Symptoms Of An Imposter

Do you sometimes feel like you don’t deserve a lot of the success you have achieved? Have you ever had a sinking feeling that one day people will think that you are not as smart as they once believed you to be? For many capable students at Brentwood, this may be the case, and the resulting diagnosis is a condition known as imposter syndrome. Last Saturday, all Grade 11s and 12s took part in a presentation in the Killy Theatre about this relatively unknown way of thinking. The guest speaker was Dr. Valerie Young, an expert in the field of the susceptibility to imposter - like feelings. She spoke to the students in order to help educate us on this issue that they might unknowingly experience. “It’s good to know that I now know how to prevent this problem, as well as assist anyone else who may have this issue,” says Henri K, Whittall ‘20, after hearing the presentation. People who feel like “imposters” are highly prone to doubting themselves in their work. They often feel as though they are not worthy of their achievements and efforts, and that they live a fraudulent path as a person that other people believe they are, while they believe they are not this person. It was Dr. Young’s goal to inform us that these feelings are unwarranted, and as her advice said, “The only way to stop feeling like an impostor, is to stop thinking like an impostor.” Dr. Young’s presentation ended up being very informative for us students and for the staff. Hopefully, her valuable advice will go a long way to the students who may have felt like an imposter beforehand. Jack P, Whittall ‘19