How to Stop Being Insecure at Work – Freesumes

Sometimes, just one slip-up at work, an email with a typo, or some offhand manager’s comment can ruin your entire day. Instead of crossing off tasks from your to-do list, you brood over what you did and start second-guessing your qualifications. 

Sounds familiar? Well, that’s what insecurity at work looks like — a nagging feeling you need to learn to shake off if you want to be happy, productive, and successful at work. 

This post walks you through the common triggers, examples of insecurities, and real strategies for overcoming them! 

What Causes Insecurity at Work?

The crippling feeling of inadequacy at work can sneak up on anyone, literary any time. Seasoned pros (all up to the C-suite members) occasionally doubt their abilities (and they’re not afraid to admit that!). Roughly a quarter of young women (aged 18 to 30) are feeling insecure at work. 

For the most part, common reasons behind insecurity at work are:

1. Imposter syndrome — the sneaky, inner saboteur, whispering that you’re not ‘good enough’ for the occupied role. Surprisingly, imposter syndrome doesn’t go away with tenure or experience. On the contrary, 71% of CEOs and 65% of senior executives show signs of impostor syndrome, ahead of 33% of early-stage professionals, according to a recent survey. 

2. Lack of recognition. When your boss ignores you (or worse, treats you differently than others in a negative way), your confidence naturally dips. Then again, even in good companies, individual effort can go unnoticed. Only 1 in 3 workers say they’ve received recognition in the past seven weeks. When you only get praised for doing some stellar work once in a blue moon, it’s natural to lose confidence in yourself. 

3. Toxic work environments. When you work at an organization where backstabbing and sabotage from colleagues are normalized, you begin to feel unsure of your capabilities. Likewise, even if one colleague feels threatened by you (and their behavior flies under the manager’s radar), you can still get pretty deep into your head and start to question every move. 

4. Being new in your role. Some companies don’t do a good job with onboarding new staff. Instead of providing helpful resources and a readily available list of contacts, new hires get thrown into the pond and expected to figure out how to swim on their own. Insecurities love to multiply in such high-stress situations. You’ll have to find good coping mechanisms if you want to succeed in a new role. 

Examples of Insecurities at Work

Insecurity takes time to plague your mind. At early stages, it shows as tiny “harmless” habits. But if you let them stick, you risk getting into a much darker mental space. So watch out for the subtle yet telling signs of insecurities at work, such as: 

• Constant need for approval. You can’t move on with the task unless someone validates your choices or confirms you’re doing things correctly, even though you’ve done the same thing hundreds of times before. 

• Avoiding the spotlight. During group brainstorming sessions or team meetings, you prefer to stay quiet. You’re holding back your ideas because you think they won’t be good enough and you’ll be judged poorly. 

• Downplaying your accomplishments. When people do praise your contribution, instead of saying ‘thanks!”, you go with a meek “it was nothing, really”. Although deep down you know that you’ve worked hard to get those results.

All of these behaviors are signals that your insecurities are taking the better of you — and it’s time to act! 

How to Stop Being Insecure at Work: 4 Practical Tips

Overcoming insecurity requires a series of consistent steps to reclaim your confidence. Here are the four best ones to try: 

Track and Celebrate Your Wins

Your insecurities emerge from an internal narrative of now being “good enough”. Change that record by making a point of recognizing your wins. Fotini Iconomopoulos, published author and expert negotiator, recommends curating a  ‘feel-good folder in an inbox’. 

Every time you receive praise for your work, positive feedback, or other compliments, save a snippet in your inbox (or a note app). Then, on a ‘down day’ scroll through those notes to remind yourself that you’ve got what it takes! 

Limit the Comparison Spiral

Our natural tendency to constantly compare ourselves to others isn’t doing us any favors mentally. And social media is only making it’s worth. Even a casual scroll through well-optimized LinkedIn profiles can instill a painful feeling of inadequacy. 

To break away from that damaging comparison spiral, shift the focus back to yourself. Consider comparing yourself to your past self rather than your peers. What have you accomplished over the last 3, 6, or 12 months? Did you acquire some new skills? Made progress in a training program? Got a promotion? That’s the kind of progress that actually matters, and it’s proof that you’re growing professionally! 

Deal With Undermining Colleagues

There are quite a few types of toxic “species” at the workplace: Colleagues who think they’re better than you (for no valid reason) or freeloaders, who like to causally take advantage of you and then claim credit. These types can easily make you second-guess yourself. 

Stop tolerating these behaviors. Call out people who are not being genuine or nice in private at first. If the issue doesn’t get resolved, approach their supervisor for advice. Finally, if nothing of that helps, you can always report problematic colleagues to HR.  

Ask for Constructive Feedback

Feedback is arguably the most effective tool for personal growth. When it’s thoughtful and well-framed, it helps you become more self-aware about your strengths and weaknesses. And course-correct in areas where you really lack some chops. 

Schedule a 1:1 meeting with your supervisor. Then ask them:  “What’s one thing I could improve on?” To balance out the criticism, follow up with “And what’s something I did well this month?”. This approach helps you get great insights while also showing that you’re coachable and have a growth mindset. 

Conclusion 

Remember: Feeling inadequate at work has nothing to do with your abilities. These negative feelings are often triggered by your environment, your interactions with colleagues, or unrealistic standards you’ve set for yourself. By understanding where those feelings come from, you can learn how to overcome insecurities and rebuild your confidence from the inside out!