Earlier this year I was asked to speak to an international audience of businesswomen about imposter syndrome.

I was familiar with the content, had prepared ahead of time, and had practised my presentation, but as I waited for people to arrive, I felt anxious, my hands were sticky, and my heart was racing faster. I was filled with self-doubt… “What if I make a mistake?” What if no one thinks I have anything worth saying? Why was I even asked to do this in the first place? Surely there are people far more qualified than me to speak on this subject.”

Kind of ironic considering the topic of conversation, right?  Quite the contrary, in fact. It’s perfectly normal to feel this way, and it happens to most of us at some point. Normalizing imposter syndrome is half the battle.

So how did I get through my presentation?  Well, here are a few tips that helped me that you might like to use:

• Positive mindset – instead of worrying about how I would perform in front of an audience, I focused on the people I would meet and engage with.

• Positive self-talk – instead of wondering why I had been asked to hold the session, I said to myself, ‘Vic, you have something interesting to say and maybe by sharing it, you’ll be able to help someone who is going through a tough time’.

• Mindfulness – I didn’t have much time to go for a walk, but I did have some time to practice deep, square breathing. When I’m stressed out, I always find this helps me relax and focus.

• Visualization – in the same way a gymnast might visualize winning gold at the Olympics, we can visualize our achievements. So, I visualized the meeting.  I visualized interaction with my audience, lots of questions and positive feedback at the end.

• Perspective – what’s the worst that can happen? This can be a very effective question to ask yourself.  Is it the end of the world if no-one turns up?  If I forget a sentence halfway through?  If I need to (shock, horror) go to the bathroom? Of course not!

Ultimately, putting so much pressure on yourself creates a negative vicious circle that can lead to burnout or productivity drops. Beating yourself up and fixating on mistakes or flaws, not wanting people to know you’re out of your depth, isn’t healthy. It’s OK to not know. It’s OK to ask. OK to fail.

On the plus side, experiencing imposter syndrome from time to time indicates that you’re trying something new and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone. If you have something to prove, it means you are not complacent. And remember that when you question yourself, you tend to be more curious and open to new experiences. That sounds like a winning combination to me!