The applied Cognitive-Behavioral model

The Thought-Emotion-Behavior triad

To understand why we react with anxiety or fear to work situations, it is essential to analyze the internal mechanism that governs our experience.

Based on the principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy, introduced by Aaron Beck, we must understand that it is not external events that disturb us, but our interpretation of them.

The process follows a logical sequence: an external circumstance activates your perception, which generates an automatic idea or thought.

This thought is the direct trigger of an emotion, and that emotion ultimately drives a behavior.

For example, when faced with the gaze of a supervisor (circumstance), if your thought is "he is judging me," the resulting emotion will be fear or anxiety, which will lead to a behavior of concealment or error.

It is crucial to recognize that, if you suffer from imposter syndrome, your defensive behaviors are a direct manifestation of a lack of analysis about what is going on in your internal world.

You are operating on autopilot, allowing mismanaged emotions to dictate your professional actions.

The illusion of mental control

We often fall into the error of believing that we have absolute, conscious control over everything we think. If asked if you control your mind, you would probably answer yes.

However, if we accept that thoughts generate emotions, admitting that you are in total control of your thoughts would imply accepting that you deliberately choose to feel stressed, guilty, ashamed or unworthy.

No one would consciously choose to feel miserable; therefore, the problem lies in the fact that we have conditioned ourselves to perceive certain situations in a negative lens automatically.

Although we have power over our mind in the long run, in the immediate moment of the trigger, we are often victims of past associations.

Recognizing that we sometimes unintentionally "make ourselves feel bad" is the first step to stop using our intelligence against us and start re-educating our reactions.

The importance of emotional labeling

Emotional regulation begins with accurate identification. We cannot manage a diffuse feeling of discomfort; we need to name it.

The goal is to transition from a state of agitation and self-criticism to one of calm and clarity.

To do this, when faced with a stressful situation, you must pause and ask yourself, "How is my heart right now?"

It is vital to distinguish whether what you are feeling is shame, fear of exposure, anxiety about the future, or guilt.

By naming the emotion ("this I feel is social anxiety because I'm afraid I don't know the answer"), you take power away from the ghost of the "imposter" and turn an overwhelming feeling into a concrete piece of information that you can logically manage.

Summary

Based on Aaron Beck's therapy, this model states that it is not external events that disturb us, but our subjective interpretation, generating a chain of thought, emotion and behavior.

We often believe we are in total control of our mind, but impostor syndrome operates on autopilot; defensive reactions arise from past conditioning that triggers negative emotions without our immediate conscious choice.

The key to regaining control is precise emotional labeling; by specifically naming what we feel, such as "anxiety" or "fear," we transform a diffuse discomfort into a manageable concrete datum.