Thread by @beeonaposy, Let's talk about imposter syndrome in tech -- specifically, ways we can [...]

Let's talk about imposter syndrome in tech -- specifically, ways we can combat it better, both individually and as a community (a thread)

Imposter syndrome is "a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist despite evident success" [HBR].

Imposter syndrome has become common -- researchers have estimated that 70% of the population has experienced signs of imposter syndrome at some point during their lives.

It's been a buzzword in tech, and particularly in my field (data science). I've written more about why this might be ( https://caitlinhudon.com/2018/01/19/imposter-syndrome-in-data-science/), but today I'd like to focus on ways we can make it better (all based on personal experience).

Imposter Syndrome in Data Science

Thoughts on why imposter syndrome is so prevalent in data science, how I deal with it personally, and ways we can encourage people who are feeling the impact.

https://caitlinhudon.com/2018/01/19/imposter-syndrome-in-data-science/

Let's start with how we can help our own feelings of imposter syndrome:
1. Track your wins: @lara_hogan has a donut manifesto ( https://larahogan.me/donuts/ ) in which talks about celebrating (and documenting!) wins with donuts, which is a great way to focus on the progress you've made.

Donut Manifesto | The importance of donuts

The importance of celebrating your achievements

https://larahogan.me/donuts/

2. Consider your perspective: Do you know why the grass is greener on the other side? It's because when you look down, you can see the dirt between the blades that the grass grows out of, and when you look at grass from the other side of a fence, that dirt isn't visible...

(cont..) It's the same idea with work. When I look at the amazing work that others have put out into the world, I don't see the Google searches, mistakes, and time it took to get there. End products often look like magic and hide the work it takes to build them.

3. Focus on positive feedback: If you need a confidence boost, focus on the things you've done right so far. I'm a big fan of LinkedIn reviews for this -- besides being useful to share, it's nice to read positive affirmation of all of the things you're great at.

4. Help others: There is *always* someone who is on a similar journey, but one or two steps behind you. Helping and teaching these folks forces you to learn things more deeply, is a nice way to give back (you can always give back!), and is a good way to see how far you've come.

5. Be realistic (and get started): We live in a time where technology is advancing very quickly, and it's unrealistic to expect that we could learn every new thing. I've found myself much happier after acknowledging this, and focusing one or two things I can learn *today*.

... Shifting gears, how can we better deal with imposter syndrome as a community? Some thoughts:

1. Don't fake it 'til you make it. We don't want to *be* imposters. Plus, if everyone is faking, it makes more people feel like imposters for *not* knowing everything. Not good!

2. Get comfortable with "I don't know": I love when senior folks admit that they don't know things because A) it's okay not to know things, B) I can trust that they won't BS me if they don't know a thing, C) sets a great example for others to admit if they're not sure of a thing

3. Don't feign surprise. Not everyone takes the same journey to get to a role, so not everyone learned things the same way that you did (or even learned the same things), and we can encourage learning by being okay w/ this. Check out @b0rk's write-up: https://jvns.ca/blog/2017/04/27/no-feigning-surprise/

No feigning surprise

https://jvns.ca/blog/2017/04/27/no-feigning-surprise/

4. More transparency: for me, this means tracking the things I'm learning publicly (

#DSLearnings) so that others can see an example of someone who doesn't know it all. I'm not paid because I know everything, I'm paid because I can learn, and I think that's worth acknowledging.

5. Compliment others: while pair programming earlier this year, a more senior engineer took the time to compliment my work, and mentioned a couple of things I could help him with(!!). I wasn't sure how I was doing, and this small affirmation gave me confidence to keep going.

That's it for now.

I'm going to be speaking about all of this and more at tonight's @theleaddev meetup in Austin. In the meantime, I'd love to hear from others -- how do you deal with your own imposter syndrome? What actions from others would help?

Here are the slides from my talk on imposter syndrome at tonight's @theleaddev Austin meetup, for anyone interested:

#leaddev https://www.slideshare.net/CaitlinGarrett1/unmasking-imposter-syndrome-115324703

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