Imposter syndrome

Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes described the pattern in 1978. They were looking at high-achieving people who put their success down to luck or timing. In creators it shows up as reluctance to publish, endless polishing, discomfort at being called an expert, and a habit of writing off good numbers as flukes.

Public work makes it worse. The comparison set is every channel on the platform, and the private struggle is only visible from your own side. It is a feeling rather than an assessment. It tracks confidence instead of competence, which is why more success rarely removes it.