Performance Psychologist, Dr Anna Waters‘ BAPAM blog this month looks at Imposter Syndrome – what is it, and what can you do about it?
After nailing your audition and landing a fantastic role, do you ever get that sinking feeling?
That now you have to deliver?
Do you start to think that everyone else would be better at this role than you? Why did they pick you? You must have just been lucky this time and soon they will find out that you are not good enough.
Fast forward to the first day of rehearsals … You start to feel like you just don’t fit in, that you don’t deserve to be there in the room with all these other performers, who clearly know what they are doing. Everyone around you seems to be better than you and confident. As the first night approaches, you begin to worry about living up to expectations?
Do some, or all of these thoughts resonate with you? If so, they could be your imposter syndrome talking.
Imposter syndrome (IS) is really common, with research suggesting that about 80% of people (Bravata et al., 2020), experience feelings of Imposter Syndrome at some point in their life. It seems to be especially widespread amongst those performing on stage and is something performers are always coming to see me to work on.
What is Imposter Syndrome?
Imposter Syndrome is a pattern of behaviour, rather than a clinical condition and was first coined in the late 1970s. It exists on a spectrum with some performers having very few experiences of it and others feeling almost crippled by it. It is often characterised by doubting one’s abilities, downplaying achievements and worrying about being found out as a fraud.
It is most common in very ambitious, high achieving people and especially among those who are prone to perfectionism. These traits are commonly found in those performing on stage, which could be why it is so prevalent in the world of performing arts.
Imposter syndrome as a double-edged sword
In my work as a performance psychologist, I have noticed that while preparing for a performance, many performers’ patterns of thinking and beliefs align with the patterns of thinking associated with Imposter Syndrome.
Let’s use an example to bring this to life. Imagine you get a call to say you have an audition/important performance in a week’s time.
Would any of these ring true for you around your preparation?
- Aiming for the perfect performance
- Obsessing over minor details
- Expecting consistently flawless performances
- Avoidance of trying new things for fear it won’t be perfect
- Not acknowledging and celebrating success, as always moving on to the next performance
Do any of these resonate with you?
If so, the same things that may be pushing you to be ambitious and successful, may leave you struggling with Imposter Syndrome.
This is because you are aiming for the impossible, leading you to feel like you never achieve what you are striving for.
The thing is, nothing is ever perfect. No one is able to deliver consistently flawless performances.
Confidence
Confidence is built through demonstrating that we can perform, or master something. If you never feel like you are performing successfully because you are constantly striving for perfection, you will not be truly building your underlying confidence. Your confidence will fluctuate depending on how you feel that day.
Many high-profile performers have opened up about their experiences of Imposter Syndrome including Olivia Coleman, Lupita Nyong’o, David Tennant, Ellie Goulding, Antonio Pappano and Vilde Frang.
Tom Hanks, highlighted how it feels perfectly:
No matter what we’ve done, there comes a point where you think, “How did I get here? When are they going to discover that I am, in fact, a fraud and take everything away from me?”
As we can see, many hugely successful performers still feel worthless despite their success.
For me, it is important to think about how to harness the positive aspects of imposter patterns of thinking and behaviour. To manage them more effectively and so, be able to deliver your best performance.
At the same time, it is imperative as a performer that you build value in yourself, building your self-esteem and your confidence so that even when a performance isn’t perfect, you know that you are where you should be.
Here are a few suggestions you can try to combat Imposter Syndrome:
1. Recognise Imposter Syndrome is happening – and choose to do something about it.
2. Develop a sense of feeling valuable now – just as you are. This instantly gives you power.
3. Be proud of yourself when you do your best, even if you made a mistake.
4. Reach out to others – making a connection can help manage feelings of isolation.
5. Notice if you are engaging in safety behaviours – Safety behaviours are used consciously, or unconsciously, as we attempt to prevent fears from coming true and to feel more comfortable in situations we are anxious about. Some common safety behaviours and how to deal with them are:
- Over practice – acknowledge it when it happens and take time to rationally plan your practice and preparation. Challenge any beliefs around needing to practice more than others.
- Procrastination – notice if you are procrastinating and explore your motivations for not starting. Do you fear it will not be perfect because you do not know how to practice effectively? Or because the practice will be hard work? Or is it something else entirely? Be ready to manage the usual distracting thoughts that are likely to pop into your head, before you start to practice. Make things easy on yourself. Have a really easy first step and just get started.
6. Part of the Imposter Syndrome model (Clance & O’Toole, 1988) suggests following a performance, performers can be quick to discount positive feedback. These suggestions can help:
- Celebrate your success. Write it down and make it visible.
- Do a post-performance review after each performance. Note down a couple of things you were happy with, a couple that didn’t go so well and your key learning point to take into your next performance. Then draw a line under the it and move on, taking confidence from what went well.
7. Accept trust and support from those who truly care about you.
References
Bravata, D. M., Watts, S. A., Keefer, A. L., Madhusudhan, D. K., Taylor, K. T., Clark, D. M., Nelson, R. S., Cokley, K. O., & Hagg, H. K. (2020). Prevalence, predictors, and treatment of impostor syndrome: A systematic review. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 35(4), 1252–1275
Clance, P. R. and O’Toole, M. A. (1988). The imposter phenomenon: An internal barrier to empowerment and achievement. In E. D. Rothblum and E. Cole (Eds.), Treating Women’s Fear of Failure. New York: Haworth Press.
Dr Anna Waters
With over 20 years expertise supporting the performance and mental health of performing artists and athletes, Dr Anna Waters has been fortunate to work with prominent classical musicians, opera singers, ballet dancers, recording artists, stand-up comedians and actors. She has enjoyed working with national music conservatories, ballet companies and television companies.
Anna loves drawing on her experience of both the performing arts and sporting worlds to help facilitate her work with her clients. She believes that there are many similarities between both arenas, with performers being talented and ambitious people, whose lives are spent working towards big events. Where each day is filled with training, practice, and preparation for the next big event, where they are required to consistently deliver their best performance under the scrutiny of the world.
With a strong academic background, including a PhD in applied sport psychology, Anna spent seven years working alongside Professor Steve Peters sharing The Chimp Model ideologies. This combined with her sport psychology backgrounds forms foundations to her work.
Anna is a Chartered member and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and is registered as a practitioner with British Association for Performing Arts Medicine (BAPAM).