Imposter Syndrome: Creative Confidence Beckons
Updated: Sep 14
Imposter Syndrome. Makes my blood boil just saying the name.
Are you where I am/was (that voice still tries to take me out with each new adventure I undertake)?
Do you think you aren't good enough to be seated at the table?
Do you think you have to give away gobs of free stuff to be recognized and appreciated as an artist?
Do you shrink away from calling yourself an artist?
Do you watch and wait and hope someone will notice you and your work?
Let's chat- real, open, honest.
Let's take some time and work through these things together - after all, if I can help you - I can quiet my own demons. It’s funny, I was always that “artsy” kid. I loved to create from a very early age. I can remember in middle school; our task was to create our own books. We would get to write them, illustrate them, and bind them. My heart sang through the entire process. To bring the words to life through visuals and color, something I barely understood, fueled me. I threw myself into it at 1000% (My extreme Type A personality was still developing 😊 Now I work at a minimum of 10,000%) 😂. I can remember my mom looking over my shoulder saying, “You drew that?”. That wonder continued in my classmates as student after student came to me asking me to illustrate their books. In my little middle schooler mind, I knew I was loving the process but didn’t realize I had found my passion.
Fast forward to high school, and you would always find me in the art hallway. I focused on art in college…until I started listening to that little voice in my head that had been calling me out since middle school. You know the voice? That voice that tells you you’re not good enough and that you are an IMPOSTER. That voice took me out for 20 years. I packed my entire creative being away and believed every lie it whipered into my being -----and I died inside.
Fast forward 20 years. It took my kids, and their crayons, to coax “Middle School Lisa” out again. Middle School Lisa colored longer than the kids and loved to shade and highlight within the pages of the coloring books, coaxing the crayons to do her bidding. Those crayons are responsible for waking me up. “Middle School Lisa” is now “Middle-Age Lisa” that stares down imposter syndrome in herself, in her children, and in other artists that she meets. My foundational belief in anything that you are passionate about: If the calling is there, the talent will follow. Believe in yourself!
In the coming weeks we will tackle IMPOSTER SYNDROME together and learn strategies that I have used to quiet the roar. Don’t get me wrong, at the most inopportune moment, it will rear it’s ugly head---but I am now aware of the frequency of that voice and I shift my thinking immediately.
For today – let’s start with simply slowing down and listening to our inner talk.
What is it saying to you?
Is this chatter positive or negative?
Write it all down. Every nuance of a feeling it elicits – acknowledge it and don’t judge- just be aware of your own head space.
To do:
Journal the inner critic. Feeling creative? Splash some color around in your journal - get those crayons out! Juice up those watercolors - just do it. No expectation, just you and the colors listening to your inner voice.
Let’s check back in with each other in a week and see how you did- before we go – I want to tell you-
“You are wonderful. You are creative. You can create whatever makes your heart sing. You don’t need permission. And it, certainly, does not need to be perfect! ”
I have created a list of 50 different ways Imposter Syndrome can manifest - from all apsects of our personalities and responsibilities. You need to see this! I feel like I can resonate with most of them- and when I know what language imposter syndrome is speaking to my heart - I can silence before it gets a hold.
Want to learn more? Please follow the link below!