Imposter syndrome. It’s a common symptom I experience as a digital and social media marketer. All it takes is one negative comment from a total stranger on Twitter or a rejection for my proposal at work and doubts start to creep into my head. I start to wonder, “Am I the best person to be doing this job?”
Now that I’ve completed a digital marketing course online via General Assembly, I’ve come to an important realization: Imposter syndrome finds its way into everyone’s life at one point or another. Perhaps the best way I’ve come to grips with it is to understand that no one knows everything about digital marketing, and that’s completely acceptable. So, before you start to question your decisions after your Google Ads campaign didn’t turn out the way you expected, take a deep breath and repeat these reminders:
Googling something is not a weakness
During one of my final General Assembly classes, my classmates and I were unable to find a specific answer in Google Analytics. Instead of agonizing over where to find the relevant information, one of my classmates made a decision: Google it. You might feel like Googling the answer is cheating, but it’s not. Researching and finding answers instead of dwelling on what you don’t know supports you on going further.
Close up image of a tablet screen with Google search engine by Photo MIX-Company on Pixabay
I’m a part of many LinkedIn and Facebook groups to help me with questions and it turns out lots of people have the same questions as I do. Don’t be embarrassed to look up something. Use the tools available to you to gain the insights you need.
You have expertise — own it
You might be thinking, “How can I claim to be an expert if I don’t know it all? What if my digital marketing course online didn’t teach me everything?” I feel imposter syndrome anytime a new boss says to me: “You’re the social media expert. You’ll have the answer to my question.” I immediately begin to doubt my capabilities if they’re asking me about a new platform or what our engagement rate is when I haven’t had the chance to compile analytics and information on my second week at a new job.
Whether or not you have all of the answers at that moment, doesn’t matter. You have expertise otherwise you wouldn’t be in the role you’re in. You bring a new perspective and ideas, and don’t let comparisons to your predecessor make you feel otherwise.
Give yourself room to learn and grow into your role, and let others know you’ll follow up on information you don’t have right at that second. “I don’t have that information right now, but I’ll look into it and get back to you,” is a more than sufficient answer.
Bottom line is you might not feel like an expert, but you have more expertise than those who have never set up a Google Ad or developed a social media strategy.
Mistakes are part of learning and improving
No matter how extensive your digital marketing course online, you’re bound to make mistakes from time to time. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve looked at old social media content from previous jobs and thought, “I posted that?” Despite the times I posted a tacky graphic or shared a post on one channel that my supervisor intended for another, I also have successes. There are posts that I’ve crafted that generated over thousands of engagements. There are ads I’ve run that led to my company reaching and surpassing its KPIs.
Image of a spilled coffee cup by stevepb on Pixabay
Instead of dwelling on individual mistakes, maybe we need to start looking at the ratio of successes to mistakes and evaluating what we can repair from the damage. Did the mistakes cause the company to fall in ruin? If not, how important is it? If your mistake led to a major impact, what can you learn from it? Every time I make a mistake or create content that did not lead to the results I expected, I remind myself: Mistakes help me grow and understand what to do in the future.
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Cover image by Goumbik on Pixabay