For people who want regular personal or professional development advice from a qualified executive coach.
Imposter Syndrome: Maybe It's Not You?
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You would be amazed how many of the brilliant people I coach secretly admit that they feel like an imposter. This isn't a surprise. It's something called the Expert Trap (or Metacognitive Awareness). The more you know about a complex subject, the more you realise it is, well, complex. Which means you are more aware how hard it is to understand, which makes you realise you don't know it all. Whereas, someone looking in from the outside sees none of the nuance, so they underestimate how much there is to know. Ignorance is bliss and all that. But let's say you did feel like you had some mastery over your work. You did have experience and knowledge and competence. But now you are feeling like you don't. In situations like this, it might well be that the system (or environment) has changed, rather than you have become less able. But you feel it more like a beginner and you question yourself. If this happens, the instinct is right. You are recognising signals that the way you work isn't working. But the job to be done is to understand what has changed in the system, not what has changed in you. Have a great day, Stephen -- If you’re curious whether coaching could help you find more clarity or direction, book a free 15-minute Clarity Call and we’ll explore it together. If you want help to think about where problems might be arising in your organisation, try my Complexity Pressure Check. For anything else, hit reply. I answer every email personally. |
HeRO Chronicles
For people who want regular personal or professional development advice from a qualified executive coach.
STEPHEN LOCK EXECUTIVE COACH I'm going to tell you about how to aim for and work towards some big goals in life. Finding My Misogi Misogi (miss-oh-gee) is one of those Japanese concepts that means something almost entirely different, but still useful, when it is translated in the West. Originally it refers to a Shinto ritual of purification with water. Imagine people praying under waterfalls and you have a good idea. But in the West it has come to mean something more like a grand challenge....
STEPHEN LOCK EXECUTIVE COACH This week I am thinking a lot about how our emotions can sometimes be unhelpful at work. On Being An Adult At Work I am working on something new at the moment. Well, rather, I am figuring out the common thread that connects all of my work. You see, I help people through coaching, mentoring, teaching, training and continuously improving. Sometimes that is remote, sometimes in person. Often with individuals, but also with teams and groups. At the end of last week, I...
STEPHEN LOCK EXECUTIVE COACH Welcome to the first of my slower newsletters. Let me know what you think of the new format. Today I'm going to share some thoughts on non-hierarchical ways of working and why it can be hard to get right. Amateur, Organisational Philosophy One of the major trends in organisations is to move away from hierarchical, directive models of leadership, towards non-hierarchical, collaborative models. This is particularly evident in knowledge work, which is increasingly...