With more and more people rejoining Canada’s workforce in 2021, some are finding it hard to search for jobs with confidence after having a period of time off work due to the pandemic. If this is the case for you, you might be damaging your chances of landing your dream job due to something called imposter syndrome.
What’s the definition of imposter syndrome?
Imposter syndrome is essentially a lack of confidence in your own abilities and a fear of being called out for not performing as well as you claimed you could. If you’ve ever decided against sending an application to a job vacancy or intentionally not followed up on a work opportunity because you thought you weren’t good enough, then you might have a case of imposter syndrome.
Don’t worry! We’re here to help you overcome your lack of confidence so that you can ace your next job interview and prove to your potential employer that you’re the right person for the role. In this blog post, we’ll take you through 7 powerful ways to overcome imposter syndrome once and for all. Let’s get started!
Know your strengths
Keeping track of your strengths and knowing when to highlight them will give you a massive confidence boost on the day of your job interview. Write a list of skills, strengths and competencies related to the job you’re applying for and rank them from most relevant or impressive to least relevant.
Go over this list of strengths for your job interview a few times, and when the recruiter asks you what your strengths are, you’ll already have a solid idea of how to respond to this interview question. If you’re not sure what strengths to talk about, have a look at the job posting for clues. If the posting says they’re looking for candidates that work well in a team, then make sure to mention that if it applies to you!
Do your research
Doing research before a job interview is key for combating imposter syndrome. The more you know about your hiring manager, their role, and the organization in general, the more likely you are to give your interviewer insightful and personalized responses.
And don’t forget to take job interview research a step further by researching yourself! Think about examples of career successes in previous jobs and how you can talk about these to demonstrate your value as an employee. You might have an example of a time you solved a complex problem, a time you helped a difficult client out, or a particularly impressive project that you were a part of. Dig deep and you’re guaranteed to come up with some anecdotes for interview success.
Know what value you bring to the job
Overcoming imposter syndrome means that you need to know exactly why you’re different from other candidates. What’s your unique selling point as an employee? Maybe you have a wide range of hard skills or an impressive toolkit of soft skills that make you different from most applicants. Think long and hard about what unique qualities you’ll bring to the job and prepare to talk about them when your recruiter asks you a “tell me about yourself” type interview question. For maximum impact, think about how you can tailor your response to this particular job so that you stand out as the perfect candidate.
Be okay with failure
Accepting failure is important in any professional pursuit, but it’s even more important if you’re looking to overcome imposter syndrome during your job search. Avoid perfectionism by setting achievable goals for yourself and steer clear of lofty objectives that set you up for disappointment.
Even if you don’t land the job, be happy that you gave it your all. Competition can be tough, especially in a post-pandemic world. So, if you weren’t hired, it doesn’t mean that it’s because you weren’t qualified or experienced enough. Consider it an opportunity to learn and improve, making you an even more attractive candidate for the next job you apply for.
Look on the bright side of job interviews
Too many people see job interviews as successes if they lead to the job and failures if not, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Even if you don’t get the job, an interview is an important learning opportunity that can help you improve your job-searching skills as well as an opportunity to get useful feedback from hiring managers.
By asking for feedback from the person who interviewed you, you could learn about new ways to impress employers and get a look at what skills you need to develop to be considered a top candidate. It can be hard to adopt this mindset, especially if you’ve faced a series of rejections, but it’s the quickest and most effective way of transforming yourself into the candidate that all companies dream of hiring.
Keep calm
Nobody’s denying that job interviews can be seriously nerve-wracking but knowing how to calm yourself down can be one of the best ways to get over a sudden bout of imposter syndrome. There are many approaches to staying calm during a job interview, but some of the most effective include:
- Breathing steadily and taking your time to talk
- Adopting a confident posture and body language
- Thinking of the interview as a two-way conversation
- Arriving early and being well-prepared.
Celebrate your wins
Recognizing your professional wins can help you reduce feelings of imposter syndrome over time. Even celebrating small wins can help build your confidence and reinforce the fact that you’re constantly improving and growing as a professional. If you get congratulated at work about a project you helped with, celebrate it! If you were told that your software skills are improving, give yourself a pat on the back!
Celebrating these small wins can mean going out to the movies with a friend, treating yourself to a fancy meal, or even going shopping. However you choose to do it, the important thing is that you give yourself the recognition and support you deserve!
Speak to a recruiter or career coach
While working on beating imposter syndrome is often an individual activity, it’s also a good idea to get some expert advice on your professional situation. Recruiters and career coaches can give you valuable insight into how to approach your job search in order to get the best results possible. If you’re looking for a specific role in your target industry, a recruiter may help you get an interview, prepare your resume, practice your interview answers, and even negotiate an attractive salary.
If you’re not sure how to reach out to a recruiter, then look no further! The Adecco team has years of experience helping people like you find jobs in different industries across Canada. We can help you find and apply to your dream job while setting you up for success in the hiring process. To learn more about how Adecco can help give you a head start on your career, contact us today!