There's a Monster Under My Suit

Most of us carry a monster under our suit.

Sometimes it hides under a blazer before an important presentation. Sometimes it sneaks into a classroom, a boardroom, or a Zoom meeting. It whispers the same familiar lies:

You don't belong here.

You're not as capable as everyone thinks.

Eventually, they're going to figure you out.

Here's the part we don't say out loud nearly enough. It doesn't matter how experienced, successful, or credentialed you are. Those thoughts don't magically disappear with promotions, degrees, or years of experience.

The monster just gets better at wearing a suit.

Why call it a monster?

I'm often asked why I chose a monster as the metaphor.

Because monsters do something that ordinary words cannot.

They give shape to something we can feel but cannot always explain.

When we name the monster, we make the invisible visible.

When we picture it sitting beside us instead of inside us, we create just enough distance to ask better questions. We stop saying, Something is wrong with me, and start asking, Why is this showing up today?

Calling it a monster also chips away at shame. It reminds us that fear is an experience, not an identity. Monsters visit us. They are not who we are.

And perhaps most importantly, monsters do not appear out of nowhere.

They are often created by the environments around us.

So what is imposter syndrome?

Most researchers describe imposter syndrome through a few common experiences:

• You doubt your abilities even when there's clear evidence that you're competent.

• You worry that someone will eventually discover you're not as capable as they think.

• You explain your success away as luck, timing, or help from someone else.

• Your feelings are shaped by your environment more than by your actual ability.

  
  

That last point deserves more attention.

For years, many people treated imposter syndrome as something individuals simply needed to overcome. Think more positively. Be more confident. Believe in yourself.

But research tells a more complicated story.

Our environments matter.

Unclear expectations, limited mentoring, financial stress, inconsistent access to resources, and a lack of meaningful support all influence how we see ourselves. These experiences can quietly feed the monster until it begins to sound like our own inner voice.

So when someone says, I don't think I belong here, they're usually not revealing a personal deficiency.

They're revealing something about the environment they're trying to navigate.

That simple shift changes everything.

Instead of asking, What's wrong with me?

We can ask...

What's happening around me that's giving this monster so much power?

And once we ask that question, we can begin to change the story.