Doubting My Own Doubt

September 16th, 2026

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A few years ago I was standing backstage in Milan, waiting to walk out and speak to a room full of 500 people who work in senior management across advertising. I'd flown in from a podcast recording in London days earlier, and before that I'd spoken at a conference in the UK. On paper, it was the kind of month that should have made me feel like I'd arrived.

Instead, I stood there running through my notes one more time, feeling the same thing I've felt before almost every talk I've given. A small, persistent voice asking when someone was going to realize I didn't actually know what I was doing.

You know that voice that says "uh oh, they're gonna find me out..."

I've learned to walk on stage anyway. But that time, something in me got curious instead of just anxious. If this feeling hasn't gone away after Google, after Milan, after speaking in front of hundreds of people, after all of it, then I'm curious how many other people are feeling the same way?

So I did what I always do when something won't leave me alone. I started researching it properly, reading what people smarter than me have said about it, and trying to understand why the fear shows up right when I should feel most confident.

What I found changed how I think about this completely, and one idea in particular, from Adam Grant, is the reason I wanted to write this issue.

The Imposter Syndrome Paradox

Here are a few ideas I really want to share with you:

1. Discomfort is kind of the point

You know that feeling before you are about to do something scary, public speaking is a great example of that, the knots in the stomach, the sweaty palms, shortened breath, it feels terrible I know. And when I speak to experienced speakers, they actually tell me they all get that each and every time.

Here's the first thing I had to unlearn. I'd always treated that nervous, exposed feeling before a talk as nerves, but what made that feeling more acceptable for me overtime was to shift my thinking to believing that this was excitement, that my body was excited to embrace another new challenge.

And the people who study this closely tend to agree. That feeling usually means you're doing something outside your comfort zone, and being outside your comfort zone is what learning and growth actually feel like from the inside. The most experienced people in any field still feel it (and actually I found out that feeling is especially prevalent in high achievers), because they keep choosing rooms that stretch them.

Can you relate?

If you only feel calm and certain all the time, you're probably not growing much. The discomfort, to be honest, it's just how you will feel when you're doing something that matters.

2. Somebody already said yes to you

The second idea is about trust, but not trust in myself. Trust in the people who put me on that stage in the first place.

Nobody books a speaker, invites a guest, or hires someone for a role on a whim. There's a process behind it, whether it's a conference organizer reviewing your work or a client checking your references. By the time you're in the room, someone independent has already looked at what you can do and decided you're the right person for it.

When the doubt creeps in, I've started asking myself a more useful question. Not "am I good enough," but "why did they already decide I was." Usually the answer is sitting right there in my inbox, in the email that invited me in the first place.

3. The fastest way out of your own head

The third thing that helps is the most practical. When I'm deep in my own head worrying about how I'm coming across, the fastest way out is to stop thinking about myself.

I shift my attention to the one useful thing I can actually control, which is whether the person in front of me leaves with something they can use. I look into the audience and I feel that I was speaking to the younger Laurie, the person who is building their ideal life and career. Are they getting a clear idea, a better question, a tool they didn't have before. That single change, from "how am I doing" to "what are they getting," takes the spotlight off me and puts it where it should have been the whole time.

Being from a place of value and service, it gives your attention somewhere better to go than your own insecurity.

The Paradox That Rewired My Thinking

Those three ideas helped me, but the idea that actually changed how I see this whole thing came from something the TED speaker and psychologist Adam Grant said, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since.

He points out that imposter syndrome might be the biggest paradox there is. If other people believe in you and you don't believe in yourself, you are choosing to trust your own opinion over theirs. And if you're willing to doubt yourself that much, shouldn't you also doubt the doubt itself? Why does your harshest internal critic get more weight than the people who've actually watched you work and still believe in you?
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Sit with that for a second and think about it.

I love the idea that Adam point to, which is that imposter syndrome usually isn't a sign you're out of your depth. It's far more often a sign of your hidden potential. If it feels like people are overestimating you, the simpler explanation is that you're underestimating yourself. (Big shoutout to his book Hidden Potential, and a video coming soon in the next book review).

So I hope that you'll take away this from today's issue, the fear of being found out it's actually because we're paying attention, that we care about doing it well, and that we're finally standing somewhere big enough to stretch us.

Who in your life already believes in you more than you believe in yourself right now? Make sure to send this to them. And what are some of your biggest hairy goals in the next few months?

To your growth,

Laurie 🙌

​How to Actually Be Productive

How was your summer? My summer was blissfully quiet and I got the chance to reset on so many different things in my work and life.

There are some new videos coming your way and also some live workshops which I'm excited to deliver for this community. 👀

Here is a video that I pulled up from the archives that is very helpful during this back-to-work and back-to-school period.

I'm excited to see you in the next video or live webinar soon!

Also you might have noticed that there is now a dedicated channel for my AI educational series, if you are interested in subscribing, you can stay up to date here.

You can watch the full video here.

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