A Marketer with Imposter Syndrome: is it ironic? (Not really)
In the past few years much has been said about mental health and its key role in our professional or personal lives. Therefore, I thought I could share my perspective and pass on my testimony of what it means, for me, to have Imposter Syndrome.
Hi, I’m Teresa! 🤪 I’m a Marketing & Communications Assistant at Damia Group Portugal. Last year, I started my professional journey as an intern here at the company, and now, I’m taking the leap and getting closer to what I aspire for myself — to be a great professional and someone that my team can trust. However, it’s not always easy to acknowledge my achievements when I have a tiny little voice inside my head constantly saying, “you’re not that good”.
What is Imposter Syndrome?
It’s not considered a mental disorder or classed as a medical by the WHO, nevertheless, it is commonly referred to as a mental phenomenon: a pattern of thoughts and feelings that we develop to cope with certain circumstances.
In other words, is when an individual doubts their skills, talents, or accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud.
This is undoubtedly a phenomenon associated with the younger generations, such as mine, and it’s obvious the preponderant part played by social media in its emergence. My generation grew up with a phone in our hand, we’re connected 24/7 and constantly scrolling through Instagram, TikTok, etc., bombarded with pictures from people who seem to live perfect lives, and have better bodies, jobs, and hobbies than us. It’s inevitable to not feel pressured or at least think that we’re not doing enough. (☝️ Fun fact, social media is one of my main working tools).
I do remember when I first started the internship, I was very young (I still am, and still learning) and, as my position and tasks require of me, I had to do a lot of design and creative pieces. 💡
In the early stages, there were moments when I felt insecure sharing my work, not because I didn’t try hard enough, but because I was afraid of getting feedback — if I was told it was no big deal or could be much improved, then that was a confirmation of “you’re not that good and eventually everyone will find out”. This is not true, of course, and with time I understood that, and I found ways to silence these thoughts. They may remain here, but now I choose not to listen to them.
These are the main lessons I’ve been learning on how to deal with it:
· You’re not alone. 🫂 If you talk about your experience with some of your coworkers, soon or later, you’ll find that many of them feel the same way as you. You are not the problem!!
· You are what you eat and how you move. At this point, explaining the importance of diet and exercise is unnecessary. Having a conscious lifestyle enables you to balance your hormones which impacts all aspects of your life. In my case, exercising has been helping me stop overthinking. 🏋️♀️
· Surround yourself with loving and caring people. If you can’t find them in your workplace, at least choose to spend time with friends and family with these qualities. Also, don’t forget to be this person to others, and show love and support to everyone around you — it will comfort them but more importantly, it will comfort you! 💙
· You are enough!! There are days when we don’t feel 100% productive, and it’s ok! Sometimes 60% is your best, or 40% or 80%, if you give your best, that’s enough. 💪
· YOU’RE NOT YOUR WORK!! Your job is just a small fraction of who you are. You’re a friend, a sister/brother, a daughter/son, and an individual with dreams, goals, and hobbies other than your job. Restricting your identity to one part of it neglects who you are as a whole! Find activities you love and spend as much time doing them as possible. 💙
Our purpose here is to enjoy the ride and make the most of the little things. Living with the fear of being an imposter doesn’t mean we’re really imposters, it means we’re not really living.
……
About Teresa Marcelo:
Teresa is our newest Marketing girl who has been helping us with our company’s communication.
She started her professional path as an intern but soon won our hearts and today she’s our Marketing and Communication Assistant.
With her artistic side, some call her the hipster of the company — stylish, irreverent, and disruptive with a big desire to do and learn more. The whole team loves working with her and she’s not only a co-worker we can always rely on but also a friend with an incredible professional evolution.
Don’t be shy, connect with her on LinkedIn and say Hi! 👋
About Damia Portugal:
We are an international innovative IT recruitment company with over 25 years of experience working across all levels, from support right up to executive board level, with our HQ based in the UK.
We came to Portugal with the promise to shake up the market and redefine how one engages with clients. Our core goal is to develop relationships across the market, and offer a disruptive (but positive!) approach with both clients and candidates, always based on open and transparent communication.
We take the stresses out of recruitment and engage the right professionals who will excel in your organization.
We use out-of-the-box sourcing techniques.
We are innovative, disruptive, transparent, and relaxed.
We came to the market to do it differently and we love it!
