The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women: Why Capable People Suffer from the Impostor Syndrome and How to Thrive in Spite of It

If your company does require a public face, you may decline interviews and speaking engagements or designate someone else to be the out-in-front person.

But you also know that when you leave important things until the last minute, there’s greater chance that quality will suffer. On an unconscious level, Clance says, procrastination is a way to give yourself an out.

you already know that your pattern is there to keep you from being unmasked. But that’s not all it does. To get at the broader function of any pattern of behavior, you need to ask yourself three questions: What does this behavior help me avoid? What does it protect me from? What does it help me get?

Holding back can also take the form of what Clance and Imes refer to as “intellectual inauthenticity.” You remain silent in the face of opposing opinions.

If you work in a job or field where it’s impossible to remain safely under the radar, you have to find another way to take care of yourself. So you unconsciously adopt an ever-changing profile. As an impostor you feel like you have a big target on your back. What better way to dodge those you believe have overestimated your abilities than to make y

Plus, if you never really give it your best shot, you can always claim (if only to yourself) that you could have been a great writer, artist, leader, or lawyer—that is, if you’d really tried. Of course many impostors do try. Still, you may hold back in other ways, like taking yourself out of the running for promotions, shying away from honors class

By not finishing, you not only shield yourself from possible detection but you also effectively avoid the shame of being criticized. After all, if someone does question your work, your talent, or your expertise, you can always insist that it’s still in progress or I’m just dabbling.

Holding Back As a protecting device, holding back can take many forms. For example, if you’re not a fan of hard work, then you may try to skirt detection by doing precisely the opposite. Low-effort syndrome, as psychologists refer to it, is commonly seen among bright teenagers who steadfastly refuse to apply themselves. But adults use it too. You k

Never Finishing