Louisa Daley speaks to event professionals and coaches about imposter syndrome to understand how we can change its narrative and impact

Imposter syndrome – it seems to be one of the industry ’ s biggest pain points . The majority of eventprofs ( myself included ) have experienced it . If they haven ’ t , they know someone who has .

To understand what imposter syndrome is , as well learn how to manage it in a healthy way , I reached out to a range of coaches and event professionals including Adele Hawkes , communications director , Salesforce ; Benedicta Asante , founder of Events 101 ; Craig Mathie , managing director at Bournemouth 7s ; Naomi Hollas , founder of Event Grads ; and Sallie Coventry , founder of Coaching + and integrated coach therapist .

What does it feel like ?

Imposter syndrome is so unique to everyone , it ’ s often difficult to define , or even pinpoint when it ’ s occurring . However , it ’ s also very common . Hawkes tells me : “ About 70 % of individuals experience

imposter syndrome at least once in their lifetime .”

Across the board , when asked to explain what imposter syndrome is , the panel of eventprofs all identified similar feelings .

“ Imposter syndrome is a nagging inner voice that casts doubts on your abilities and efficacy , and makes you question any success you might have ,” says Hawkes . “ It ’ s a feeling that you are a fake , a fraud , that you are out of your depth , or even a feeling that you don ’ t belong ,” she adds . Coventry agrees and labels it as “ a feeling of not being good enough , or not being worthy ”.

There are also different types of imposter syndrome , as Hollas points out . “ I resonate most with The Superhero – one who overworks to make up for how inadequately they feel , and The Perfectionist – one who is never happy with their work , and who sees flaws instead of strengths ,” she explains .

“ Imposter syndrome comes down to one ’ s perception of oneself ,” adds Asante .

Industry impact

Imposter syndrome can not only appear in your personal life , but also in your professional life , which Mathie draws attention to . “ To me ,

“ Imposter syndrome has no correlation with your capabilities . It ’ s just a story you are telling yourself , and you can change the narrative with a little help .”

– Adele Hawkes

imposter syndrome is not being seen as a credible expert ,” he says . After all , there are so many roles we do daily , this can leave some eventprofs feeling like they can ’ t be experts in all of them . But more often than not we are doing ourselves a disservice .

There is no straightforward path into the events industry , which may cause imposter syndrome to be more common for us . “ The events industry is a creative and fluid space , which is amazing from a production and experiential point of view , but sometimes it misses the formal structure of other industries ,” says Mathie .

For example , some eventprofs may have event management degrees , and others will not , and this lack of structure may leave individuals questioning and comparing their capabilities to others , who have perhaps been in the industry longer .

As an event graduate , this is something Hollas acknowledges . “ Students and graduates are often assumed as being young with little experience , which is not the case ,” she says . “ Degrees and education