“Everyone Was Smarter Than Me”: Imposter Syndrome in B-Schools

You have passed the entrance test, endured the interviews and you have now found yourself at one of the best mba colleges. You ought to be (at least) a success--on every conventional level. Yet, rather, doubt shows itself in every step. You look at your classmates and say to yourself, everyone in this room is smarter, quicker, better than I am.

This nagging, self story is not uncommon. It is imposter syndrome, the silent side effect that stalks its path to students to the most well-known B-schools of India. And it is not concerned with your exam score, resume or your desire to achieve. It gives you the feeling that you have cheated the wheel and you are only waiting to get caught.

The Uncensored Crunch In MBA Colleges

High-performance, competitive environments are an ideal place where imposter syndrome succeeds and therefore mba colleges are very susceptible. Academic excellence, in India, is not learning, but an issue connected to identity, family expectations and future stability. To most students the MBA is a game of chances, perhaps the last academic leap before they take on a lifetime course of action.

And then what no one tells you is what occurs once you are in. The first few weeks in school undermine the confidence of students because they are peer pressured by others who appear more eloquent, more global or more industry ready. It turns out that being capable of performing above average in one of the past environments no longer helps that much. The parameters are different and the psychological strain is different.

In a recent study carried out on the MBA students in India, it was revealed that more than 60 percent of the responders developed a severe feeling of self doubt during their first trimester. Some enrolled students admitted that they were scared to talk during the lessons, or that they do not deserve leading positions, or even suspected that they did something wrong by attending college. This is not an academic issue alone. It is emotional, more so existential.

What makes the problem even worse is that nobody ever talks of it. The culture at a lot of B-schools is not vulnerable. Although collaboration comes to form a part of the curriculum, comparison becomes the hidden curriculum. Internally, each person is comparing him/herself to the most confident voice in the room or most decorated LinkedIn image. And the silence that surrounds self-doubt makes it even poorer, it makes each individual believe that he or she is alone in his or her struggle.

When Smart Is “Not Smart Enough”

Such an inner voice is self-destructive, particularly when you begin to reject opportunities in the name of fear. You are afraid to put up your hand in a classroom lesson since you may speak something that is a mistake. You do not attend networking events on the assumption that you have nothing worthy to present. You start applying only to those companies you are sure will accept you as opposed to the companies you desire.

This is all a self-sabotage of sorts. What is the irony? Most of the individuals to whom you are comparing yourself are going through the same thing. They are also spectators and wondering how everybody seems to have it right.

Contrary to this dynamic, the structure of MBA programs makes it more difficult. Assignments are stressful, group-based, and tend to become like the pressure in the corporate world. When you already feel worthless, such spaces either can help you get straight to the tip of your confidence- or completely fall apart.

You are not Alone and You are not an Accident

The reality is, you did not come here by an accident. Any admission committee does not deal with making mistakes. You were not only picked on the basis of your academic background or aptitude test score, but also because something in your story was indicative of potential. Be it you are a team leader, be it you have created something out of nothing, be it you have weathered your path through life with grace. These do not come out on a glowing header in your resume-but they matter.

The ability to think clearly and creatively is one of the most underestimated talents that any mba college can teach. It’s resilience. Having the capacity to figure out how to manage self-doubt and still get to the process of attending, participating, and extending yourself is a silent distinction. And the ones who grow most often in their two years are the students who are able to say to themselves that critic that we have and take him on instead of the ones who just ignore.

So, when you feel like an imposter at the moment, use this feeling as a guide towards what is deeper. You care. You desire to be outstanding. And you find out that perfection does not always guarantee immediate confidence, it is achieved with a steady level of discomfort, small victories, and appearing despite.

Final Thought

The next time you sit in class feeling unsure and wondering if you are in the right place, remind yourself - that true impostors do not take the time to think about it. The mere fact that you were asking the question indicates that you are not one of them.