Name: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome - You Have So Much More Value Than You Realize
Uploaded: 2023-02-25
Duration: 5 min 31 s
Description: One of the biggest factors holding software engineers back is a simple one: They don't believe in themselves

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome - You Have So Much More Value Than You Realize

One of the biggest factors holding software engineers back is a simple one: They don't believe in themselves. This is very common in the tech industry where being surrounded by talented peers makes it very easy to end up with a case of imposter syndrome. This video explains why every single person in tech is wrong when they believe they can't add value.

Here are the core points from the video:
- **You can't be alive for 20+ years and not have something to share** - 2 decades is a long time. A lot of people don't believe they can share value when they're early in career, which completely discards all their years prior to their career. It's not like you only started generating value in the world after you embarked on your tech career journey. It is mathematically impossible to have been on planet Earth for so long and not have something cool you can share with others.
- **Believe in yourself** - You are limited by what you think of yourself: If you don't believe that you can offer value, then you won't offer value. The absolute first step to successful networking is recognizing your own potential and feeling empowered to help others.
- **Accessible ways that *anyone* can add value**
  - Interesting experiences
  - Odd talents
  - Learnings from failure
  - Being a friendly face

Related resources:
- ["How can I bridge my confidence gap to put myself out there more and ask for help more aggressively?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/mLKUkNXpLcCxQMfWopqU/how-can-i-bridge-my-confidence-gap-to-put-myself-out-there-more-and-ask-for-help-more-aggressively/)
- ["I've felt imposter syndrome from seeing super talented peers - How do I deal with this?"](https://www.jointaro.com/question/MPUkGXFDaBixmxfjOg9i/ive-felt-imposter-syndrome-from-seeing-super-talented-peers-how-do-i-deal-with-this/)

One of the biggest factors holding software engineers back is a simple one: They don't believe in themselves

There's more to working in tech than just shipping software. It's vital for your career to build deep professional relationships and make real friends at work, especially if you're looking to grow to senior levels.

At the end of the day, working in tech, or anywhere really, is all about working with other human beings. Communication is the core skill necessary to make this collaboration effective.

This collection represents the best of what Taro has to offer, personally curated by Alex and Rahul. If you're short on time, go through the content here.

[Masterclass] How To Build Deep Relationships Quickly In Tech

Professional networking is vital for a healthy career, especially as a software engineer. However, many tech workers struggle with building relationships, especially introverts. In this masterclass, we teach you how to improve your interpersonal communication and build meaningful professional connections quickly, which might even make you some work friends along the way.

There were a ton of important points from this masterclass, so here's our Top 5 (in no particular order):
- **You're going to get burned, and that's okay** - Professional networking is just like making friends or dating: You will meet people where it just doesn't work out. Don't let that tear you down and make you cloister up. Move on from those relationships and continue investing in new people.
- **Make them feel special** - Asking someone for a huge favor with some copy-paste message isn't networking: It's begging. The classic example is cold messaging random people for referrals into their FAANG company. If you want any chance of success with a reach out, make sure to deeply explain your background and credibility alongside why you reached out to that specific person in particular - Put them on a pedestal.
- **Understand their incentives** - One of the biggest reasons people fail with networking is that they're entirely caught up in what *they're* looking for, reducing their networking to "*How can I get this other person to give me what I want?"*. Successful relationships are those where each party is able to provide lots of value to one another, and the first step to doing that is to understand what the *other* person wants and what motivates them. When it comes to networking within a company, this is usually tied to what they get rewarded for in performance review.
- **Lead with kindness** - Only helping others when they have already helped you is a recipe for weak, slow-growing professional networks. Kindness is 10x more valuable in building up a relationship when it's unexpected, making the pleasant surprise of helping someone who's never helped you before especially powerful. For a deep dive into this concept (including a story about how Taro cofounders Alex and Rahul met), [check out this Taro discussion](https://link.jointaro.com/Hr1nr53D7sfQAEv3A).
- **Maximize 1 on 1 meetings** - 1 on 1s are the core engine behind deepening interpersonal communication, and that includes professional ones. Schedule a recurring 1 on 1 if possible with anybody you want to build a deep relationship with, and make sure to use that time well. Embrace [the art of the "Awkward 1 on 1"](https://link.jointaro.com/4SqyPg6hjNFFrGf57) to share honest feedback, talk about how you're feeling, and learn who they truly are as a person. To learn more about this, [check out our masterclass about impactful 1 on 1 meetings](https://link.jointaro.com/zPPhTmG213gptAkg9).

Related resources:
- [Alex's Guide To Effective Communication](https://link.jointaro.com/XXKqrQ9WgogHjXGG6)
- ["How do I lead without authority?"](https://link.jointaro.com/EMR9xJZXRC1kLyFr7)
- [What Makes A Truly Great Tech Lead](https://link.jointaro.com/wnqsTvXTUWtq11gG6)
- [Presentation slides](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1TDdBRQTGc66T35PzB5SwcJ3HQci_csdy8mzKxQu3law/edit?usp=sharing)