{"id":147043,"date":"2022-11-24T11:54:44","date_gmt":"2022-11-24T10:54:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=147043"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:31","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:31","slug":"imposter-syndrome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/11\/24\/imposter-syndrome\/","title":{"rendered":"Imposter syndrome"},"content":{"rendered":"

Does that feeling of being a fraud sound familiar? And are you worried that others might discover that you\u2019re not good enough? Or do you feel you didn\u2019t really earn your success? These feelings are referred to as imposter syndrome. It manifests itself in me as a critical voice that questions my abilities. This little voice in my head plagues me a lot. And it has been doing so a bit more since I was made a professor recently.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLevien Willemse<\/a>, \t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPauline Wiersema<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Including when I was asked to write a monthly column for Erasmus Magazine. I was so enthusiastic, my immediate response was: \u201cI\u2019ll give that a shot!\u201d But when I was cycling home, with dark clouds looming in front of me, the little voice returned, questioning whether it was sensible for me to have reacted so impulsively. Shouldn\u2019t I have taken a bit more time to think about it?<\/p>\n

The nagging questions in my head didn\u2019t make things any easier. \u201cColumnist? Aren\u2019t you supposed to be an academic? Do you really believe you\u2019ve got time to write a column every month? That\u2019s a tall order, isn\u2019t it?\u201d The deluge of questions was overwhelming and my doubts only grew. Even while still on my bike I started to think up ways of getting out of the commitment. \u201cI can email the editor-in-chief and say that on reflection it doesn\u2019t fit into my busy schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the time I cycled into my street, the dark clouds had passed and I saw a clear blue sky. I locked up my bike and went into my house, where my husband greeted me with a big smile and said jokingly: \u201cI got home early and cooked. Professor smarty pants can sit down and tuck straight in!\u201d<\/p>\n

I looked up shocked. Of course, professor smarty pants \u2013 that\u2019s me! I sat down, talked about my working day and suddenly all my doubts were gone. The little voice had been silenced and my enthusiasm soon returned. My husband\u2019s witty compliment came at just the right moment to help me step out of my comfort zone and try something new. Even if I\u2019ve never written columns before, I\u2019m going to give it a shot. I\u2019m looking forward to it.<\/p>\n\t

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Hanan El Marroun is Professor of Biological Psychology. She researches subjects such as substance use and brain development. At this year\u2019s Dies Natalis she was awarded<\/a> the FAME Athena Award for her efforts as Chair of VENA, the network for female academics at Erasmus MC. This is the first of her monthly columns for Erasmus Magazine.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t

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