Hey, welcome to Radioheadspace. It's Dora, and I'm so grateful that you're here.
Recently, while mentoring a group of new mindfulness teachers,
I noticed a theme coming up again and again, imposter syndrome.
Many of my students express feeling uneasy.
Like they didn't quite fit the mold of what a meditation teacher is supposed to look like or act like.
They weren't calm enough, peaceful enough, or even serious enough to guide others.
It reminded me of my own early days teaching mindfulness.
I remember preparing for my first meditation class,
anxiously standing in front of the mirror wondering, do I look mindful enough?
Will people even believe I know what I'm talking about?
Beneath those questions was an unspoken fear.
that being myself wouldn't be enough.
We all have ideas about who we're supposed to be,
often shaped by expectations from society, our teachers, or even ourselves.
When reality doesn't match those expectations, we might feel like imposters.
Mindfulness can help us notice these feelings without believing the stories they tell.
It can gently remind us that our authenticity,
not our perfection, is what truly connects us to others.
One evening during a mentoring session, A student confessed, I laughed too much, Dora.
Meditation teachers are supposed to be serene and soft-spoken, not cracking jokes.