Quick Wins: How to deal with imposter syndrome

Three podcasts, one question: How influential is the media on the election?

Newscast, The Today Podcast and When It Hits The Fan are coming together for a special election episode. Hosts from all three podcasts will discuss the role of the media in this summer's political campaign. Do newspapers still matter to political campaigns? Do the TV debates change people’s minds? And how much impact is social media really having?

The episode features Adam Fleming, Amol Rajan, Alex Forsyth, Marianna Spring, David Yelland and Simon Lewis.

This episode was a collaboration between the teams that make Newscast, The Today Podcast and When It Hits the Fan.

David Yelland and Simon Lewis discuss Taylor Swift’s 'magical air cover' and the power of having your photo taken backstage or anywhere inside the Eras tour, whether you’re the Royal family or Keir Starmer. But would every politician risk the Taylor test?

And the latest political fan-hitters - why no-one wants to be a 'Putin ally', the Conservative’s 'Betgate' and how to get your message across if you're the SNP and you know most people listening can’t even vote for you.

Also, how podcasts, social media and the change in the velocity and ferocity of comment has so damaged the reputation of Gareth Southgate’s England. Is it possible to recover from losing the commentariat?

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

David Yelland and Simon Lewis administer the Fan Hitter PR slide rule to Sir Keir Starmer's election campaign. How has the Labour leader dealt with some of his stickier PR moments around his previous endorsement of Jeremy Corbyn, questions on tax and his dad's job as a toolmaker provoking laughter in Grimsby? Also, even though they are currently ahead in the polls, Labour - like the England football team - has to deal with the perennial PR problem of expectation management. Perhaps they could both learn a thing or two from the Royal Family?

Also, the Green Party's election campaign. How do you keep people listening when your core message - climate change - could be seen as alarmist? One solution is to focus your comms locally, which is what the Greens are doing. As is Nigel Farage...

And finally, actor Joe Alwyn has spoken out about his previous relationship with Taylor Swift. What can we learn about being dragged into the media spotlight on account of who you love – and then break up with? How best to deal with the global glare of Swifty scrutiny?

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

David and Simon analyse what is arguably the biggest PR moment in British electoral history - Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's decision to leave the D-Day celebrations in Normandy early. Simon takes us behind the scenes at Number 10 to try to work out exactly how things went so wrong for the PM.

Nigel Farage - he's been accused of 'dog whistle' politics. What are they, and how do they work?

And - the acquittal of tech tycoon Mike Lynch. What are the lessons to be learned from surviving the nine circles of media hell?

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

David Yelland and Simon Lewis look at why private schools seem to be losing the PR battle over their VAT exemption. A core principle of PR is to anticipate problems and mitigate them. This one has been coming down the track towards independent schools for years - why did they get it so wrong?

Also, the Liberal Democrats' election strategy of "tactical disruption" - which mainly involves Sir Ed Davey getting wet and apparently having the most fun of all the leaders on the campaign trail. As David and Simon continue to look at the use of PR by different political parties during the election campaign, they ask if the Liberal Democrats are adopting the PR tactics pioneered by disrupters like Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic and Airbnb in the US. It's winning the party precious press coverage, but is there a downside to the election stunts?

And what does it mean for the concept of a Fan Hitting crisis if being a convicted felon is not necessarily career ending? David and Simon are, of course, talking Donald Trump's guilty verdict in his hush-money trial. Does reputation matter in a post-shame world?

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

David Yelland and Simon Lewis debate the first of a series of PR reviews into the up and coming general election. Starting with Rishi Sunak's announcement in the rain last week, they'll be looking at how the parties launched their campaigns, their use of campaign videos and slogans, and how and when the press decide to take sides.

They also discuss how PR has been put on the stand at the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry.

New to When It Hits The Fan, if you have a “Quick Wins” question for Simon and David about managing your personal PR, send them a voice note on WhatsApp with the word “Fan” to +44 3700 100444 followed by your question.

Producer: William Miller Editor: Sarah Teasdale Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

Quick Wins is a series of short episodes from the When It Hits the Fan team to help you navigate your own personal PR.

In your professional life as well as your personal life, what you say no to can be more important than what you say yes to. In this episode David and Simon share their advice on how to do it the right way - to a boss who is asking you to overwork, to a job offer that's not the right fit or when you smell a rat. How to set the right boundaries?

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

David Yelland and Simon Lewis discuss South West Water’s handling of the Brixham water contamination and what this tells us about the fundamental problems in the UK water industry. Why were the people of South Devon told their water was safe when it was not? And when a crisis hits, who is the best person to speak on behalf of a company. Is it the 'chief customer officer'?

Also, in the week The Sunday Times Rich List is published, Simon and David share some secrets about how the blue chip PR world tries to get people on the list - and also get people off it!

And does the PR industry look after the mental health of its own people well enough? They take a look at a concerning report.

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

Quick Wins is a series of short episodes from the When It Hits the Fan team to help you navigate your own personal PR.

In this episode, David Yelland and Simon Lewis discuss the power of an apology. Professional - and personal - relationships are based on being able to say sorry at the right time. So how do you mark sure yours hits the mark? Do it before the sun goes down, do it the hard way and always mean it.

Producer: Eve Streeter Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

This week, two of the world’s biggest tech companies have found themselves in PR crises of their own making. Why did Apple's new iPad Pro 'crush' advert misfire so badly? Meanwhile at Baidu - China’s biggest search engine - its PR boss has lost her job after videos of her promoting a toxic work culture went viral.

David Yelland and Simon Lewis go to the heart of a secret and little understood reputational war and look at the real battle between the west coast of America and China’s Silicon Valley.

And - bowing out gracefully. How Nadhim Zahawi’s exit strategy from politics ticked all the PR boxes.

Producer: Eve Streeter Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: William Miller Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

Does anyone really know what they’re doing? How do we reward the competent and not the confident? And what’s wrong with using TikTok for research? 

RESOURCES:

• "Why Everyone Feels Like They’re Faking It," by Leslie Jamison (The New Yorker, 2023).
• "The Impostor Phenomenon Revisited: Examining the Relationship between Workplace Impostor Thoughts and Interpersonal Effectiveness at Work," by Basima Tewfik (Academy of Management Journal, 2022).
• "You’re Not an Imposter. You’re Actually Pretty Amazing," by Kess Eruteya (Harvard Business Review, 2022).
• "Workplace ‘Impostor Thoughts’ May Have a Genuine Upside," by Meredith Somers (Ideas Made to Matter, 2022).
• The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times, by Michelle Obama (2022).
• "Prevalence, Predictors, and Treatment of Impostor Syndrome: a Systematic Review," by Dena M. Bravata, Sharon A. Watts, Autumn L. Keefer, Divya K. Madhusudhan, Katie T. Taylor, Dani M. Clark, Ross S. Nelson, Kevin O. Cokley, and Heather K. Hagg (Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2020).
• "What Is Imposter Syndrome and How Can You Combat It?" by Elizabeth Cox (TED-Ed, 2018).
• "Is Resilience Only Skin Deep?: Rural African Americans' Socioeconomic Status-Related Risk and Competence in Preadolescence and Psychological Adjustment and Allostatic Load at Age 19," by Gene H. Brody, Tianyi Yu, Edith Chen, Gregory Miller, Steven M. Kogan, and Steven R. H. Beach (Psychological Science, 2013).
• “Emotion Generation and Emotion Regulation: One or Two Depends on Your Point of View,” by James Gross and Lisa Feldman Barrett (Emotion Review, 2011).
• "Good C.E.O.’s Are Insecure (and Know It)," by Adam Bryant (The New York Times, 2010).
• Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time, by Howard Schultz (1997).

EXTRAS:

• "Reading Dostoevsky Behind Bars," by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).
• "Can a Moonshot Approach to Mental Health Work?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).
• "Why Do We Get Angry?" by No Stupid Questions (2023).

SOURCES:

• Edith Chen, professor of psychology at Northwestern University.
• Pauline Rose Clance, professor emerita of psychology at Georgia State University.
• Kess Eruteya, founder of InclusionZ and fellow at the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce.
• Obi Felten, founder and C.E.O. of Flourish Labs.
• Suzanne Ament Imes, clinical psychologist and academic researcher at Georgia State University.
• Erika James, dean of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
• Steven Levitt, professor of economics at the University of Chicago, host of People I (Mostly) Admire, and co-author of the Freakonomics books.
• Gregory Miller, professor of psychology at Northwestern University.
• Michelle Obama, attorney, author, and former first lady of the United States.
• Howard Schultz, former C.E.O. and chairman emeritus of Starbucks.
• Basima Tewfik, professor of work and organization studies at the M.I.T. Sloan School of Management.
• Eric Weiner, professor of educational foundations at Montclair State University.

In this episode of the Dethroning Your Inner Critic Podcast, Joanna Kleinman challenges the idea that confidence is just about external achievements and proposes a deeper, more universal truth: everyone experiences self-doubt and insecurity, but true confidence arises from connecting with your authentic self, free from the ego's limitations.

The host argues that our automatic mind, the "IC," creates false identities and attachments that hinder us. Letting go of these and connecting with our "Authentic Self" (AS) fosters natural confidence. True purpose, instead of being something you need to figure out, emerges from aligning with the flow of the universe and bringing consciousness into the world through your own actions.

Reflection Questions:

1. How does your "IC" manifest in your life? What are some triggers for your self-doubt?

2. How can you connect more deeply with your "AS"? What practices or activities help you feel authentic?

3. What does "bringing consciousness into the world" mean to you? How can you contribute your unique light?

Bonus:

Learn more and register for the "Building Confidence From Within" masterclass starting March 11th, 2024: https://dethroningyourinnercritic.com/buildingconfidencefromwithin

Are you ready to find out which Inner Critic Is Ruling Your Mind? Take the FREE Inner Critic Assessment now to Identify the patterns that keep you stuck professionally and personally.

In this episode, you and I are dismantling one of the most crippling forms of self-doubt.

"Imposter Syndrome" is when you think you’re not good enough and that everyone else is smarter, more successful, and has more to contribute than you do. Everyone feels it. It’s so common that the Harvard Business Review found that even 70% of the world’s top executives have struggled with it.

My mission today is to convince you that Imposter Syndrome is actually a GOOD thing. And I’ll use an example from my own life to prove my case.

Come backstage with me to a huge music festival, where my daughter Kendall, an aspiring singer-songwriter, comes face-to-face with the famous musicians who inspired her career.

Cue the panic.

Self-doubt almost made her bail on what turned out to be a life-changing weekend in her career.

She turned it around (you’ll hear how) and, as a result, was invited impromptu to perform twice with Grammy-winning musicians!

Listen and learn how to be more courageous and confident in those moments that really matter. I can’t wait for you to hear:

• The 4 words Kendall repeated that crushed self-doubt and got her on stage.
• The powerful mantra to say when you’re nervous walking into a room.
• How to use humor (and tuna sandwiches) to connect with anyone.
• Why being a "nobody" is the most amazing "somebody" you could be.

It’s time to hit delete on your self-doubt forever.

This one is so good and so relatable that you’ll be yelling, Encore!

Xo, Mel

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• 2:15: Harvard Business Review says imposter syndrome is #1 fear of executives.
• 3:40: Kendall puts us at the scene of her own paralyzing episode of self-doubt.
• 5:30: Imagine being surrounded by everyone you’ve admired your entire life.
• 11:30: This is the message you need to hear if you’re deep in self-doubt.
• 12:45: My own story of feeling like an imposter before I became a speaker.
• 19:30: Here’s how to start shifting your mindset and boost your confidence.
• 20:20: The piece of advice that will help you stand taller.
• 21:40: The three-letter word you need to repeat when your insecurity creeps in
• 22:30: Once you change your mindset, your actions fall into place.
• 24:00: You have a gift to offer even the most experienced people in your field.
• 25:00: The seven words Kendall dropped that I’m still thinking about.
• 27:15: The #1 takeaway from this conversation about self-doubt.
• 28:45: Own where you are, and here’s what we mean by that.
• 31:00: What you’re thinking will happen probably won’t.
• 33:00: Learn how to balance giving and receiving, and you'll crack the code.
• 35:15: Are you waiting for validation? Listen to this.
• 38:00: There’s a reason you’re here. Here’s how to start believing that
• 41:00: Here’s why imposter syndrome is a GOOD thing.

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