Overcoming Imposter Syndrome and Self-Doubt
If you’re second‑guessing yourself in your business, I’m so glad you’re here. This piece explores self‑doubt (including the flavor of self-doubt we know as imposter syndrome) and offers practical ways to build steady self‑trust so you can move forward without waiting to “feel ready”.
The first time I remember feeling like an imposter as a coach, I was pacing my bedroom during a phone call, back in the pre-Zoom days when client sessions happened over landlines and headsets, not webcams.
This was, perhaps, my second paying client. And like many new coaches, I had started with people I knew from my personal life. In this case, we weren’t close friends, but we’d known each other long enough to share casual updates in passing.
Halfway through the call, he opened up about something deeply personal. The kind of revelation that feels both intimate and fragile. And instead of curiosity kicking in, I froze. I wasn’t sure if I should ask more. It felt like prying. It felt rude.
Then came the pause. The very long pause. My mind was a whirlwind of self-doubt:
What if I push and he shuts down?
What if I ask and I don’t know how to help?
What if I disappoint him?
It was the mental equivalent of standing under a bright spotlight on stage, not knowing my next line.
And then — he broke the silence.
“Oh,” he said, amused, “this is the part where you ask me about what I just told you.”
We both laughed, the tension evaporating instantly.
At the time, I would have told you I was having an imposter moment. But with the benefit of experience, I can see it for what it was: self-doubt doing what self-doubt does best: trying to protect me from the risk of getting it wrong.
Related Post→ What Self-Doubt Sounds Like as a Business Owner
In this case, the flavor of self-doubt was imposter syndrome. That specific, sticky belief that you’ll be “found out” as not good enough, not capable enough, not ready. And when you’re new at something, that feeling can be loud.
Now, years later, I’d know exactly what to say in that moment: something as simple as, “Thank you for sharing that. Is that something you want to be coached around?”
But back then, I didn’t yet belong to myself as a coach. I was still learning how to navigate the shifting boundaries between personal relationships and the coaching container. And like any new skill, self-trust takes practice.
The real lesson from that day was that one can meet those moments of self-doubt with gentleness. You can acknowledge the pause, the hesitation, and still find your way back into the conversation. Self-doubt doesn’t have to be a stop sign - sometimes it’s just a speed bump.
Self-doubt is like a big umbrella with many types of doubt underneath it.
Here’s the thing most business owners don’t realize: imposter syndrome isn’t separate from self-doubt, but is just one of its many flavors.
Self-doubt is the bigger umbrella. It’s a protective response your brain creates when something feels psychologically risky: launching a new offer, increasing your prices, asking for the sale, or speaking in front of a room full of people.
Sometimes, that self-doubt comes out as perfectionism.
Sometimes, it’s procrastination.
Sometimes, it’s imposter syndrome - the fear that you’ll be “found out” as incapable, unqualified, or undeserving.
The tricky part? Self-doubt is persuasive. It doesn’t announce itself as self-doubt. Instead, it whispers things like:
Wait until you’re ready
You’re not the kind of person who does this
If you fail, everyone will know
And because it’s trying to keep you safe, self-doubt can make holding back feel like the responsible choice. This can leave you feeling indecisive and waiting for the “best and right” thing before moving forward (Eventually? One day?).
Related Post→ How to Work with Indecision
This type of doubt is especially prevelant for business owners.
When you run a business, you’re constantly meeting situations you’ve never faced before: new clients, testing new pricing and new markets, being visible in new ways.
Each one of those moments is an invitation for self-doubt to pull up a chair.
As a double-certified coach who specializes in self-doubt, I see the same protective beliefs come up again and again in business owners:
If I put myself out there, I’ll be judged
If I raise my prices, people will think I’m greedy
If I say no, the opportunities will stop coming
If you’ve ever experienced that inner tension between wanting growth and wanting safety, you’ve met your self-doubt.
Related Post→ The Imposter Syndrome Cycle
Self-trust is what lets you move forward with self-doubt instead of waiting for it to disappear.
Self-trust is the antidote that allows you to act alongside self-doubt, rather than pausing your life until it’s gone.
For my clients, that often looks like:
Separating facts from feelings
Noticing when fear is predicting an outcome without any actual evidence.Trying micro-experiments
Instead of betting the farm on a big launch, test the idea with a smaller offer to reduce the stakes.Tracking evidence of competence
Keeping a “Done Well” folder with wins, client feedback, and moments you navigated well — to refer back to when doubt gets loud.Naming your protective beliefs
So you can recognize them when they show up and choose how to respond.
The goal isn’t to make self-doubt vanish. The goal is to feel grounded enough to create a willingness to act, even if it’s in the smallest way.
Remember: Self-doubt is not capable of accurately measuring your likelihood of success.
Because, that’s not its job (though it certainly thinks it can). But, when you meet it with gentleness, curiosity, and the right tools, it can become a teacher rather than a saboteur.
If you’re curious to learn more about self-doubt, here are some common questions I hear from clients…
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Yes! Self-doubt can highlight areas for growth or show you where you need more support. The key is deciding when it’s giving you useful information and when it’s just trying to keep you small.
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In self-doubt coaching, we don’t see those moments as “self-sabotage.” We reframe them as self-protection — a way your mind and body keep you safe from a deeper risk that feels confronting or overwhelming. Once you understand the protective role, you can work with it instead of against it.
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Coaching creates a safe container to explore protective beliefs, experiment with new actions, and strengthen your ability to act without waiting for self-doubt to vanish.
