s easy to set the personal bar to an impossibly high standard. Like so many things, it’s rarely talked about though. We continue to trudge on through our self doubt, waiting on that moment where our validation comes from an outside party. We either move on and continue the endless loop of personal critique, or we embrace the idea that, yes, we are in fact, accomplished.
Sketchy Climbing 