If you’ve ever found yourself standing in the middle of a building site, nodding sagely as your contractor explains something you don’t really understand, all the while thinking, “I hope he doesn’t realise I haven’t got a clue what he’s talking about,” then you know exactly what it’s like to experience imposter syndrome. It’s a rite of passage for every new property developer, yet unfortunately, it has the capacity to completely undermine your success.

My business partner occasionally gives talks on imposter syndrome and is always amazed at how many people it resonates with. And as he’s something of an expert on the subject, I thought I’d share his wisdom with you this month in the form of some hopefully helpful tips for banishing as much imposter syndrome from your life as possible.

Imposter syndrome, in case you’ve not come across it before, is that creeping sense that you’re not really qualified to be doing what you’re doing. It makes you think that you’ve somehow blagged your way into the room, that everyone else knows more than you, and that it’s only a matter of time before someone exposes you as the total fraud that you know yourself to be. It’s unpleasant, irrational, and undermining.

And you might think that it would disappear as soon as you have some success in life. Not a bit of it. Imposter syndrome will have you thinking that any success you’ve had was all blind luck. You didn’t deserve any of it, and it’s only a matter of time before everyone else realises this. Literally, you could be at the top of your profession and still suffer massively from it; it’s no respecter of age, experience or success.

Now, if my description feels horribly familiar, you may be thinking that you’ve been unlucky enough to be struck down by some terrible affliction that only affects a tiny proportion of the population.