Overcoming Imposter Syndrome & Confidently Becoming the Expert
Episode Summary:
What does it look like to give yourself permission to take up space in the online community that really is becoming increasingly noisy in a lot of ways? I think there are more people coming online, which is a great thing, it just means our community is growing. But, I do think it's more important than ever to figure out how you release Imposter Syndrome to confidently show up as the expert so that you can stand out in the online space in a way that feels really aligned to you.
So we're going to dive into it today – overcoming Imposter Syndrome and confidently becoming the expert that I know you can be.
Topics Discussed:
Believing that you are meant to serve your people exactly as you are and feeling safe in calling yourself an expert
How to not over saturate yourself with learning and content consumption and listen to your intuition and take action
The power of creating thought leadership in your business and why it’s a must for overcoming Imposter Syndrome
The reminder that the average person has not heard what you have to say
Breaking down Imposter Syndrome as ego and giving yourself permission to stop, be present, and ask yourself what message is on your heart
Episode Resources:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google | Stitcher
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Anna Rapp (01:14):
Hi. Hi, my dear friends. Happy Tuesday. I am so excited to, oops, let's make sure it's going live. <Laugh> welcome you to day two of the Visibility Boost Challenge. If you're just now tuning in, you are for sure not too late all week long. I'm going live and just encouraging you, hopefully giving you a boost so that your visibility can get a Bo Boost online. And I just think this is such an important topic, right? What does it look like to give yourself permission to take up space in the online space that really is becoming increasingly noisy in a lot of ways, right? I do think there are more people coming online, which is a great thing. It just means our community is growing. But I do think it's more important than ever to figure out how do you release imposter syndrome and confidently show up as the expert so that you can stand out in the online space in a way that feels really aligned to you.
Anna Rapp (02:08):
So we're gonna dive into it today, overcoming imposter syndrome and confidently becoming the expert. But before we do, I wanna remind you that this is day two of the challenge. And you have some homework. You have a homework assignment. So your job is to write to the prompt. I have a prompt I'm gonna give you, I'll pop it in the chat box. My top three tips for blank that lasts my top three tips for blank that lasts and the blank is I want you to get clear on what your ideal client wants most. Okay? Let me pop this in here. So here's some examples I put for different niches, my top three tips for holistic weight loss that lasts. Another example is ready to find the one. Here's my top three tips. Another is three foundational habits for staying fully booked. Another one is Three parenting hats to get your Toddler to Love Bedtime.
Anna Rapp (03:07):
Three changes you can make today to improve your S e O, right? So those are just examples for you. I'm gonna pop it in the chat box so you have a little script. But let's start getting visible. <Laugh>. Let's, and the cool thing about this is I really encourage you to write this as a piece of written content, but then this makes a great really high value reel, right? Something you can like pop off. And what I find for me, my reels and my video content is easiest when I've like pre-thought it and scripted it a little bit, right? I feel like video content is getting shorter and shorter, and so we just have to be on it when we and pre-think about what we're gonna say. So your job today is to write a post. Write this post and post it in the Facebook group, and I would love to see it and give you feedback and then bonus points if you wanna record a short video on it and really give yourself permission to, since you have that thought leadership created, do a little video and then you can pop your, I love doing like a one minute video just recording it on my phone outside of any app.
Anna Rapp (04:06):
And then you can upload it as a reel here in the Facebook group. And you could also upload it as a reel on Instagram and tag me too, and I'm happy to re-share. But yes, excited to see your beautiful content. I don't know why, but I've always love reviewing my client's content. I dunno if this is just like a secret weird thing, but like, I've always just enjoyed reading. I think it's because like as women, I don't think we own our thought leadership enough. And I just think that there's like power in writing and getting something down. And you'll find like once you start writing, it's hard to stop. But usually it's like the getting started. That's the hardest part, right? Okay. So also a quick reminder that in the challenge this week, if you sign up for Visible Impact, which is my cell study visibility course, which takes you through six key steps to consistently getting visible online and posting on social media in a way that's super aligned for you helps you, it has so many resources, it has a resource library and then also has the six steps and the six steps help you release your visibility blocks, help you create a six week content plan, help you figure out how to create your content in advance.
Anna Rapp (05:13):
I call it like a one hour workshop you do every week. And it really is the simplest way I know. And then I teach my clients to get visible online and market their businesses. And so if you use the code boost, you save a hundred dollars on the program this week. So it drops it down to 1 97. And this is an amazing program. I've actually walked over a hundred women through this program, plus more if you count my clients. And it really just works. It is like the foundational foundations you need to know when it comes to visibility and online marketing. And I really feel like there's no one better you could take it from, because I really like walking my talk when it comes to that stuff. Okay? Today, I wanna give you the biggest virtual hug and pep talk when it comes to overcoming imposter syndrome and confidently owning your expertise in your business.
Anna Rapp (05:59):
Because this is something I work with my clients on when they're starting to get visible for the first time. And honestly, it's a conversation I have with my clients that are making over six figures and multiple six figures, right? Because I really think as women we are told the message that I don't know for whatever reason, that like, we're not allowed to shine or take up space or like, you know, we don't wanna like be attention hogs. And I think that it's reminding yourself that like it's safe for you to take up space to own the magnificent, beautiful, brilliant woman that you are. And again, that truth, that you don't have to be the ultimate expert to own the expert that you are and stand out in the online space and then let your audience choose if they wanna hire you or not, right?
Anna Rapp (06:46):
I have some words, I just wanna speak over you as I was journaling through this. And just a reminder, and I want, if you're, if you're coming across this, I know this was meant for you and I wanna remind you that you are capable, qualified, confident, confident, clear, worthy enough, it's safe for you to take up space. Can you believe that for a minute? <Laugh>, right? You might be like, maybe not me, right? Yes, you, you are capable. And what I wanna say too is you are the perfect person for your people. It's kind of like how I think about motherhood, right? I think about, for me, I am so grounded in the fact that I am not the perfect mom, but I am the perfect mom for my kids. And really trusting and believing that like I am, like knowing that God put me as the mom of my kids for a reason and I am exactly what they need.
Anna Rapp (07:43):
And it's safe for me to own that and believe it. I don't have to be like the best mom in the world, but I am the best mom for my kids. Same thing with your business, right? You don't have to feel like you're the best health coach in the world, but can you believe that your combination of education and training with your experience and story is exactly what your clients need? Can you trust that? Right? They don't need Susie Health coach down the street. They don't need Billy personal trainer. They need you. And you were selected by the universe to cross paths with them for a reason. Can you believe that when you believe that the imposter syndrome kind of gets shattered, right? Because it's like, for me, I really believe in the divine timing of it. Like, yes, I'm gonna show up. Yes, I'm gonna get visible online.
Anna Rapp (08:25):
Yes, I'm gonna have a clear offer and market it, but at the end of the day, I kind of like the magic and the mystery of it all in that like I show up and the right people are gonna cross paths with me and the people that cross paths with me. I am gonna give them my whole heart when it comes to helping them get the result that they want in their life, right? And so again, shifting the mindset away from like, I have to be the expert, the biggest expert in the world to like I am the perfect coach for my clients, for my people, my way works best for my people. I hear a lot of my clients get sucked up around like, you know, having like the perfect method or the perfect framework and really comparing your framework to other coaches' frameworks, but really believing my way works best for my people.
Anna Rapp (09:09):
And I hear a lot of people too as they post online, have this fear around like, what if what I say conflicts with what another coach says, right? Or like, what if I'm post something and like people say that I'm wrong, right? And again, just really believing back down to that truth of like, my way works best for my people and I'm gonna show up. I'm gonna shine my light, I'm gonna serve the people that are attracted to my message and the people that aren't. That's okay. Two, right? Okay, so two statements that might help you with this are, I have a thought and I wanna share it. I have a method, I wanna teach it, I have a story, I wanna share it, right? Keeping it as simple as that. If you have a thought, right? And this is so the importance of making sure that we're not oversaturating ourself with learning when we're stuck in imposter syndrome, sometimes we can like binge learning, we can every spare minute of our day, we can be filling it with a podcast episode or a YouTube video, right?
Anna Rapp (10:07):
Which isn't bad, but I really think like as thought leaders, one of the most important things we can do is like listen to ourselves. And how are we gonna do that if our world is continually noisy, right? So for me, this looks like making sure that I spend time in the car where I just have music on or silence, right? For me it's like really being mindful of you for me to talk about this concept before which I call gold space, which is like while I'm with my kids, like at the park, really just clearing my mind almost in a meditative state and really seeing like what downloads the universe wants to give me or creative solutions it wants to give me in res res regards to a problem I'm wanting to solve, right? And so really allowing yourself to have that space and when you have a thought, being willing to share without the filter and without the second guessing, right?
Anna Rapp (10:53):
When I was coaching this program, visible impact lie with group coaching clients. So many of my clients, when I would do content, content workshopping with them, they would say like, I don't know what to say. And I'm like, do you really not know what to say? Or what I would find is they would have a thought, but the time between when they'd have the thought and when they'd go to write the thought, they would dismantle that thought by saying it's not good enough, or that's not really a value, or someone else has already said that, right? So it's giving yourself permission when you have the thought, when you have the story, just sharing it, just putting it out there, right? The cool thing about content too is I really see all content that we put out here as creators as a rough draft and you can change and improve it over time.
Anna Rapp (11:35):
Almost every piece of content that you're seeing now in my business I wrote before and it's been edited and repurposed and reused. The cool thing about that is you can shift it over time with your thought leadership, right? As you're like, Ooh, I would say that differently now. Instead of like feeling like every piece of content has to be perfect, just remind yourself like, this is a rough draft, this is just going out there. I can always improve it as I go, right? Similarly, I think the next level of expertise, if you're already visible online, is making sure that you're really in your programs. You're really creating some thought leadership and starting to name things, right? Whether it's putting a really good name behind your program, right? You know, invisible Impact. One of my main frameworks is the engagement funnel, which is the four main types of visibility that really engages and converts your audience.
Anna Rapp (12:25):
I just made up that name. The engagement funnel, it's not really a thing, right? I just wanted to like be anti bro marketing and all of that. And so giving yourself permission if you have a method, if you have a signature way of doing things, giving yourself permission to name things is huge when it comes to imposter cimon thought leadership, right? Like when I named my book 20 K Freedom Fund, I rename savings accounts, freedom funds because I wanted to, right? I named my mastermind Cell with heart because that's what I wanted it to be. So it's reminding yourself, I think in, in a lot of things in business, I think we overthink and we spend too much time on, but one thing I think people don't spend enough time on is naming their stuff, okay? Because I think the names of your programs and of your methods and of your models, that's like, people see that more than anything else, right?
Anna Rapp (13:15):
They're gonna hear the name of your program a hundred percent of the time, they're gonna read all of your sales page copy like 30% of the time, right? Or whatever it is. And so it's giving yourself permission to name or rename a program to make sure that the name is really captivating and compelling, right? When you think about a method that you take your client through, call it the something method, right? As I would love to hear, like what's a method in your business that you need to give a name to that you need it. Like that's what makes it official. And with imposter syndrome, I think we are waiting on someone else to give us permission, kind of like in a day job when we waited for a boss instead of as entrepreneurs, we need to give ourself permission to name the thing to make it official, right?
Anna Rapp (14:02):
Oh, let me read all of your beautiful comments. Hi Amanda. Hi Kim. Welcome. I'm so glad to have you here. Donna says, I totally relate to wanting to share a thought or story and waiting and not doing it. And here's the hack too, is when you have a thought or when you have an insight, maybe you're in the car, maybe you're in the shower, when you have a story, write it down. It doesn't mean you have to share it, right? It doesn't mean you have to share it ever or now, but I think there's something beautiful about honoring those little insights, those little pings that come to us by writing it down and recording it, whether it's a voice note or whether it's a written message. And then you can decide your decide, do I wanna share this? Yes or no? If I do wanna share it, when do I share it, right?
Anna Rapp (14:45):
I think sometimes we don't trust ourselves and we're like, if I write it down, then like I have to share it or then then it like, like, or we're wanting to like perfect things in our head before it's written down and that's just not how it happens, right? We work out our thoughts in real time. It's like vulnerable and messy, but just giving yourself permission to like start to dump the thoughts and make sure you have a central place to do this too. If you're writing your content ideas on a napkin and on your phone and on the computer, no, no, no. Create one central invisible impact. I have a content prompt workbook that gives you all these beautiful prompts so that you're never dry on these when it comes to content. But the first page of that workbook is called, what's the name of it?
Anna Rapp (15:28):
A content do the called a parking lot. Anyway, it's a space for you, a blank page for you to write your ideas and your thought leadership and just allow yourself to pour it out right there, right? I really feel like my thought leadership comes in like ebbs and flows too, right? When I'm getting, when I get inspired with stories and ideas and stuff like that. Okay, let's see, anything else I wanted to say on it? I think that that's it. I think I just wanted to give you the biggest hug and say that it's so normal to feel a lot of comparisonitis <laugh>, right? You've heard me say this before too, but like I had a client come to me once and she was a yoga teacher and she was like, Anna, I went to go post about this one yoga post, which I had never heard of, even though I do yoga, right?
Anna Rapp (16:15):
But I went to post it and all the other yoga teachers on my feed were posting that post. So I didn't post it cuz everyone's posting about it. Her feed was filled with yoga teachers because that's who she follows. I follow like no yoga teachers. So literally my feed did not have any of that going on, right? And so I think there's this phenomenon on social media right now where it shows us, it's showing us the ads, it's showing us who we're following, right? So we're fe we're hearing from our peers, right before the online space, we didn't really hear from our peers as much. Now literally all of our peers are in our face all the time. And I can tell you what to do about that. But it's just reminding yourself that and reminding like the average person has not heard what you have to say.
Anna Rapp (16:57):
I also think like what is basic needs to be said again and again, right here I am talking about visibility, right? And yet so few people are consistently visible online, right? And so it's just reminding yourself people need not just your message, but they need it told in your voice. They, you know what? We, we resonate with different people and different people's stories. So just reminding yourself that it's safe to do that. On a practical note, I really encourage you to use the mute button on Instagram. Use the unfollow feature on Facebook. You can still stay friends with someone and still be following them on Instagram, right? But if you mute them then you're not gonna be seeing their stories and posts in your feed and like remembering you're here for work, you're here to make money, you're here to do the thing. I don't know about you, but for the most part I'm here to like post online for a little bit, hang out, do my business thing and then like unplug and do my own thing, right?
Anna Rapp (17:49):
A lot of times if I capture photos or videos, I do it just on my camera app outside of social media. That way I can post it later when I'm working right? And just give yourself permission to like get on work and if someone is accidentally hindering you from that because you're comparing yourself online or it's triggering you or whatever, like I'm all for working on your triggers, but also I think there's a time and space to just like unfollow or mute and just allow yourself to like not be distracted online, right? Again, that's why I'm the biggest fan too of writing your content not on social media, right? So invisible impact I teach you to, I have a Google Doc template where you write your content, whether it's a script for a reel, whether it's a written social media post on a Google Doc, right?
Anna Rapp (18:35):
We do not wanna be writing our content on social media for multiple reasons, right? Number one, how are you gonna save it and reuse it? Number two, when you're in social media, then you're seeing other people's stuff. It just takes way too long. The reason why I'm so efficient at social media content, well now cause I'm repurposing everything I wrote, but also because I created off social media, right? I'm recording a little one minute video of me talking not on Instagram, right? I'm writing on a Google Doc and I think that that's like the biggest advice I can give you too, because then you're in your bubble and you're not comparing yourself, you're not seeing other people's stuff. You're just in your zone. Whether it's for 30 minutes or however long you're writing, you're getting it done. And then ah, you can take a deep breath, you can celebrate yourself and then you can go post that on social, right?
Anna Rapp (19:19):
But you're not doing it from a place of like being in the app itself. Again, make sure that you grab visible impact. If you want more on this 1 97, it's an amazing program. Really simple six steps you can rinse and repeat teaches you to get visible online and content plan for six weeks in your business at a time. I'm a big fan of like doing your visibility six weeks at a time. And again, remember you can save a hundred dollars with the code boost and I hope it gives you a boost. I hope all those little videos, it's a little six step process you can do in about, you know, one or two hours and then there's a library of resources based on where you're feeling stuck or struggling. If you're stuck on your messaging, if you're stuck on Instagram reels, right?
Anna Rapp (20:06):
Then you go to that library and you I just feel like it's so easy to buy an online course and not actually use it. And so this is why my clients are able to really use this program so much is because the six steps you can do in two hours and then the library, you can go to the buffet and pick what you need based on where you're at. If you need support around your Facebook group, if you need support around Instagram, right? If you need support around, you know, pitching yourself to podcasts, right? Whatever specific visibility thing you need, there's that like beautiful library. But the six stats is what I would do first because that's gonna refine your consistent system for showing up online in a way where you're gonna consistently be posting and attracting clients. Okay? Feel free to let me know if you have any questions on it.
Anna Rapp (20:49):
But again, let me leave you with these parting words and reminders that you are capable, qualified, confident, competent, clear, worthy enough, it's safe to take up space online. Your voice is enough, your voice and your story matters. It really, really does. We really need you in the online space. We need heart-centered women speaking up, sharing their truth. And so anything I can do to help you with that, help you release any blocks that are keeping you from using your voice and sharing your story. Your story matters. Your story matters. And remembering that like when you post and share your story, whether it's going live or posting a post on Instagram, if one person I, here's the thing, this is so, I mean this is like overly spiritual, I believe in God. But for me, I really feel like it's gonna be so fun when we get to heaven to see like all the people we impacted that we never knew, right?
Anna Rapp (21:42):
And for me, like it's not really my responsibility to know my job is to like show up, share my story, do my work with my audience, but also with my paying clients. And that knowing I'm not really in charge of like the impact. I know that God's gonna fuel me and give me income as a return for that. But at the end of the day, like knowing that I'm responsible for sharing my story, I really feel called that, you know, as we share our story, that that's what makes a difference. And I feel like in a world where we're increasingly busy, we're increasingly disconnected, the world is increasingly loud. I think it's our job as heart-centered women to not give up and to share our heart and to share our story for, for, for the time that we're here on earth. And maybe that like sounds a little morbid, but you know, I was sitting with my, I think you guys, I told you guys on Instagram last night that I ate a bag full of carrots.
Anna Rapp (22:30):
I did not know, but it gave me the worst stomach cramps. I didn't know that eating too many carrot if you don't eat too many carrots, public surface announcement. But I ate way too many carrots and so I had the worst stomach ache and I was just sitting on the couch because eat, I'm not someone that like stands still usually, normally I'm like busy all over, but I literally could not get off the couch cuz my stomach hurt so bad. And my sweet daddy came over and he brought me chicken soup and he rubbed my feet and he filled some holes on my wall cause I'm getting ready to move, you know? And like being in pain like that caused me to slow down enough where I was just like sitting on the couch and still, and my two little kids were like snuggled up next to me and my dad was like telling us these stories and making us laugh.
Anna Rapp (23:15):
And I just had a moment of appreciation for being in that moment of like, okay, thank you God for the stomach ache that like it made me slow down on a week where I otherwise would've never slowed down because I'm packing and getting ready to move and just felt like I enjoyed that moment with my dad and my kids. And afterwards he told my kids a bedtime story. So I was like creepily watching that and tearing up and like just those moments of being together, you know, those moments of stillness that that will never get back. I just treasure those moments. I think that they're so powerful and important and I'm someone that like I love to dream for the future. I also love to reflect on the past, but I just think there's something powerful about tapping into the present moment. Tapping into the present moment.
Anna Rapp (23:55):
And I think there's nothing that forces us to tap into the present moment more so than online visibility, right? Really asking yourself, what's the story I'm called to tell right now? What's that thought? That insight, that intuitive thing that I wanna share and sharing like in the present moment and letting that be enough. I mean that shatters imposter syndrome too, right? When we release the pressure of our goals of the future, when we release our experiences for better and worse in the past, right? When we release those identities, you know what I mean? They're almost like false identities, like who we were and who we will be. And when we instead channel like who are we right now? What's the message I have right now? What's the story I have right now and how can I share that with heart and integrity? Because really at the end of the day, this present moment is all we have, right?
Anna Rapp (24:45):
And can I be humble enough to share it? Let that be enough. And I think for me, I think honestly, I think imposter syndrome is ego <laugh>. Like it really is ego, right? It really is. What are other people thinking of me? What am I thinking of me? Instead of like, it really doesn't matter, I'm just gonna show up and share my truth online and trust that the right people are gonna be attracted to me and pay me money. Like that's it at its core, right? Okay. So giving yourself permission to stop and be present and really ask yourself what message is on my heart either, you know, in the invisible impact I teach the four types of visibility, right? Engagement, authority, authenticity and sales. And I really encourage you to ask yourself with those two middle ones, authority and authenticity. Am I, am I like, what teaching am I? Am I feeling called to share today? What tip can I give that's gonna help someone? Right? Or the authenticity. What story can I share that's on my heart that I've experienced something that's funny, something that's a teachable moment, right? What can I share and how can I show up with that in the present moment and just write it down and let that be enough. Okay? Love you girls so much. Thank you so much for tuning in and hope you have a beautiful rest of your day.
PS: In the midst of this challenging time I’ve been asking myself what I can do to help? One of the #1 ways I support my clients is by helping them simplify their business so that they can increase the flow of money without creating extra work. In this season simplified visibility and sales is needed more than ever.
So if you’re craving personal support as you reposition your free and paid work, I’d love to help you simplify your sales process so that you can produce income in your business even during a challenging time. If you want support you can check out my services and book a free discovery call here, or you can send me a DM on Instagram.