Staff Retention: One Quarter Of Your Staff Will Consider Quitting Due To Imposter Syndrome This Week

Staff retention: how can you spot which of your team members might quit, due to Imposter Syndrome, and prevent it? 

A shocking finding from the 2024 Imposter Syndrome Research Study (white paper here) is the impact on staff retention: 25% of your staff will consider quitting their job, due to Imposter Syndrome, this week. And it's 1 in 10 today.

25%
will think of quitting this week, due to Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome is 'severe' for them

34%

It's harming wellbeing, productivity & performance

62%

Doubt their abilities daily, despite outward confidence

69%

Source © Clare Josa 2024 Imposter Syndrome Research Study

Anyone in a people-leading role will want their teams to thrive, to feel safe to share their ideas and ask their biggest questions, to fulfil their potential, and to have the impact the business needs them to have. We want team members to stay for as many years as mutually benefits them and the company.

And we all know how tough recruitment is these days, taking many months and costing thousands to find the right person, putting resources into training them for up to a year, before they're reaching their potential in their new role.

But how do you reconcile that with the fact that one quarter of your team members will consider quitting their job - even if they love working for you - due to Imposter Syndrome - this week? And it's one in ten who will think about quitting today...

No amount of beanbags in meeting rooms, mindfulness apps and wellbeing walks or lunch-n-learn sessions is going to fix Imposter Syndrome, or prevent its negative impact, on individuals and your organisation. 

You need to move beyond guesswork and trial-and-error, to implement solutions that address the root causes, not just the symptoms.

So what can you do?


Staff retention issues are a hidden cost of Imposter Syndrome.

Yet the vast majority of businesses are ignoring Imposter Syndrome, despite knowing it's the elephant in the room, when it comes to performance, productivity, wellbeing, and retention.

Most assume there's nothing they can do, or that it has always been this way.

But neither of those is true.

The number of your team members experiencing Imposter Syndrome daily or regularly, since the pandemic, to an extent that's impacting their performance, productivity and wellbeing, is up by one fifth.

And the number thinking of quitting their job today has doubled in the past five years.

This needs to become an unignorable business priority.

1 In 10: Why Does Imposter Syndrome Make People Want To Quit?

What can you do about Imposter Syndrome's role in staff retention?

Spot the signs. Stop the cycle.

Create lasting change.

There are five core reasons why Imposter Syndrome will make someone want to quit their job.

Here's how to spot the signs that Imposter Syndrome might be negatively impacting staff retention:

  • #1 They can't keep on 'coping' with Imposter Syndrome

  • #2 They want to get promoted

  • #3 You've Promoted Them (And Other predictable Trigger Points)

  • #4 They're struggling with Imposter Syndrome-Burnout

  • #5 Someone Else Has Imposter Syndrome

They can't keep on 'coping' with Imposter Syndrome

One of the worst pieces of advice out there is for someone just to accept that Imposter Syndrome is inevitable (it isn't) and that there's nothing you can do about it, so you have to learn how to 'handle it' and succeed despite it.

The problem with this approach - and it's the most common advice on Google searches - is that the coping strategies that go with Imposter Syndrome are generally negative. Some are even destructive.

Pushing on through the fear and anxiety that Imposter Syndrome causes leads to chronic stress, getting stuck in the 'fight-flight-freeze' response, and being constantly on the look-out for threats and danger.

This makes us self-sabotage, in order to feel safe.

And it can reach the point where we quit a role in a company we might love, because our secret 3am self-talk has become impossible to cope with (that's the case for one in five of your team members, at least 'often', and for 3% it's 'daily').

Here's a podcast episode on 7 coping strategies that could be harming your team members, how to spot them, and what to do, instead:

It is widely acknowledged that it can cost up to a year's salary to recruit and train someone to replace a key team member who quits. Staff retention issues also hit teams hard, leaving them carrying the additional workload, for many months, often causing them to quit, too.

But people never mention Imposter Syndrome in exit interviews.

How Can You Prevent People From Quitting Due To Imposter Syndrome?

By the time a person resigns, it's too late. The damage has been done - to them, their team and the company. How can you prevent this? And increase staff retention?

Measure The Problem

How big is it?

Which key factors are driving it?

How much of it is down to individuals' habits, versus company culture or the working environment?

What are your quick wins vs strategic solutions? 

How can you measure the ROI of any changes you make?

Prioritise Urgent Support

Who in your teams needs urgent support? Could you find them proven training or external certified Imposter Syndrome coaches?

How can you help them to self-identify, semi-anonymously, to avoid the embarrassment of having to ask their line manager? (Who will often be part of the cause)

Train Your Managers

With nearly two thirds of your team members struggling with Imposter Syndrome daily or regularly, all people leaders need training in how to spot this, and how to safely support people at the early intervention stage, without making things worse. In addition, managers need training in Imposter Syndrome-informed feedback and appraisals.

Clear Management Imposter Syndrome

Managers need to clear their own Imposter Syndrome first, if they're struggling with it, or it can be triggering and risk them keeping their team members stuck in coping strategies. Also, toxic managers are almost always driven by maladaptive Imposter Syndrome coping strategies and anxiety.

Train In-House Coaches

Don't want to be tied into expensive external coaches?

By training in-house experts in tools that help people to clear and prevent Imposter Syndrome, you can stop the majority of those thinking of quitting from doing so.

With the right support, it only takes 4-6 sessions to take Imposter Syndrome severity from 80% to 20%.

Make It Scalable

Not everyone needs 1:1 coaching, so make this work scalable by bringing in an app that is specially designed to support people in ditching Imposter Syndrome, in just 5 minutes a day.

Use the initial research study to identify who would most benefit from this.

Plus: Measure the results you're getting.

You can complete this process by using the initial research-backed assessment tool to check in again with your teams, putting data behind the transformations you've been creating.

Surely this is really expensive?

You could fully support a team of 500 for less than the cost of replacing a single team member who quits. And 50 of that team will consider quitting, today.

Struggling with staff retention is the expensive bit.

All of this is already waiting for you, and we can help you to start implementing these breakthrough actions in improving staff retention, in the next few weeks.

You'll be seeing results you can measure, in months, not years.

Here's how we can work together:

I'm Looking For Potential Solutions For My Organisation

If you're looking for a solution that's tailored to your organisation's needs, then let's talk.

You can book a no-obligation call with Clare Josa by completing a short questionnaire, which then takes you to her online diary, so you could get that called booked in now.

I Just Want Training For Myself

If you're looking to add science-backed, proven Imposter Syndrome strategies to your coaching toolkit, whether you're a line manager, HR professional, coach or consultant, Clare has certification programmes at two levels:

Imposter Syndrome Practitioner™

Imposter Syndrome Master Coach™

What's The Next Step - For Your Organisation?

A message from Clare Josa

Get a personalised action plan

Answer 20 short questions and we'll send you a personalised action plan, with tailored suggestions for next steps.

Plus when you have answered the questions, you'll get a link to Clare's diary, to book a call to explore the scalable solutions that would be the best fit for your team. 


Want to stay in the loop with the latest news and events? Get Clare's free occasional What's On newsletter:

What Do You Want To Do Next?