Imagine for a moment, a bird perched on a tree branch.
It’s very windy, and the branch is waving around frantically. The bird doesn’t know this particular branch. It just landed on it moments ago.
Despite the chaotic situation, the bird is not afraid. Why is that?
In this imaginary scene, your upcoming project is the branch and you are the bird. You are unsure of this particular project. Even though you’ve done similar work before, this project has different people, scope, constraints, and deadlines. As a result of all this newness, you’re probably not entirely certain you can successfully deliver the project.
However, if you already know everything there is to know about this project, if there is no mystery to solve, then you’ll have nothing new to learn. And the uncertainty you feel is just the gap between what you already know and what this project may uncover. Understanding this will help you overcome imposter syndrome.
The takeaway
You are a bird. You have wings. You don’t need to trust the branch. You just need to trust your wings.