Feeling Like an Imposter

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When my employer StructionSite was acquired by DroneDeploy, Matt, our CEO, became a General Manager. When DroneDeploy’s CMO was laid off, Matt filled the role.

Matt’s background is in construction, then tech sales, before starting his own company. While he’s had experience with marketing being a founder, he’s never held a marketing position before.

I asked him if he felt imposter syndrome when he started his new role as a Marketing executive. He replied with a resounding, “Yes.” He told me that he always feels imposter syndrome, he just learned to deal with it.

In the past, I felt a strong sense of imposter syndrome. I felt imposter syndrome as a freshman at Waterloo. I felt imposter syndrome when I led a twenty-person team to organize a conference. I felt imposter syndrome when I first started writing.

In each experience, I felt like I was out of my element. Yet, these have been some of the highest growth experiences for me. Repeatedly feeling like an imposter made me realize I could reframe it as a sign of a high-growth situation. If I don’t feel like an imposter, it’s unlikely to be a situation where I can grow.