We’ve all had those times where we were faced with a big decision, an important project, a job posting with a mile-long list of required skills, or a situation where someone was really relying on you. In the back of your mind you wondered: why me, what makes anyone think I am good enough for this? Am I good enough for this? We’ve all doubted ourselves at some point, like we are an imposter in a world of capable people. That’s your imposter syndrome. But how do we fight it? We know that we are strong, capable, and knowledgeable, so how do we convince that little voice in the back of our heads? After reading Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman and The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown, here are some tips to achieving some peace of mind.

Establish Habits

A good start to feeling confident, capable, and knowledgeable is to establish habits that will help you grow. Habits, both good and bad, can be hard to establish, especially when you already have a ton of them. The trick is to add a new habit to one you already have; layering your habits makes it so much easier than starting from scratch. One good habit to layer is your social media usage. You can keep your scrolling habits between projects, between events, and in your downtime, but also try using your social media habit to gain knowledge. Watch Youtube videos that are informative after you watch your “let’s play” or skincare videos. Take a deep dive into BookTok to find out industry trends and get an idea of emerging social media trends. You can make your habits work for you, just find ones you can layer and start there. You’ll set yourself up for success and grow your mind in the process.

Be Authentic

One of the most important tips from this list is to be authentic. Be you—be true to who you are and who you want to be. Set goals that allow you to flourish and make sure they don’t push you back several steps on your perpetual journey of growth. If you’re right for a role, then who you are will be right for the role. When you’re being true to yourself, everything around you will grow along with you, and if not, then you know that it isn’t right for you. Be authentic. This requires some deep-diving into yourself. In order to be authentic, you have to know how and what to be authentic towards. When you know yourself, you can feel confident in where you and your abilities will fit.

Know Your Limits

One thing that comes with knowing yourself and your abilities is knowing your limits. Once you’ve explored the darkest parts of yourself and the whys and whats behind your mind, you will not only know what you can do but also what you can’t do. An important thing about thriving is setting boundaries––this includes not pushing yourself to heights you can’t reach and setting yourself up for failure. Know where your abilities lie, know what time of day you work best during, know how much sleep keeps your brain firing on all cylinders, and know when you need to take a break and step away from something. Knowing your abilities and setting boundaries is a huge step in succeeding because you’ll know what you can do and how you can grow your abilities in a natural way. Set your boundaries, know your limits, and listen to them; you’ll get farther when you let yourself grow as you go.

Garbage Stage

Allow yourself a chance to get used to what you’re doing. You’re not going to be perfect on your first try or even on your last try. You will never be perfect––let go of that notion. Just do your best, and over time your best will get better. Allow yourself a few garbage attempts, a couple of garbage passages, then move on and try again. Setting the bar too high when you are just starting out will ultimately set you up for failure. Give yourself time to learn and grow into your role. Write some garbage, do a garbage proofread, and make some garbage designs. Learn from it, do it again, and keep going and growing.

All in all, it’s you who has to set yourself up for success. You can learn and grow as long as you let yourself. It can be one of the hardest things to believe in yourself sometimes, but you’ve got this. The catch is to get in touch with who you are and stick to that. Give yourself time, let yourself make garbage, allow yourself to learn, be your authentic self, and grow as you go. You’ve got this. You can do this. You are worthy. You deserve this.