BUSINESS AMANDA CHALMERS
Amanda Chalmers: Photo by Dave Perry Photography
‘IMPOSTER SYNDROME’ CONSTANTLY STEPPING INTO NEW TERRITORY
We are delighted to bring you the next of our Business columns from local journalist and award-winning PR Amanda Chalmers. Amanda is a south Warwickshire-based writer, journalist and editor whose experience on newspapers and magazines spans three decades. Over the coming months Amanda will be taking a closer look at some of the topics that affect small businesses as well as offering some of her valuable top tips for PR.
76
direction, customer experience. There’s no handbook, no manager validating your progress, and no guaranteed path. That uncertainty can trigger the irrational belief that you’re “making it up as you go along” or that others are more qualified.
But far from being a ‘fraud,’ understanding these pressures helps you see that imposter syndrome is a disconnect between reality and perception and, frankly, just a normal response to an extraordinary challenge.
Overcoming imposter syndrome as a small business owner starts with recognising that the doubt you feel is not a reflection of your ability, but in fact a by product of building something that matters.
For many small business owners, the biggest barrier to growth isn’t funding, competition, or market conditions - it’s the quiet, persistent voice insisting you’re not “legitimate” enough.
The term ‘Imposter Syndrome’ was first coined by psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes in 1978. They wrote a paper called ‘The Imposter Phenomenon of High-Achieving Women,’ which was later shortened to the far more catchy “imposter syndrome” we use today.
Running a small business means constantly stepping into new territory: pricing, marketing, finance, leadership, creative
It’s important to remember that expertise isn’t perfection, it’s progress, experience, and the ability to solve problems. Your customers don’t need you to know everything, they need you to know more than they do and to care deeply about the outcome.
And if you’re reading this, that’s clearly already true!
Small business founders carry every role, every decision, every risk - which makes the internal pressure louder than it is for most people. Even the most successful founders occasionally feel the same way. This is why peer conversations are healthy, they can normalise the experience and reduce that sense of isolation.
LIVE24-SEVEN.COM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116
