Imposter phenomenon (IP), more commonly now known as imposter syndrome, was first coined by psychologist Pauline Rose Clance in the late 1970’s. It is unsurprising that the concept of being an imposter arose off the back of second wave feminism, a movement that was largely concerned with the issues of equality. From a professional perspective, women had greater access to different types of work and opportunities than ever before. This however brought about a new set of challenges, as women were demanding a seat at the still male-dominated table. So now in 2023, shouldn’t we have progressed beyond these feelings of being an imposter and developed a level of confidence resilience?
A long journey to equality
The 2022 gender equality in the workplace statistics reveal that women hold:
- 17.6% of chair positions,
- 31.2% of directorships,
- 19.4% of CEOs and,
- 34.5% of key management personnel.
So, despite women now making up almost half of the paid workforce in Australia, they are still being under-represented across all key leadership roles. Kate Boorer, alongside her business partner Fiona Pearman, have experienced these structural and systemic challenges first-hand and today they work tirelessly to resource women to challenge the status quo and in doing so, to advocate and influence change one women at a time.
“As a young twenty-something ambitious finance professional, I was confident in my career success. ‘Study and work hard’ had been values embedded early and progression seemed easy, especially with the support of mentors and sponsors. Despite this success, there was a little voice, a part of me that would be terrified when asked to do anything involving public speaking for fear of being judged, criticised or made a fool. And when it came to networking, while very social with colleagues across my organisation, I was very self-conscious when entering a room where I did not know anyone, worried I would not have anyone to talk to or anything to say. The more senior I became in my career, the more that public speaking and networking were required, and the more self-doubt started to emerge. Tired and somewhat frustrated at the level of emotional and mental energy wasted on seemingly simple activities, I dived into what has become a lifelong commitment to personal and professional development.”
The confidence challenge
Over their lifetimes women receive an overwhelming volume of conflicting messages in relation to building confidence in their career. From being told told to break the glass ceiling to lean in, and to be more assertive to being told to be less volatile and aggressive, women can’t seem to get it right. No wonder women report feeling frustrated and confused as to how they can practically overcome certain confidence barriers.
“Research shows that women are twice as likely as men to get the feedback that they need to display confidence to progress”, says Kate. “But how do we define confidence? There is a perception that confidence is something that we need to go find or build, but what we’ve realised through workshops and coaching with our clients is that confidence is within us all the time, we just have strategies where we give our confidence away.”
Acts of Confidence
This realisation might not seem ground-breaking, but it is one that many women still struggle to recognise. “When you sit down and talk to women about their workplace experience and achieving their goals in career and life, it is a lack of confidence that is really holding them back,” says Kate.
So, what tangible acts can women do to increase confidence? Kate and Fiona have developed a transformational 7-step program called Acts of Confidence which supports women to become aware of the roadblocks and red flags that are getting in the way of achieving their career goals. The program enables participants to redefine the habits and beliefs that will support them to transform how they show up in career and life. The Acts of Confidence include:
- Get clear and make decisions.
- Articulate and share your values.
- Ask for what you want.
- Ask for help.
- Fall down and get back up again.
- Set and enforce boundaries.
- Build your brand and presence.
Whilst the focus of the program is with each individual, there is a strong focus on developing advocates who are resourced to lift up the community of women around them. As Kate explains, “the more women that are doing this, the more we are giving other women and men permission to challenge the status quo and do this differently. I think that for me, is how we can start to shift the dial in a big way.”
Kate and Fiona co-authored their book Core Confidence and have fostered an online community of women where they can share their own experiences and support each other to access and strengthen their Core Confidence.
