Speaker 1: LinkedIn News.
Speaker 2: I feel like I put a lot of pressure on
Speaker 2: myself and that's what caused a lot of the imposter
Speaker 2: syndrome because I was like, yeah, other people are telling
Speaker 2: me that, like you can do it and it's going
Speaker 2: to be great, But I was like, I don't know
Speaker 2: that I'm going to be able to prove them right.
Speaker 3: Yeah, you wanted them to see you in the way
Speaker 3: that you wanted to show up. That's not your problem. Like,
Speaker 3: you are qualified, you are unique, you know what you're doing.
Speaker 3: You don't live to fulfill other people's expectations of you.
Speaker 2: From LinkedIn News and i Heeart Podcasts, this is Let's
Speaker 2: Talk Offline, a show about what it takes to thrive
Speaker 2: in the early years of your career without sacrificing your values, sanity,
Speaker 2: or sleep.
Speaker 3: I'm Giana Prudenti and I'm Jamaie Jackson Gadson. Let me
Speaker 3: ask you, have you ever been at work in thought? Wow?
Speaker 3: These people are so much smarter and more talented than me.
Speaker 1: I mean, what am I doing here? Do I belong?
Speaker 2: Well?
Speaker 3: First of all, let me tell you you do belong.
Speaker 3: But it's also totally okay to feel like you don't.
Speaker 1: In poster syndrome.
Speaker 3: Ugh.
Speaker 4: It's something everybody experiences.
Speaker 2: Yes, especially when you're early in your career. You're probably
Speaker 2: going into your first job, which is like this cloud
Speaker 2: of self doubt hovering over you. Ugh. But I'm gonna
Speaker 2: let you in on a little secret. Your manager, your coworkers,
Speaker 2: your company's executives have probably experienced imposter syndrome.
Speaker 1: Like literally everybody has. It's so common.
Speaker 2: And today we're going to talk about how to overcome
Speaker 2: those feelings of self doubt and tackle that pesky imposter syndrome.
Speaker 3: Okay, So before we jump into today's episode, big announcement, guys,
Speaker 3: this is the last episode of this season. Farewell to
Speaker 3: use the.
Speaker 1: Cuba waterworks.
Speaker 3: We've absolutely loved hanging out with all of you this
Speaker 3: season and building this beautiful community of work besties.
Speaker 1: Oh you guys are beautiful.
Speaker 3: We really hope these conversations have been helpful for you, guys,
Speaker 3: wherever you are in your career journey.
Speaker 2: I feel like I'm like screaming, crying, throwing up.
Speaker 1: I feel emotional right now.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: I feel like whether you're early in your career, making
Speaker 2: a pivot, you know, starting your first job, whatever it
Speaker 2: might be, I think what's been so special about this
Speaker 2: show is that, yes, it's geared toward younger professionals like myself,
Speaker 2: but we really covered a lot of topics that everyone
Speaker 2: can relate to, and we've talked about things that most
Speaker 2: people face at some point in their careers. So we
Speaker 2: hope everyone enjoyed hearing these conversations as much as we
Speaker 2: did recording them.
Speaker 4: Yeah, we're all in this together.
Speaker 1: We're all in this.
Speaker 4: You see, I'm in the sing song move today. I
Speaker 4: like it.
Speaker 3: So look, we wanted to end the season off of
Speaker 3: a bang Chitty chitty bang bang. All right, Today we're
Speaker 3: going to talk about imposter syndrome, because the truth is
Speaker 3: everyone experiences it, and when you're particularly early in your career,
Speaker 3: you might be feeling a little bit more than usual.
Speaker 3: So Gianna tell us all about imposter syndrome.
Speaker 2: My good friend impostor's syndrome. So, imposter syndrome, it's that
Speaker 2: feeling that you're incompetent or not good enough despite the
Speaker 2: evidence that you are, and you feel undeserving of whatever
Speaker 2: you achieved or opportunities that are coming your way, and
Speaker 2: somehow you're like, how did I fool everyone? Like I
Speaker 2: just pulled off this master plan and everyone thinks I'm
Speaker 2: qualified for this, but it's the greatest heist. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 2: So if you're like I think I experience imposter syndrome
Speaker 2: or I know I do, but I don't know to
Speaker 2: what degree, there's actually a test that you can take.
Speaker 2: So the person who introduced the idea of imposter syndrome,
Speaker 2: a psychologist, doctor Pauline Klans, developed this test called the
Speaker 2: Clan's Impost Phenomenon Scale, to help assess your poster syndrome.
Speaker 2: We're gonna include a link in the show description so
Speaker 2: you could check it out. It has twenty statements and
Speaker 2: you respond on a scale of one to five, one
Speaker 2: being not at all true and five being very true.
Speaker 2: So I'm gonna read a few of those statements.
Speaker 1: I'm from the test.
Speaker 2: We don't have to take the test live because it
Speaker 2: might be said, okay. One, I have often succeeded on
Speaker 2: a test or task even though I was afraid I
Speaker 2: would not do well. Two, I can give the impression
Speaker 2: that I'm more competent than I really am. Three I
Speaker 2: avoid evaluations if possible, and have a dread of others
Speaker 2: evaluating me.
Speaker 1: I feel that I feel.
Speaker 3: Gathered just by those three questions, and there's twenty of them.
Speaker 1: Wow, that's a lot, but not today.
Speaker 3: I think that's that's a good place to start, definitely,
Speaker 3: so we will be taking this test as well. So, look,
Speaker 3: imposter syndrome is actually a very normal feeling and everyone experiences.
Speaker 3: And I cannot emphasize that enough because when you start
Speaker 3: takenoledge your own imposter syndrome in your life, you like,
Speaker 3: oh my gosh, it's only me.
Speaker 1: No, it's not.
Speaker 3: Particularly for women and people of color, though, we have
Speaker 3: to navigate an additional layer of imposter syndrome because not
Speaker 3: only are we balancing racial systemic biases, but we're also
Speaker 3: balancing gender biases in the workplace. So particularly when you
Speaker 3: don't see that representation in your leadership, no matter what
Speaker 3: industry you're in, when there's still a pay gap between
Speaker 3: men and women, when you still have the patriarchy, like
Speaker 3: it's just there's patriarch, not the patriarchy, it can be
Speaker 3: really hard to feel like you belong or that your
Speaker 3: work is even appreciated. Yeah, So what I found really
Speaker 3: interesting are people who we look up to in the world,
Speaker 3: people who we model after, who have also publicly spoken
Speaker 3: about imposter syndrome.
Speaker 1: So here are the.
Speaker 3: Receipts of just a few people who have said that
Speaker 3: they've experienced in post syndrome.
Speaker 1: That kind of blew my mind.
Speaker 3: So first of all, former First Lady Michelle Obama, excuse me, the.
Speaker 1: Ora tour that you are.
Speaker 3: I would never know what the confidence is strong, positive baby,
Speaker 3: I love it. Former Facebook exact Cheryl Sandberg, which I
Speaker 3: was also very surprised about, because you know, she has
Speaker 3: created this huge mission about like lean in and empowering
Speaker 3: women in the workforce. Supreme Court Justice Sonya Soda Mayor, which, wow, girl,
Speaker 3: the power you have, the power that you have, the
Speaker 3: trailblazer that you are. Tom Hanks, Tom, I love you, Tom, Yeah,
Speaker 3: Tom Hanks.
Speaker 1: Wow.
Speaker 3: And last, but certainly not least on this list, my
Speaker 3: personal hero Viola Davis.
Speaker 1: Love her.
Speaker 3: But you know what's interesting not to go on a tangent,
Speaker 3: but I know that like when she was particularly going
Speaker 3: out for like How to Get Away with Murder and
Speaker 3: Annalise Keating analyse was written for a white woman.
Speaker 4: Yeah.
Speaker 3: Like, usually when you get a character break down, like
Speaker 3: for most places, they will also list out usually the
Speaker 3: ethnicity that they're searching for nowadays are trying to be
Speaker 3: more inclusive, so people will say, like, all ethnicity is allowed,
Speaker 3: but anyway I can go.
Speaker 1: Down hoole candent.
Speaker 3: The point is like people get sourced for things and
Speaker 3: they feel scary.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I feel like you sharing the You know,
Speaker 2: people we look up to who face imposter syndrome, us
Speaker 2: both acknowledging that we have it, like it is a
Speaker 2: very common experience. But I think if you don't do
Speaker 2: anything to address that imposter syndrome, that's when it starts
Speaker 2: to negatively impact your career. So it can definitely cause
Speaker 2: you to say no to opportunities, you know, whether it
Speaker 2: be like going after promotion, taking on a new project,
Speaker 2: is speaking engagement, whatever it is, and then also lead
Speaker 2: to feelings of anxiety and stress about your job, like
Speaker 2: is somebody gonna find out that I'm not qualified to
Speaker 2: do this? Like honey, they hired you. Yeah, I know
Speaker 2: you're qualified. So we want to talk a little bit
Speaker 2: about our own experiences with imposter syndrome, especially when it
Speaker 2: comes to creating.
Speaker 1: Let's talk off line. Tell me, gee, what's been your
Speaker 1: experience well before we get into the podcast.
Speaker 2: Specifically, I think first is like landing a big tech
Speaker 2: job as a new grad. I always would be like,
Speaker 2: if people ask me for advice, I was like, oh,
Speaker 2: I just got super lucky.
Speaker 1: Like I didn't.
Speaker 2: I was like, I don't know, Like I always just
Speaker 2: chalked it up to like I got really lucky. I
Speaker 2: was in the right place at the right time, not
Speaker 2: ever acknowledging like, yeah, I worked really hard to get
Speaker 2: the job that I have. So I think that is
Speaker 2: like my first experience with imposter syndrome. And then also
Speaker 2: when I started speaking on panels and doing more speaking
Speaker 2: engagements externally, I would face the most insane amount of
Speaker 2: imposter syndrome, like why do they ask me to do this?
Speaker 2: They're gonna find out that I am unqualified. And I
Speaker 2: talk a lot about imposter syndrome with our colleague Leah Smart.
Speaker 2: She's the host of LinkedIn's podcast every Day Better So
Speaker 2: check it out. But she always said to me, Gianna,
Speaker 2: when you feel that way, like you're going up on stage,
Speaker 2: you have to say, like, who's better than you? Right,
Speaker 2: Like they asked you for a reason, and you have
Speaker 2: to kind of like sit in that. But with the
Speaker 2: podcast specifically, oh gosh, did I face it? Falter said,
Speaker 2: job yeah, I feel like I just recently told you
Speaker 2: this that after we shot the pilot episode, I literally
Speaker 2: sobbed you did.
Speaker 1: I'm so sorry. I'm not laughing at your drama. It's okay,
Speaker 1: it's totally fine.
Speaker 2: I just remember like being like, crap, I'm not going
Speaker 2: to be able to like hold my like I'm not
Speaker 2: gonna be able to show up.
Speaker 4: Like.
Speaker 2: I just felt so in my head about like am
Speaker 2: I going to be able to perform?
Speaker 1: Am I going to be able to, like, you know,
Speaker 1: do this?
Speaker 2: And I was facing a lot of self doubt and
Speaker 2: even though I had been reporting on gen Z for years,
Speaker 2: I don't know that I can.
Speaker 1: Be what people expect of me.
Speaker 2: And I was very in my head about like who
Speaker 2: even am I?
Speaker 1: What is my voice? I was just like what am
Speaker 1: I doing? You know?
Speaker 2: And I feel like I put a lot of pressure
Speaker 2: on myself and that's what caused a lot of the
Speaker 2: imposter syndrome because I was like, yeah, other people are
Speaker 2: telling me that, like you can do it and it's
Speaker 2: gonna be great, but I was like, I don't know
Speaker 2: that I'm going to.
Speaker 3: Be able to prove them right. Yeah, gee, thank you
Speaker 3: for your honesty. But two things that I want to
Speaker 3: call out that you said. Well, first of all, you know,
Speaker 3: you were saying how you were reporting on gen Z
Speaker 3: for so long, and then now you were given this podcast,
Speaker 3: and the fear came in. Sometimes I think imposter syndrome
Speaker 3: kicks in when you're in new environments. You know the material,
Speaker 3: but now all of a sudden, you have that new job,
Speaker 3: that new opportunity, this new project.
Speaker 1: So that was natural for you to fear.
Speaker 3: But one thing you said that I think I really
Speaker 3: want to make sure everyone, particularly you understand, is that
Speaker 3: you were saying you wanted to make sure that you
Speaker 3: proved to them that like you wanted them to see
Speaker 3: you in the way that you wanted to show up.
Speaker 1: That's not your problem.
Speaker 3: Like that is where I think some of the anxiety
Speaker 3: comes from, because we're trying to control how others perceive us.
Speaker 1: In the moment.
Speaker 3: You are qualified, you are unique, you know what you're doing,
Speaker 3: so when you go into the room, you walk in
Speaker 3: with that, and then their expectation is set based upon
Speaker 3: how you show up. You don't live to fulfill other
Speaker 3: people's expectations of you.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 2: I appreciate saying that, and I do really think it
Speaker 2: is like I study newspaper journalism for a reason, like
Speaker 2: I wanted a byline.
Speaker 1: I didn't want people to like know my face.
Speaker 2: And then I got this incredible opportunity to work at
Speaker 2: this company and have this platform. And then it was
Speaker 2: like getting over being in front of the camera. It
Speaker 2: was getting over the sound of my own voice in
Speaker 2: the beginning. Yeah, so it was like, I'm like, I'm
Speaker 2: not a podcaster. I don't know the first thing. And
Speaker 2: I was like, there's probably other people who could do
Speaker 2: this who know what they're doing, and I think that's
Speaker 2: where it really.
Speaker 4: But you also know what you're doing.
Speaker 1: Now she's learned, she's learned. Yeah, you've learned, but what
Speaker 1: about you?
Speaker 3: So yeah, I mean, imposter syndrum has chased me down
Speaker 3: my entire life. But I've always been a little faster,
Speaker 3: one step ahead, always one step.
Speaker 1: She's just one step.
Speaker 3: Let's see overall in my life, yes, imposter syndrum has
Speaker 3: always been there. I always used to in school get
Speaker 3: like first runner up for things. So whether it was pageants,
Speaker 3: it was talent shows, it was competitions for piano. And
Speaker 3: when you kind of always come up first runner up,
Speaker 3: you just never feel like you're are the winner. You
Speaker 3: always feel like I'm always like one step behind, and
Speaker 3: so seeing that throughout my life, I was always sort
Speaker 3: of in this mindset of I have to work even
Speaker 3: harder to prove and you know, for other reasons that
Speaker 3: like I won't share on the podcast, but just like
Speaker 3: certain things that I saw growing up in home life
Speaker 3: and environments that I was in, a girl like me
Speaker 3: should not be here, and I say that in so
Speaker 3: many ways, she shouldn't be in New York, she shouldn't
Speaker 3: be working at LinkedIn. But I started to change my thinking,
Speaker 3: and I started to say, you know what, even when
Speaker 3: I go into rooms, even if I'm scared, even if
Speaker 3: I feel like I don't belong, even if whatever, I'm
Speaker 3: going to go into those rooms.
Speaker 1: I felt that a lot, particularly.
Speaker 3: When I first launched The Blonde Misfit, because within a
Speaker 3: few years, all of a sudden, I'm getting all these
Speaker 3: awards and I'm getting asked to do stuff. But I
Speaker 3: had to sit with it one day and I was like,
Speaker 3: but this is what you've been working for, all those
Speaker 3: long nights in early mornings and sacrifice weekends in New
Speaker 3: York fashion weeks that has led you to these events
Speaker 3: that has led you to these awards, that has led
Speaker 3: you to whatever. So I had to start recalibrating my
Speaker 3: mind to start saying, like, you don't work the jay
Speaker 3: Z said it best. I didn't work this hard to
Speaker 3: stay the same. And so when I started to really
Speaker 3: understand that, I started to say, you know what, imposter
Speaker 3: syndrome is going to come to the party, but I
Speaker 3: don't have to allow her to dance. Yeah, and so
Speaker 3: thank you. And so it still kicks in. It kicks
Speaker 3: in all the time. And even with the podcast, you know,
Speaker 3: my imposter syndrome kicked in because I was like, good gracious, like,
Speaker 3: am I going to drop the ball? And I felt like,
Speaker 3: you know, I'm not gen Z. I mean I can
Speaker 3: speak somewhat to gen Z. I can speak to being
Speaker 3: a millennial. I can speak to being a young person
Speaker 3: in the workforce. But I thought, you know, well, how
Speaker 3: is my voice going to matter on this podcast? And
Speaker 3: I was like I don't want to and you you,
Speaker 3: you know, from the jump, I was like, I don't
Speaker 3: want to do this podcast if I can't be me.
Speaker 3: And that's Jamay is gonna crack jokes. Jamay is gonna
Speaker 3: talk about the things that matter. Jamay is gonna talk
Speaker 3: about the real stuff, like we can play cookie cutter,
Speaker 3: we can play house, but we also got to be
Speaker 3: serious because these are people's lives. And I've just been
Speaker 3: so thankful that every day, even when I've shown up
Speaker 3: in the imposter syndrome, the mic cuts on and we
Speaker 3: create magic, and the beautiful byproduct of that is what
Speaker 3: you know you all are listening to. So I'm really
Speaker 3: thankful for that. But yeah, imposter syndrum sucks. But again,
Speaker 3: just because she's at the party doesn't mean she has
Speaker 3: to know how it is.
Speaker 2: We've all had a moment where we have spiraled inserted
Speaker 2: wondering can I do this? Am I good enough? I
Speaker 2: know I've had my fair share of those moments. So
Speaker 2: after the break, we're gonna talk about how to tackle
Speaker 2: those intrusive thoughts and those feelings of imposter syndrome.
Speaker 1: That's next.
Speaker 2: All right, guys, we are back talking about imposter syndrome,
Speaker 2: and I want to bring up a question from one
Speaker 2: of our listeners. This is our segment Dear Work, Bestie,
Speaker 2: where we answer your questions. This week's comes from Yvonne
Speaker 2: in California.
Speaker 5: When a new position you're interested in opens up at work,
Speaker 5: but you feel like another coworker is more qualified for
Speaker 5: the role. How do you one not let imposter syndrome
Speaker 5: stop you from pursuing the position, and two how do
Speaker 5: you show your higher ups that you're still a strong
Speaker 5: candidate even though you know there's someone more qualified than you.
Speaker 3: M Yvonne, you want to start, and you want me
Speaker 3: because my mine is really easy.
Speaker 2: I feel like I know what you're gonna say, and
Speaker 2: so let me just say I would first challenge Yvonne
Speaker 2: to say, like, how do you know they're more qualified
Speaker 2: than you?
Speaker 1: Period?
Speaker 2: First that you know, whether maybe it's like seniority, maybe
Speaker 2: they've been at the company longer, maybe they have, you know,
Speaker 2: more on their plate, whatever it might be. First it's like,
Speaker 2: why do you think they're more qualified than you? Is
Speaker 2: somebody telling you that? Or is it you in your
Speaker 2: head about it? Because I know I would be up
Speaker 2: in my head living rent free.
Speaker 1: That's a personal thing anyway.
Speaker 2: And also to focus on why you are qualified, like
Speaker 2: why are you qualified for that position? Because you are
Speaker 2: so focusing more on that than like this person is
Speaker 2: more qualified than me. So I think once you kind
Speaker 2: of like show yourself your own receipts of like, yeah,
Speaker 2: I did this, that and that, and this is why
Speaker 2: I'm qualified. You kind of you know, build that confidence.
Speaker 2: So I think that would be for one, how to
Speaker 2: not let imposter syndrome stappy For me been going after
Speaker 2: it is like, let them do the denying. Don't deny yourself,
Speaker 2: don't self reject.
Speaker 3: Girl, the words right out of my mouth, yvon. First
Speaker 3: of all, who else is applying for that job?
Speaker 1: That's not your business.
Speaker 3: Look, there are things in life we can control and
Speaker 3: things we cannot. Okay, this is something you can't control,
Speaker 3: and more importantly, things that should not live rent free
Speaker 3: in your mind. Spend that time, money, effort, energy doing
Speaker 3: what you can, which is showing yourself to be the
Speaker 3: best candidate. At the end of the day, they are
Speaker 3: going to make their decision based on a number of factors.
Speaker 3: Some of them are going to be tangible, some of
Speaker 3: them are going to be intangible. And just because you
Speaker 3: think that person is stronger in certain skill sets than
Speaker 3: you are, use that to say, Okay, let me go
Speaker 3: take some LinkedIn learning courses, let me go get enrolled
Speaker 3: and get another degree, let me pursue some you know,
Speaker 3: external education. Yeah, exactly, like use that as ammunition rather
Speaker 3: than as a crutch. But at the end of the day,
Speaker 3: it's not your job to say, like, oh, because they're
Speaker 3: more proficient in X versus me, that they're going to
Speaker 3: get the job.
Speaker 1: Let them decide that.
Speaker 2: And when it comes to showing higher ups like that
Speaker 2: you are the right person for this position, we've talked
Speaker 2: about this. I feel like at some point in every
Speaker 2: episode this idea of like you need to be your
Speaker 2: best advocate, you need to sell yourself and really like
Speaker 2: lean into what you uniquely bring to the table. So, like,
Speaker 2: what have you accomplished in your role thus far? What
Speaker 2: responsibilities have you taken on, What wins do you have?
Speaker 1: What learnings do you have?
Speaker 2: All of that, Like package that up and be able
Speaker 2: to speak on it and bring the receipts, like show
Speaker 2: that you've done it right.
Speaker 1: What metrics have you moved?
Speaker 2: And I think that's why when it comes to like
Speaker 2: going after these positions, it's so important that you have
Speaker 2: kept track of your successes up until that point.
Speaker 1: Yep.
Speaker 3: So speaking of which, I think that there are a
Speaker 3: lot of strategies that anyone can do when you are
Speaker 3: trying to tackle and conquer and post the syndrome and
Speaker 3: what you said, gee, is the first thing. I think
Speaker 3: it's really important for you to keep track of your
Speaker 3: successes and so for everyone make sure that you are
Speaker 3: keeping track of your wins and your achievements. First of all,
Speaker 3: it's going to give you that objective data to help
Speaker 3: validate your skills and abilities. And also, like it's always
Speaker 3: nice to just kind of pull it out your bag
Speaker 3: every once in a while when you need that good
Speaker 3: little confidence booster, show you that you really are that girl,
Speaker 3: you know what I mean, And it's gonna help you
Speaker 3: whenever you start questioning yourself. In our promotions episode with
Speaker 3: career coach Emily Durham, which by the way, if you
Speaker 3: guys have not listened to Baby, Go Go, Go, Go Guy,
Speaker 3: she said, whenever someone sends you a nice message or
Speaker 3: email about your work, make sure you screenshot it and
Speaker 3: keep it in a folder. I recently started doing this.
Speaker 3: I was never good about a bag folder.
Speaker 1: I love it.
Speaker 3: It's so nice and comforting and it's a great reminder
Speaker 3: of how your work has helped other people. And as
Speaker 3: a bonus tip, it's going to help you a lot
Speaker 3: if you are navigating promotion cycles.
Speaker 1: Or even when you're at performance reviews. Absolutely.
Speaker 2: I think another tip when it comes to tackling imposter syndrome,
Speaker 2: you know, whether you're in a Vonn situation or just
Speaker 2: face you know in your own career, is to remember
Speaker 2: to be kind to yourself, Like we are our own
Speaker 2: worst critics, and you have to be mindful about that
Speaker 2: self talk, and you need to challenge those negative thoughts
Speaker 2: and reframing, you know. For example, like let's say you've
Speaker 2: been asked to take lead on a presentation, and you
Speaker 2: might be telling yourself like, oh no, why did they
Speaker 2: pick me? There are better people who can do this,
Speaker 2: who are more qualified. Right, Instead, tell yourself that you
Speaker 2: were chosen for a reason, and you need to like
Speaker 2: tell yourself that on repeat until you forget that you
Speaker 2: had any.
Speaker 1: Concern in the first place.
Speaker 2: You know, your team asked you to present that presentation
Speaker 2: because they believed in you and thought you were the
Speaker 2: person best person for that job. Part of this, too,
Speaker 2: is letting go of perfectionism, which is something I've totally
Speaker 2: struggled with. I am a number one on the enneagram,
Speaker 2: if you know, you know, but those feelings of self
Speaker 2: doubt really do come from like wanting to do a
Speaker 2: good job and putting these high expectations on ourself, Like
Speaker 2: we don't hold anybody else to those high of expectations.
Speaker 2: So you need to be kinder to yourself and like
Speaker 2: let yourself have room for mistakes because that's where you grow. Yeah,
Speaker 2: you know, I think another way to tackle imposter syndrome
Speaker 2: is to seek support from your community in and out
Speaker 2: of work. And when we started the podcast, I mean,
Speaker 2: I came to you and I was like, oh, like
Speaker 2: you know, I came. I was like, I need I
Speaker 2: need support, I need help, And I turned to a
Speaker 2: lot of colleagues during that time to help me.
Speaker 3: Can I just add that, like, this is also a
Speaker 3: great time, particularly if you have a good relationship with
Speaker 3: your manager, to lean on them.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I recently had a project that I was working on
Speaker 3: and I felt so much imposter syndrome. I felt like
Speaker 3: I couldn't understand the material, I couldn't understand the instructions.
Speaker 3: And every time I would talk to my manager, she
Speaker 3: affirmed me and she was.
Speaker 1: Just like you're doing great. Yeah, Like I don't even
Speaker 1: know why.
Speaker 3: She was like, but if I'm but if you need me,
Speaker 3: I'm here. And that felt so comforting for me to know,
Speaker 3: first of all, someone saw me differently than how I'm
Speaker 3: seeing myself, and I trust their judgment because they're the
Speaker 3: ones who have to obviously send it up the ladder.
Speaker 3: But also that I had someone in my corner who
Speaker 3: was going to help me, and.
Speaker 1: That makes all the difference.
Speaker 3: So yeah, definitely find your allies at work because they
Speaker 3: are going to affirm you and lift you up so much.
Speaker 2: Those people closest to you are the ones that can
Speaker 2: give you that reality check you know, and remind you
Speaker 2: why you're doing an amazing job. Yeah, and you don't
Speaker 2: have to wait for, you know, your annual performance review
Speaker 2: to get that validation. Like have those regular check ins
Speaker 2: like you do with your manager, have those check ins
Speaker 2: with your you know, coworkers ask for feedback, right, They'll
Speaker 2: tell you what you're doing good at and what your
Speaker 2: strengths are. And it's a good confidence boost and reminder
Speaker 2: that like, you are doing good, you are doing it,
Speaker 2: you know, So ask for that feedback. There's no harm
Speaker 2: in doing that.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: And I know, like earlier I was telling you, like,
Speaker 3: don't center other people's opinions of you, but I think
Speaker 3: that it's really affirming when.
Speaker 4: The people who are closest to you, who see you and.
Speaker 3: See the work that you do every day, affirm things
Speaker 3: about you that you don't see in yourself. Yeah, because
Speaker 3: particularly when you're having a low day, it feels great
Speaker 3: that someone else still sees you as confident, as qualified,
Speaker 3: as strong, and you know you need that to get
Speaker 3: you through.
Speaker 1: So I love that.
Speaker 3: So, speaking of all the support y'all, making this podcast
Speaker 3: has been so fun and it has required a lot
Speaker 3: of support from a lot of people, but honestly, it's
Speaker 3: also been pretty challenging. I mean, we talked in a
Speaker 3: previous segment about the self doubt we both felt before
Speaker 3: starting this project, and I mean, it's just been honestly
Speaker 3: so great to have Gianna here to support me through
Speaker 3: this journey.
Speaker 1: So our producer.
Speaker 3: Actually asked us to write a letter about how we've
Speaker 3: seen each other grow during this experience and how we've
Speaker 3: supported each other. Now here's the funny thing. Gianna hasn't
Speaker 3: seen my letter, and I haven't seen her.
Speaker 1: Heart being so fast right now.
Speaker 3: Mine is being fast and I know what I wrote,
Speaker 3: So we're gonna writ I know, write me too, my God,
Speaker 3: Like I hate you know, so we're going to read
Speaker 3: these letters to each other for the first time.
Speaker 1: I guess I'll go first. Okay, I'm actually like really nervous.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry.
Speaker 4: Okay, all right, I'm not gonna look at you today.
Speaker 6: I know, like, wow, life, Gianna, it's already getting read me.
Speaker 1: Okay, Gianna.
Speaker 3: When we first began this podcast journey, I remember how
Speaker 3: excited you were, but also how rightfully so nervous you felt.
Speaker 3: And I mean it was for a very good reason.
Speaker 3: This was all brand new territory. But every step of
Speaker 3: the way you've navigated those unknown waters with such grace
Speaker 3: and resilience. You've flexed not only your skills but your
Speaker 3: ability to adapt, and it's been incredible to see you
Speaker 3: consistently show up not just as my co host, but
Speaker 3: as my partner in this crazy adventure. I'm so proud
Speaker 3: of how far you've come in such a short time.
Speaker 3: But more than that, I'm excited for how much further
Speaker 3: you'll go. You're driven, You're ambitious, slightly anxious, and completely
Speaker 3: in tune with the values we share. You've made it
Speaker 3: a priority to ensure that we are always putting gen
Speaker 3: Z at the forefront, not just telling the stories but
Speaker 3: making sure they're being heard. Every time we get on
Speaker 3: the mic, it's like magic. We laugh, we cry, and
Speaker 3: a lot of that magic is thanks to your thoughtful
Speaker 3: planning and attention to detail. Trust me, I strive to
Speaker 3: be more like you every single day. But even beyond
Speaker 3: what we share on air, you've shown up as a colleague,
Speaker 3: a support system, and as a friend. You have held
Speaker 3: space for me. You have seen and affirmed me, and
Speaker 3: I am so grateful for that connection.
Speaker 1: I remember when the world wasn't.
Speaker 3: Sure what to make of your generation, but you, Gianna,
Speaker 3: your proof that the stories that need to be told
Speaker 3: will always find their way. As long as there are
Speaker 3: storytellers and reporters like you, the messages that Madam most
Speaker 3: will reach the world. Season one was a blast, but
Speaker 3: I know this is just the beginning for you. You've got
Speaker 3: your family, your friends, your work besties, and you've also
Speaker 3: got me right here cheering you on. So here's to
Speaker 3: you for absolutely crushing it this season and becoming a
Speaker 3: full on podcaster and your own right cheers to many
Speaker 3: more episodes, laughs, Italian trips and moments.
Speaker 1: Yay here, that is so beautiful. Thank you, You're welcome.
Speaker 1: I'm so proud of you.
Speaker 3: You have just superseded all expectations, and I hope that
Speaker 3: you are proud of yourself for everything you've done.
Speaker 1: You've come in here and you've kicked ass.
Speaker 2: Okay, I printed mine out.
Speaker 1: Here. Okay.
Speaker 5: Oh my god.
Speaker 3: It's also very difficult for me to take compliments. Yeah,
Speaker 3: like that's a weakness of mind.
Speaker 1: So i'mona get relaxed. All right, let's do this, you
Speaker 1: said your coffee, Ye, all right.
Speaker 2: When we started production for Let's Talk Offline, I was
Speaker 2: up against a lot of self doubt and self inflicted pressure.
Speaker 2: I wasn't sure if I could hold my own behind
Speaker 2: the mic. I was so in my head about creating
Speaker 2: a show that my generation genuinely enjoyed listening to, so
Speaker 2: much so that I would often second guess myself and
Speaker 2: mull over decisions, even if I felt in my gut
Speaker 2: that I knew the answer. The hard truth is, despite
Speaker 2: reporting on gen Z for over two years, I hadn't
Speaker 2: truly found my voice. I was constantly questioning if I
Speaker 2: was going to be able to do this and do
Speaker 2: it well. I know that I would not have been
Speaker 2: able to without you sitting across the table from me.
Speaker 2: From day one. Your support and encouragement has been a constant.
Speaker 2: You've created a safe space for me to show up
Speaker 2: as myself and to learn. I've gone through a lot
Speaker 2: of trial and error throughout this production process, and you've
Speaker 2: always had my back, reaffirming me that I could do
Speaker 2: this when I was struggling, and cheering me on when
Speaker 2: I found my rhythm behind the mic. As a fellow
Speaker 2: anxious girly, having someone I could always turn to, whether
Speaker 2: it was to brainstorm or to event put me at ease.
Speaker 2: More than you know, I appreciate and I'm in continuous
Speaker 2: awe of your vulnerability, openness, honesty, and candidness When reflecting
Speaker 2: on your career journey. We've had some hard conversations, but
Speaker 2: I know that your willingness to dig deep and unfortunately
Speaker 2: have to relive some traumatic events from your past, have
Speaker 2: me countless listeners feel seen. At the same time, you've
Speaker 2: brought such a fun, lighthearted energy that has made this
Speaker 2: a one of a kind show. You've helped me get
Speaker 2: out of my shell by being your vivacious, hilarious, and
Speaker 2: fabulous self. I can't thank you enough for that. Over
Speaker 2: the last few months, I've been able to witness your
Speaker 2: growth as a host firsthand. You beautifully break down complex
Speaker 2: topics and effortlessly explain terms that many people starting out
Speaker 2: may not even know. Simply put, you've proven what a
Speaker 2: skilled journalist you are, something I never doubted. Since we
Speaker 2: like to share takeaways at the end of each episode,
Speaker 2: I figured it's only fitting to share my biggest takeaway
Speaker 2: from you. You've shown me that no job is worth
Speaker 2: sacrificing your values, sanity, or sleep for, and that putting
Speaker 2: yourself first is the most important thing you can do.
Speaker 2: For that, I'm forever grateful, and I'm so thankful this
Speaker 2: experience gave me a work bestdie for life.
Speaker 1: Signed your structured sys.
Speaker 3: Oh gosh, sipping my coffee so I don't cry. Gosh, guys,
Speaker 3: Gianna penetrated my cold heart. Oh thank you, Sis. I
Speaker 3: really appreciate that. As my letters said to G and
Speaker 3: G's letters said to me, other people see so much
Speaker 3: in you, even if you don't see it in yourself,
Speaker 3: and so I want you to know that, even if
Speaker 3: you are dealing.
Speaker 1: With imposter syndrome.
Speaker 3: Hopefully the tips that we have shared, the resources that
Speaker 3: we've shared, and hopefully your family, community, friends, colleagues, whomever
Speaker 3: can create that safe space for you so that you
Speaker 3: know how to fight imposter syndrome whenever she comes knocking
Speaker 3: your door.
Speaker 4: We're going to take a little break, honestly to cry
Speaker 4: a little more.
Speaker 3: But we can't say this enough. Everyone experience is imposter syndrome.
Speaker 3: Me Gianna, Coworkers, your manager.
Speaker 1: Eva Rewet.
Speaker 4: So you are not alone and just know you've got this.
Speaker 1: Okay, the tears are dried, Okay.
Speaker 2: Something I'm taking away from our convo today is that
Speaker 2: you are not alone in your experience with imposter syndrome,
Speaker 2: and you really just need to lean into like why
Speaker 2: you are the person that is qualified for whatever is
Speaker 2: coming your way, whether be that promotion, be that speaking engagement,
Speaker 2: whatever it is. Like you were asked for a reason.
Speaker 2: Remember that and just focus on showing up as your
Speaker 2: best self.
Speaker 1: That's all you can ask of yourself. I love that.
Speaker 3: Another thing that I'm taking away is to make sure
Speaker 3: you are documenting your wins. Yeah, and knowing that every
Speaker 3: room that you are in you belong there. It's really
Speaker 3: funny because you know, when you go on a cast
Speaker 3: and call for acting, you'll walk into a room and
Speaker 3: there will be dozens of people who look like you
Speaker 3: because they're trying to fit the model of what the
Speaker 3: role could look like. But what you can uniquely bring
Speaker 3: to that role, in the role of your life is
Speaker 3: your unique value, your unique experiences, in the way in
Speaker 3: which you see that opportunity. So never go into a
Speaker 3: room scared. Go into every room knowing that you belong
Speaker 3: and when you need.
Speaker 4: That extra boost, collect your little bag folder. Yeah, so
Speaker 4: you guys.
Speaker 3: You know, normally around this time we would be doing
Speaker 3: like either cool or cringe or show the receipts.
Speaker 1: But this time we wanted to shake it up.
Speaker 3: So we're going to end the show a little differently.
Speaker 3: Today in honor of the new Year, we're going to
Speaker 3: talk about what our New year career resolutions are. I'm
Speaker 3: super excited because, first of all, new Year is my favorite.
Speaker 3: One of my favorite time is the year.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's like fresh something that's on the air, you know.
Speaker 3: Hope, I mean, so, Gia, reason to give it another try?
Speaker 1: Here we go yet, right, Gianna, what are your goals
Speaker 1: for the new year?
Speaker 6: Right?
Speaker 2: I think my biggest goal for twenty twenty five career
Speaker 2: wise is to really focus on building my career confidence.
Speaker 2: And I think that the biggest thing there is to
Speaker 2: work on.
Speaker 1: My overthinking tendencies.
Speaker 2: They are not serving me, They're like, I know, it's
Speaker 2: something that I need to work on. So I want
Speaker 2: to just focus on like being confident in my decisions,
Speaker 2: knowing you know that in my gut, I know the
Speaker 2: right direction, and not mulling over things in my head
Speaker 2: because I have to consider every which you know, pob
Speaker 2: Like you got it.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I love that for you because when you get
Speaker 3: out of your head, you are so unstoppable. I mean
Speaker 3: you're unstoppable when you're in your head too, but like
Speaker 3: you unlock a new level when you're not in your head,
Speaker 3: and it's just the magic.
Speaker 1: The arms are.
Speaker 3: Flowing, arms like it's it's just bleeding through. I love
Speaker 3: it for me. I would say that, you know, one
Speaker 3: of the things that I kind of came back to
Speaker 3: this year was community building and people get to see
Speaker 3: it up close and personal, like particularly on my LinkedIn.
Speaker 3: But I had really given up creating content a lot
Speaker 3: on all my social platforms, and this year I finally
Speaker 3: dipped my toe back in there and I'm feeling kind
Speaker 3: of good about it. Yeah, it's been fun, but like
Speaker 3: I also now see where I've been neglecting, and so
Speaker 3: I really want this year to be a year of
Speaker 3: intentionally building community and really creating space for people because
Speaker 3: I think now more than ever, storytellers are needed. Storytellers
Speaker 3: are needed, and we need to help you know, the
Speaker 3: arts heal and so I want to just continue to
Speaker 3: find ways to do that. And obviously that is a
Speaker 3: little bit more of on the personal side, but it
Speaker 3: does bleed also into my career as a professional storyteller.
Speaker 3: So I'm really excited about that and trying to figure
Speaker 3: out more ways to do that. So, yeah, help me
Speaker 3: and Gianna definitely hold us accountable. Yeah, check in and
Speaker 3: also let us know what maybe your New Year's resolutions are,
Speaker 3: because I always love to hear what other people are
Speaker 3: working towards. That's always so fun. But anyway, thank you
Speaker 3: guys so much for hanging out with gian and I
Speaker 3: all season long. I hope you guys are having a
Speaker 3: wonderful New Year or whenever you're listening to this episode.
Speaker 3: And also remember this isn't a goodbye, Okay, We're going
Speaker 3: to keep the party going on LinkedIn.
Speaker 2: Yes, remember we have a newsletter you can follow, guys,
Speaker 2: if you're not falling it already by the end of
Speaker 2: the season.
Speaker 1: What are you're doing?
Speaker 4: It's better than ever.
Speaker 1: I guess.
Speaker 2: It's called Let's Talk offline. You can find the link
Speaker 2: in the show description. It's also in my LinkedIn bio.
Speaker 2: And we want to keep chatting with all of our
Speaker 2: work besties, so make sure you're commenting on the newsletter.
Speaker 2: Make sure you're posting on LinkedIn. Tag Jamay and I.
Speaker 2: We want to see what you're putting out there. We
Speaker 2: want to chat with you.
Speaker 3: Yes, we really do appreciate when you guys tag us
Speaker 3: in your posts. Okay, so we don't forget. Also, huge
Speaker 3: shout out this week to Yvonne for sending us your
Speaker 3: listener question. You guys, keep the listener questions coming. Okay,
Speaker 3: listen to your work bestie, Jamay. Just because the season's over,
Speaker 3: it does not mean you should stop sending us your questions.
Speaker 1: Okay.
Speaker 3: We really want to hear what topics you want us
Speaker 3: to cover in the future, so we want to keep
Speaker 3: hearing from you. Information on how to send us your
Speaker 3: questions is in the show description.
Speaker 2: Also, make sure you guys rate and follow the show
Speaker 2: wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, Jamay and I will
Speaker 2: always have your back. You got two work besties for life.
Speaker 2: So if something ever comes up, Let's Talk Offline.
Speaker 1: I'm Janna Preenti.
Speaker 4: And I'm Jama Jackson Gadson, Stay Thriving.
Speaker 2: Let's Talk Offline is a production of LinkedIn News and
Speaker 2: iHeart Podcasts. The show is produced by Western Sound. Our
Speaker 2: producer Sabrina Fang. The show is edited by Savannah Wright.
Speaker 2: Our associate producer is Sarah Dilley. Alex mckinnis is our engineer,
Speaker 2: and Ben Adair is the executive producer.
Speaker 3: Executive producers at iHeart Podcasts are Katrina Norvel and Nikki Etour.
Speaker 3: We got support from LinkedIn's Jesse Hemple, Sarah Storm, and
Speaker 3: Ayana Angel. Maya Pope Chappelle is director of Content, Dave
Speaker 3: Pond is head of News Production, Courtney Coop is head
Speaker 3: of Original Programming, and Dan Ros is the editor
Speaker 1: In chief of LinkedIn