Yoga Teachers, You Need These 4 Unexpected Ways to Work Through Imposter Syndrome

"We worry that we're not strong enough, flexible enough, spiritual enough, articulate enough, wise enough, popular enough, creative enough, or [fill in the blank] enough to share what we know. Yet for some of us, these doubts are significant enough to constitute imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is the belief that we aren't capable or worthy of the role. It's a persistent and overwhelming fear typically accompanied by a lingering and debilitating suspicion that we hold the title illegitimately and lack the requisite qualifications."

"I've known teachers who spend hours agonizing over each detail of class. I've witnessed students with years of experience and training not consider themselves "good enough" to lead class. I've heard teachers talk about feeling so overwhelmed by anxiety before and during class that they're barely present to their own experience, let alone that of their students. Imposter syndrome can make someone so obsessed with pleasing or being perfect, yet so unsure of their capacity to do so, that they become stuck in procrastination or self-recrimination or both."

Many yoga teachers experience persistent doubts about their strength, flexibility, spirituality, articulation, wisdom, popularity, creativity, or other qualifications for teaching. Those doubts can escalate into imposter syndrome, a belief of being unworthy or illegitimate in the role accompanied by overwhelming fear and suspicion about lacking requisite qualifications. Imposter syndrome can produce obsessive perfectionism, procrastination, self-recrimination, and debilitating anxiety that impairs presence during class. Some teachers with extensive training still avoid leading class for fear of inadequacy. A potential upside is recognizing that teaching capacity does not depend on personal confidence. Yoga does not require particular credentials to be shared.

Read at Yoga Journal