Do you think there’s a direct correlation between educational attainment and imposter syndrome?
The latest podcast episode of Work-Life Balance Confessions: A Fine Balance is about a woman who did not progress her education past high school. For legal reasons pertaining to her acrimonious divorce, she chose not to reveal her true identity, so we agreed on the pseudonym “Susan” and changed the description of what she does for a living.
Throughout the episode, I hold back sharing all aspects of her story. However, every part that I do tell, is true.
Susan told me how out of place she felt in workplaces being surrounded by colleagues with university degrees. For years she harboured a sense that she didn’t belong or wasn’t “qualified” enough to be in the roles that she was in.
It wasn’t just a feeling of low confidence or paranoia of being “found out” for being an “imposter”. She observed how her bosses preferred to showcase in front of clients the employees that had first class degrees, over those that had clawed their way up the career ladder by sheer hard work and determination.
But the low confidence had an impact too, making her doubt her abilities, and shy away from asking for promotions or pay rises. “It didn’t take much for me to be put back in my box”, Susan told me.
“Social mobility” is the buzz word of our generation but what does it mean in practice? How does it impact the work-life balance of a person seeking to rise above the circumstances and expectations of their upbringing?
After having children, there was an unspoken assumption between Susan and her (now ex) husband that she would give up her hard-fought career to look after the children. Part of her, she says, felt relieved: “I had an excuse to stop doing it before someone found me out”.
I’ll be preparing a Work, Life, Balance Lesson episode on this subject in due course and am interested in hearing from other people that have experienced a similar pattern. Please comment below if this sounds familiar to you – or if you’ve had a different experience of entering the workplace without having obtained any qualifications beyond high school.
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Happy listening!