More than 70% of successful people have felt Imposter Syndrome at one point.

You don’t belong here.

You’re not good enough.

You got lucky.

They’re going to realize you aren’t that smart.

Ever heard this voice in your head? You’re far from alone. It’s called “impostor syndrome.”

• Do you chalk your success up to luck, timing or computer error?
• Do you believe “if I can do it, anybody can”?
• Do you agonize over the smallest flaws in your work?
• Are your crushed by even constructive criticism, seeing it as evidence of your ineptness?
• When you do succeed, do you secretly feel like you fooled them again?
• Do you worry that it’s a matter of time before you’re “found out”?

And even if you haven’t heard that voice in your head, someone you care about almost certainly has. It plagues successful women; Sheryl Sandberg wrote about it in her bestseller, Lean In.

I’ve posted a lot about how to be more successful. But the interesting thing about impostor syndrome is that you already are successful. You just have trouble accepting it.

Best to quietly accept it. Painless and stress free way

Actually, Eric has 3 recommendations of things to do:

• Focus On Learning: Forget appearing awesome. You can get better if you try, so focus onthat.
• “Good Enough” Goals: Stop trying to be prefect. (Yes, that was a typo. I’m not fixing it. It’s good enough.)
• Take Off The Mask: Talk to someone you think is facing the same issue. You’re not alone.

Imposter Syndrome is explained by psychologists by the Dunning-Kruger Effect.

Why do so many know-it-alls really know nothing while so many smart people are unsure of themselves? It’s a serious question. Bertrand Russell once said:

The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts.

Psychologists found an answer: it’s called the “Dunning-Kruger effect.” Basically, inept people don’t have enough experience to properly evaluate how little experience they have, so they think they’re brilliant when they’re not. (Think about the people at the beginning of every season on “American Idol.” Yup. Bingo.)

On the other hand, experienced people realize how often they’ve been wrong in the past and will sometimes second-guess themselves — even when they’re right. Jessica Hagy illustrated it perfectly like this:

And tons of very successful people you’re familiar with have voiced these feelings.

Albert Einstein:

…the exaggerated esteem in which my lifework is held makes me very ill at ease. I feel compelled to think of myself as an involuntary swindler.

Maya Angelou:

I have written eleven books, but each time I think, “Uh-oh, they’re going to find out now. I’ve run a game on everybody, and they’re going to find me out.”

Mike Myers:

At any time I still expect that the no-talent police will come and arrest me.

What’s even more ironic is that not only do very talented people often have impostor syndrome, but they are actually less likely to really be dishonest. People with impostor syndrome turn out to be more honest than average.

To counter Imposter Syndrome, 1) Focus On Learning

Drawing on the research of Carol Dweck, one study recommends focusing on learning instead of performance.

People with impostor syndrome often think they’re not smart enough. And they don’t think they can get smarter. So they focus on performance goals like, “How can I get that perfect score?” instead of learning goals like, “How can I improve?”

Focusing on improvement means you know you’re not perfect but you know you can get better. With that attitude, you can. And if you fail, hey, you learned something.

But focusing exclusively on performance goals means anything less than perfect is death. That’s incredibly stressful and pushes you to do things that are extreme, unhealthy andmaybe unethical.

To learn the neuroscience behind 4 rituals that can make you happy, click here.

Eric Barker's summary of how to overcome impostor syndrome:

• Focus On Learning: Forget appearing awesome. You can get better if you try, so focus onthat.
• “Good Enough” Goals: Stop trying to be prefect. (Yes, that was a typo. I’m not fixing it. It’s good enough.)
• Take Off The Mask: Talk to someone you think is facing the same issue. You’re not alone.

As Neil Gaiman said:

The moment that you feel, just possibly, you are walking down the street naked, exposing too much of your heart and your mind, and what exists on the inside, showing too much of yourself… That is the moment you might be starting to get it right.

So what’s the best first step?

Schedule an unmasking. Right now. Send an email to someone you think will understand and set a time to sit down and talk.

We all wear masks every now and then. It’s part of life. But from now on, if you’re going to wear one don’t do it because you’re an impostor — do it because you’re a superhero.