Inexperience can be scary. We walk into new situations/a new job/ start a new hobby and everything is new, maybe a little uncomfortable, and we can often feel a strong dose of imposter syndrome “oh god, someone’s going to realise I don’t have a clue what I’m doing”.
I have had a lot of this in the past twelve months. My ‘new language’ has been the foundations of setting up a business. I was clueless, I was scared, but I’m still determined. It has been exactly like learning a new language thinking about social media presence, setting up a website, getting a logo designed and now moving onto level two of language class – how do I develop it further? What do I need to do to keep my presence current? Is it more finically savvy to have a set rented location for client sessions or to rent a therapy room per session?
Imposter syndrome creeps in a few times a week. When this happens I look for the evidence – moving from ‘what if’ to ‘what is’. I talk to myself about the evidence of how far I’ve come with working on my business, the evidence of clients who keep coming back to work with me, the reality that when I feel under pressure to be somewhere further up the ladder (whatever that means) that the timeline I’m on is my own and is there really any need for that pressure.
Going to a counsellor/life coach can initially be like learning a new language. Thoughts, reactions and behaviours that have been subconscious or beyond awareness are suddenly in the spotlight. For some clients talking about their experiences from the perspective of feelings rather than thoughts can feel scary, a little uncomfortable. But as with learning a new language, once you become familiar with vocabulary, get braver with expression, and are willing to make mistakes and not expect to be fluent from the start, it all gets a bit easier.
Movement in therapy happens from a developing awareness. Without awareness of why you do what you do how can you hope to change the things that hold you back from being your authentic self and living to your full potential.
Awareness occurs when you open up to the new dialogue of therapy and show a willingness to alter how you talk to yourself, to question scripts and update your language of engagement. It may be a little scary at first and it may feel uncomfortable initially but trust me, learning a new language is always worth it.