Part Three: Cultivating Confidence
Part one of this series delved into the science of imposter syndrome. Part two explored actions that can be taken to rewire our brains and cultivate more confidence in ourselves. Now let’s consider how you can help your team feel more confident.
Being a leader comes with significant responsibility. Through your actions and communication, you create an environment that either exacerbates feelings of inadequacy or helps your team confidently grow. Being intentional about developing a stronger sense of belonging for everyone can result in increased staff loyalty and higher impact.
By recognizing the signs of imposter syndrome and incorporating some of the following practical strategies, you can help team members feel valued, competent, and secure in their roles.
Celebrate diverse contributions and perspectives: Recognize and value the unique backgrounds and viewpoints of each team member to maximize feelings of inclusion and belonging. Actively ensure all team members feel their contributions are valuable and appreciated, which might include providing private opportunities for input for the introverts on your team or making sure there are ways for everyone to meaningfully contribute.
Offer regular, specific feedback: Ensure feedback is specific, actionable, and timely, especially with respect to progress and contributions. Championing your staff can be quick and casual but also deeply meaningful. “Hey, Kelly, I appreciate that you challenged us to stop and think in today’s meeting. We need more of that. Thank you.” This can go a long way to counteract any distorted self-assessment your staff might impose on themselves—especially if they took a social risk.
Cultivate a failure tolerant and learning culture: Failure sucks. As a leader, you set the tone. Offering a curious and learning perspective can make it okay for your team to confidently take more calculated risks. We can learn more from failure than we do from success.
Provide opportunities for leadership and new responsibilities: Empower team members by offering them the chance to lead projects or take on new responsibilities. Provide tangible evidence of their capabilities and demonstrate the trust you (as leader) have in them. Sharing why you believe in them can be a powerful antidote to imposter syndrome.
Have honest conversations: Openly discussing your experience with imposter syndrome or self-doubt can significantly impact your team's ability to deal with their own insecurities. Demonstrating how you’ve overcome those feelings or how you currently manage them can provide practical strategies and hope.
Don’t just mentor, sponsor: While mentors provide guidance, advice and feedback, “sponsoring” takes mentoring a step further. Champion your colleagues. Amplify their voice, connecting them with leaders and advocating for them when needed.
Frame goals and development in objective terms: Poor goalsetting lays the groundwork for bias across the performance management cycle. Goals with vague metrics make it more challenging to impartially assess performance, so ensure there is a relatively consistent level of challenge across the board.
In conclusion
Imposter syndrome is more than just an individual private struggle; it's a pervasive issue that can undermine the entire team's potential, dilute confidence, and foster unnecessary doubt. As a leader, you hold the power to change this narrative. You can transform your team by replacing self-doubt with self-assurance and turn fear of exposure into a celebration of growth and learning.
By embracing these strategies, you can expect to see profound changes within your team. Not only will you witness increased engagement and productivity, you will also create an environment where innovation thrives, and team members feel genuinely valued and understood. The act of crushing imposter syndrome is not just about alleviating doubts. It's about unlocking the full potential of your team.
Let this article serve as a call to action for leaders to pave the way for a more confident, dynamic, and successful future. Leadership isn’t just about guiding others to achieve goals; it's about inspiring them to recognize and embrace their worth.
As a charity sector leader, you have the power to guide your team on this transformative path. As a result, you will keep your staff and achieve a greater impact for your organization.
Kimberley Mackenzie, CPCC, ACC is a leadership coach working with charity executives to get transformative results for themselves and their teams. A charity executive for 22 years, Kimberley built a six-figure consultancy and held her CFRE for 17 years until she was certified by the International Coaching Federation as an Associate Certified Coach and by the Co-Active Training Institute as a Certified Co-Active Professional Coach. She is the former editor for Charity eNews, and an AFP Master Trainer and Group Facilitator. She participated on Rogare’s think tank reviewing Relationship Fundraising and was a driving force in the early days of SOFII.org. Contact Kimberley at k@kimberleymackenzie.ca or follow her on Instagram @kimberleycanada.
Mimosa Kabir Ketley is a dynamic, creative fundraiser with an established track record as a strategic and results-oriented champion of the nonprofit sector. With a career background ranging from libraries to theatres, international aid to science, Mimosa brings a broad, holistic perspective to industry issues. She has extensive experience growing revenue through major gifts, individual giving, special events and sponsorship. Email Mimosa, mimosa.k@gmail.com or connect on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/mimosakabir/.
