Episode 71: 5 Ways To Overcome Self Doubt

When you're thinking about using your skills as an educator in a new way, it's completely normal to feel overwhelmed and struggle with self-doubt. After years of working with so many teachers as part of Educator Forever, I've realized that teachers go through some predictable stages when they begin to look for work outside of teaching.

Being a classroom teacher is so entwined with our identity. So much so that we can simply think of ourselves as just being teachers. But there's no such thing as “just a teacher.” We do so many things, our skills are so valuable, impressive, and applicable in other areas. You truly are an education expert.

So when you're dealing with self-doubt, or really any other obstacle, the most important thing to do is to move through it, recognize it, feel it, and even appreciate your doubtful feelings… Then don't let it stop you. Keep taking action to make your dreams a reality. And you can use these five tips to overcome self-doubt when you're stuck.

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Read the transcript for this episode:

Welcome to educator forever, where we empower teachers to innovate education. Join us each week to hear stories of teachers expanding their impacts beyond the classroom and explore ways to reimagine teaching and learning.

When you're thinking about using your skills as an educator in a new way, it's completely normal to feel overwhelmed and struggle with self doubt. After years of working with so many teachers as part of Educator Forever, I've realized that teachers go through some predictable stages when they begin to look for work outside of teaching. And luckily, there are some simple ways to overcome self doubt and boost your competence.

Generally, when people come to Educator Forever, they feel burnt out, and they feel unsure about their next move. It is even hard to carve out the mental space to really think about that next move when you're an exhausted burnt out teacher. The first step is seeing the possibilities. And when I work with people and they see the possibility, their mood changes. Suddenly these exhausted teachers are energized and excited and ready to get out there and make their dreams happen. But when they are ready to take action, self doubt often reappears. Bummer, right? But trying new things can feel scary, and it's completely understandable when self doubt creeps in.

Being a classroom teacher is so entwined with our identity. So much so that we can simply think of ourselves as just being teachers. But there's no such thing as just a teacher, we do so many things, our skills are so valuable, impressive, and applicable in other areas, you truly are an education expert. So when you're dealing with self doubt, or really any other obstacle, the most important thing to do is to move through it, recognize it, feel it and even appreciate your doubtful feelings, then don't let it stop you keep taking action to make your dreams a reality. And you can use these five tips to overcome self doubt when you're stuck.

The first tip is to boost your confidence, kind of easier said than done. But one of the best ways to overcome self doubt is really to boost your confidence. So you can do this by making a list of your skills and your teaching experience. And keep challenging yourself to add more to the list. The important thing here is to push yourself to think of a lot of skills. Don't let yourself stop until you have at least 20 things listed. And then keep adding to this list over time. Seeing your accomplishments and your skills on paper can be a huge confidence boost, you can see wow, I have learned so much. And you can look back at it with pride. And then you can keep this list in a convenient place and add to it over and over and over. You can also use this list when applying for jobs, pull out things that you've done and skills that you've built while writing resumes and cover letters. And really draw on your unique experience as an educator. You can also look back at letters you've received from some former students or former colleagues and use that as a competence boost too.

Along with that is tip two, which is seeking an outside perspective. If you're not sure what others value about them. Or if you're not sure what others value about you ask. It can feel scary, but it also brings incredible clarity when you ask others to share about your skills. You can think about praise others have given you as well. Why did people come to you for advice, what the students or colleagues value about you? Add these things to your list? Really ask people what do you think I'm good at and listen, listen. These strengths can be hard to see when you're struggling with self doubt. But pay attention. Paying attention to and documenting positive feedback you get from others is one of the best ways to overcome that self doubt.

The third tip is to talk about your hesitation. Don't run away from it, normalize it. When we realize what's holding us back we shed light on important information. By acknowledging and talking about self doubt, we're able to find a way through it and you don't have to go at it alone. One of the best ways to overcome it is to talk through your feelings with a loved one or a colleague. And if you're not up for talking, you can journal about what you're feeling. Writing can really be a therapeutic tool to help you move through challenging feelings.

Along with that is number four which is normalizing your feelings. When you are feeling doubtful, sometimes we can start to feel guilty about feeling doubtful, and that's not great. There's no shame in feeling self doubt. And just because you're feeling doubtful doesn't mean that your concerns are valid. If you're feeling like your skills or your experience is not enough, that doesn't mean they're not enough. That just means you're feeling that way. So normalize your feelings and let go of any guilt around them. Just recognizing your self doubt is a big first step towards managing it. And let's just try and normalize it across the board. Everyone feels like this sometimes and you don't have to let it stop you.

So number five is to do the thing. The tough and amazing solution for self doubt is taking action. confront your fears head on and do the thing that scares you. That will be the biggest confidence boost of them all. When you can celebrate that you did something that was scary. When you can celebrate that you move forward when you're feeling self doubt, that is cause for celebration. We can get stuck in spirals of self doubt and impostor syndrome, but the only way forward is to keep moving. Truly feel and recognize your fears, and take forward action. Through this action is really where you're going to learn. You're going to gain new skills, get clarity and build your risk taking muscles.

Always remember, as a teacher, you are an expert in learning, you can learn anything. This expertise can be used to help yourself learn how to do anything you're committed to doing. And committing to taking action is one of the best ways that you can overcome self doubt. Whether you're feeling self doubt when considering a promotion or a new role, or you're ready to leave the classroom all together, there are plenty of ways that you can boost your confidence and move forward towards your ideal future. One of the best ways is to surround yourselves with others who are making a similar change or can see what you want to do. Having a community that understands the challenges that come along with leaving the classroom will go a long way towards helping you overcome self doubt. And I hope that being part of the larger educator forever community helps you see that there are so many people taking risks going after their dreams and doing it while feeling self doubt. So I'm curious and encourage you to go forward. Feeling self doubt. Don't let it stop you. Move forward. Do the thing that you want to do.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

Lily Jones