If you've ever experienced imposter syndrome—aka that nagging feeling of self doubt that often leaves you feeling like a fraud despite the work you put in to get to where you are—welcome to the (very crowded) club.
That feeling stems from a lack of self acceptance, or loving yourself for who you really are. The way around it is actually quite simple—albeit very challenging to put into practice—as Deepak Chopra, MD, FACP explains on the first episode of his new Audible Original podcast Deepak Chopra's Mind-Body Zone: Thinking Outside the Box. "One of the most powerful things you can do is first see yourself clearly—flaws and all, and then fully accept yourself," the pioneer in integrative medicine says. Sounds super easy, right? (We're kidding.)
On this episode—which is the first of many insightful conversations with next-level guests such as Oprah Winfrey, Layla Saad, and Jon Batiste, exploring vulnerability, trauma, creativity, and more—Dr. Chopra interviews body positivity advocate and yoga teacher Jessamyn Stanley for a deep dive into fighting off self doubt and welcoming unconditional self acceptance.
"One of the most powerful things you can do is first see yourself clearly—flaws and all, and then fully accept yourself." —Deepak Chopra, MD, FACP
Your first step to truly accepting yourself, according to Stanley? Letting your anxieties and believed perceptions just be, without feeling like you need to fix yourself.
"Letting the truth be exactly what it is, and not feeling like I need to fix it or change it or do anything, just let it be there—that for me is what it is to experience the full self, to live in the truth, to be in the ocean, to unite by mind, my body, and my spirit," Stanley says.
Once you shift your focus from trying to fix yourself (which assumes there is something wrong with you that needs to be remedied) to simply existing as yourself, that's where the path to real self acceptance is revealed.
Stanley's advice for putting that mindset shift into practice: Stop apologizing so much.
Stanley's advice for putting that mindset shift into practice: Stop apologizing so much. (She shares a powerful personal anecdote about the day she realized she was legitimately apologizing for existing on the podcast.)
By not being afraid to show up as your true, messy self, you can be an inspiration to others, Stanley says, which is one of the true gifts of self acceptance. Because come on, how many times have you seen someone being unapologetically themselves, and not felt anything but total respect (and honestly maybe a hint of jealousy)?
To close out the episode (which includes so much more enlightening advice), Dr. Chopra leads a guided meditation with prompts for you to start squashing some of your own self doubt. Sorry, imposter syndrome, we're busy accepting ourselves now.
Want more intel on supporting your well-being? Listen to all 12 episodes of Mind Body Zone, or pick out another listen from Audible's Well-Being Collection, which includes thousands of self-development, health and wellness, sleep and meditation titles to help you discover insights for enriching your mind, body, and being.
