Overcome Self Doubt

Has there ever been a time in your educational or professional career when you felt like you didn’t belong? Like you were pretending to be someone you are not? Or perhaps you felt insecure and questioned your own competence? These feelings are very common, and sometimes it causes us to doubt our skills, abilities, and accomplishments. Feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy can become so strong that it prevents us from applying to our dream job or asking for a promotion.

If you have ever felt this way or currently feel like this, please know that you are not alone. It is very common and completely natural to feel inadequate or to doubt ourselves from time to time. It happens to everyone, across age, gender, race, ethnicity, educational levels, and industries. But it is important to not let these feelings consume (control) us and prevent us from reaching new opportunities. Raising your hand, taking on a new project, applying for a new job, or asking for a promotion is tough but it’s only by pushing ourselves to take these leaps that we gain more experience and grow within ourselves.

So how can we overcome feelings of self-doubt and start reaching for those opportunities? Here are some steps you can take: 

Acknowledge your thoughts and feelings and put them in perspective.

Recognize when these feelings emerge and reframe your thinking. We all make mistakes and fail, but the important thing is to not give up. View challenges and mistakes as learning opportunities. Some questions to ask yourself on any project or task are: What worked well? What didn’t work? And what can I improve on? Use these moments as opportunities to grow, improve, and learn from.

Take time to self-reflect.

It’s important to reflect on your skills and abilities to appreciate how much you have grown. An article by Kristen Weir in an American Psychological Association publication, gradPSYCH, suggests making a realistic assessment of your abilities. Try writing down what things you are good at, and what areas might need more work. Doing this “can help you recognize where you’re doing well, and where there’s legitimate room for improvement” (Weir, 2013). Through self-reflection, you can learn to celebrate your accomplishments and acknowledge areas for growth.

Talk to a trusted friend or mentor.

Talking to a trusted friend or mentor, can help you realize that feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy are normal and that you are not alone. At different times in our lives, it might be hard to self-reflect and we become very critical toward ourselves. Talking to trusted friends and mentors can help us acknowledge and celebrate our personal growth and progress. 

Realize that no one is perfect.

Even the most successful and intelligent people in the world make mistakes and struggle with feelings of self-doubt. It’s completely natural to feel this way. Remember that everyone will have some skills they are better at than others and vise versa. This is what makes us unique. There will be good days and bad days, but the important thing is to not give up, keep trying, keep learning, keep growing. By doing this, we can overcome feelings of self-doubt and reach for new opportunities!