Are You an Impostor or an Expert?

As urban pest management professionals, we are called upon routinely to exhibit our knowledge on often complex challenges associated with pest issues — topics like human behavior that contributes to pests, construction and structural deficiencies such as lighting and entry points, landscaping and pest habitat, products being used and application methods of those products, to name a few.

That’s a lot of knowledge to acquire, retain and be able to call upon at any moment.

Clients look to us for direction to resolve an issue that, at the very least, is uncomfortable to them, like a simple sighting of a pest such as a spider or cockroach, but many times is more critical, like rodents, mosquitoes, termites or stinging pests. These critical situations can bring to bear much more of a sense of responsibility to say and do the right thing.

During these interactions, we are educating and performing services that impact a client’s quality of living, health and financial stability. There’s no pressure in that, right? Yeah, right. There’s always pressure when there is a desire to serve and help your clients or company.

We as an industry are protecting human health, food sources and property for individuals and even billion-dollar brands. This pressure can cause you to second-guess yourself.

An eerie feeling can develop that someone is going to tap you on the shoulder and say, “Hey buddy, you don’t know what you’re talking about — it’s time for you to go.” Once that door is cracked, a flood of doubt can flow through. Then the real fun begins. Questions like “Do I really know what I’m talking about?” and “Is this a career for me?” creep in. This phenomenon is called impostor syndrome.

DEFINING IMPOSTER SYNDROME. One day, I was listening to a podcast of a highly accomplished individual who mentioned their struggles with impostor syndrome. This piqued my interest, and I had to dig in to learn more.

Imposter syndrome was first discussed in a 1978 article published by psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes, and by definition, it describes individuals that have doubts about their skills, talents or accomplishments and a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud.

Imposter syndrome is common among men and women, different ethnic groups and age groups. Nearly 70 percent of individuals will experience signs and symptoms of impostor phenomenon at least once in their life. Is that all? 70 percent? Who doesn’t second-guess themselves at some point — especially when we are discussing and working with complex topics like the living organisms of Mother Earth?

CONTRIBUTING SCENARIOS. Whether you are new to the industry or have worked in it for decades, there will be times when your knowledge and the decisions you make will be questioned, either by yourself or others.

Granted, being newer probably comes with a wider range of opportunities for doubt to creep in. Mastering the basics of identifying pests in your geographical area, which product to use for which pest, treatment methods, basic terminology, etc., can all be very overwhelming. But here’s the cool thing — you kind of get a pass because you are new.

If you ask anyone in any industry, it gets easier with experience. Perceived monumental challenges today will not require a second thought after a couple of years’ experience. So take advantage of the free pass phase and be like a sponge soaking up knowledge.

For those that have been in the industry for a while, moments of doubt are still there. The industry is rapidly growing and evolving. It seems like every day there’s new technology, such as remote monitoring, new chemistries, pest challenges like bed bugs and roof rats, client expectations, regulatory changes, etc.

These changes mean you are in a constant state of flux, discarding or filing away outdated knowledge and acquiring new in its place. With the new can come loss of confidence.

HOW TO COMBAT IT. There are several things we can do to prevent or snap ourselves out of the impostor state of mind.

Acknowledge that doubt can creep in, and that’s OK. Everyone deals with it, and no one has all the answers all the time. There is nothing wrong with saying “Hey, I’m not sure about that, but I will find out.” This is an opportunity to grow if you take it. Once you have the answer, you will know the next time that situation comes up.

Welcome feedback from a mentor, coworkers or clients. Discuss with others where you feel you’re lacking or ask what you could do better. Write this feedback down — I bet it will be more positive than you thought — which will help remove doubt and reinforce that the commitment you’ve put in is paying dividends.

RECOGNIZE YOUR TRAINING. The more training you receive, the better prepared you will be. Remember that you have more training after one week on the job than just about anyone you come in contact with who is not in the pest management industry. In a single day, you have more discussions and conversations about pest management than the average person will in years.

DO SOME SELF-REFLECTION. Take time to think back on scenarios where you weren’t confident. Focus on those topics by studying or talking to more experienced people. I used this approach years ago on stored product pests. I lacked confidence in properly identifying some of the smaller beetles. Once I made the effort to study them, I was able to identify many species, which improved my confidence level.

THINK AHEAD. If you are about to service a client location for a stinging pest issue, think about what you’re going to say to the client and what applications you plan to make. Reframe your thoughts. Instead of thinking, “I don’t know what to do,” say to yourself, “I will figure this out.” Researchers have concluded that simply extracting self-doubt before an event helps eliminate feelings of impostorism.

FINAL THOUGHTS. The kryptonite to doubt is knowledge. It is up to us to seek the information we need to feed our minds so there’s no room for doubt. Own being the expert.

Christian Wilcox, A.C.E./P.H.E., serves as the technical director for McCauley Services, Bryant, Ark.