Signs You Might Recognise.
You put success down to luck, timing, or other people, never your own ability. You downplay what you've done before someone else can. You quietly wait for the moment everyone realises you're not as capable as they think.
If any of that lands, you're not broken and you're not alone. It has a name, and more importantly, it has a way out.
Why This Happens.
Most of the time it has nothing to do with actual ability. It comes from comparing your internal experience, all your doubts and second-guessing, against everyone else's polished exterior. You never see their doubt, so you assume you're the only one carrying it.
Add in a stretch of feeling stuck, going through the motions rather than actually engaging, and confidence erodes even further without one single bad thing having happened.
What's Helped Me and the People I Talk To.
Small, repeated proof beats a single confidence boost every time. Naming one thing you did well without immediately explaining it away. Getting clear on what you actually value, rather than what looks good, and letting that guide a decision at work for once.
None of it is complicated. It just has to be done on purpose, because it won't happen by accident.
I write about this because feeling stuck doesn't stay in one part of your life. Mine showed up as low mood and going through the motions for six years, work included. The way back was the same inner work wherever it showed up, not a separate fix for each area.
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