Impostor Feelings Are Common - A Korean Professional's Playbook
TLDR: Feeling like a fraud despite real achievements? This is imposter syndrome, and it's incredibly common — even among highly successful people. When perfectionism meets cultural modesty, genuine wins can feel fake. Use small, repeatable steps to build evidence and quiet the inner critic.
There’s been a mistake…
Picture this: you’ve just been promoted at an international company. You work hard, your English is good enough for everyday work, your colleagues trust you.
And yet a voice whispers:
“They’ll realise I’m not good enough.”
“If they knew the real me, they wouldn’t have chosen me.”
If that sounds familiar, you’ve just met your inner impostor.
You are very far from alone.
The Imposter Epidemic: You're in Good Company
That “I’m not qualified” voice shows up everywhere—from new grads to senior leaders. Multiple surveys report very high rates of imposter feelings in executive roles too.
In other words, even people at the top sometimes wonder if they belong. So if that thought pops up in a meeting, you're not the only one thinking it.
The Korean Twist: Why This Might Hit Harder
If you grew up in Korea’s intense exam and ranking culture, parts of this may feel very familiar.
School years centred on exams and entrance ranks
Success often defined as “top of class / SKY”, not “doing well enough”
Frequent messages like “Don’t get arrogant” or “There’s always someone better”
Later, when you’re working in an international environment, that old calibration system doesn’t disappear.
Your brain still thinks:
“If it’s not almost perfect, it doesn’t count.”
“If it felt hard, it means I’m not naturally good.”
Add to that cultural modesty — downplaying yourself, crediting luck, emphasising weaknesses — and you get two very common masks:
The perfection mask – one mistake makes the whole win feel fake
The humility mask – you credit luck or other people instead of your own skill
Not every Korean professional will see themselves in this, and many non-Koreans do this too. These are patterns, not rules. But they show up often enough to be worth naming.
The Perfection Mask: When Good Enough Isn't Good Enough
The perfection mask tells you:
“If my English had one hesitation, it was a terrible presentation.”
“If I needed extra time, it means I’m not really competent.”
“If I worked hard, it doesn’t ‘count’ because real talent should look effortless.”
So you:
Focus on the 5% that went wrong
Hide the effort you put in
Feel ashamed of needing practice or help
The result? Real achievements feel like accidents, not evidence.
The Humility Mask: When Modesty Becomes Self-Sabotage
Then there’s the humility mask — the habit of shrinking your success so you don’t look arrogant.
“I just got lucky.”
“It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Anyone could have done it.”
Remember Son Heung-min's father saying his son — the first Korean to lead the English Premier League in scoring — still wasn't "world-class"? That kind of extreme standard might motivate some people. For many, it simply makes genuine success feel like “never enough”.
Culturally, humility has value. But ir becomes problematic when we genuinely start believing our own downplaying. Whenever you reduce success to a bit of luck, it's hiding your own efforts - and you make it much harder to build genuine confidence.
The Real Cost: More Than Just Feeling Bad
Impostor feelings don’t only hurt you emotionally. They also change how you behave.
Research links strong impostor feelings to things like:
Avoiding new opportunities (“I’m not ready”)
Over-working to “prove” your worth
Difficulty making career moves (“I don’t deserve a better role”)
Burnout and decision paralysis
In Korean professional culture, this can be especially limiting. International roles often reward:
Clear self-promotion (without arrogance)
Speaking up about your own impact
Visible confidence in meetings or interviews
If perfectionism + humility + bias all work together, even the most talented person can end up quietly stuck.
That’s why small, visible wins matter. They gradually retrain your brain and give you proof you can’t ignore.
Breaking the Pattern: Small Steps, Real Progress
You don’t fix impostor feelings with one big “confidence moment”. They respond best to support + small, structured actions.
Step 1: Set tiny, visible goals
For your next English task (email, call, presentation), choose one clear success marker:
“State my main point in one simple sentence.”
“Finish within the time, even if it’s not perfect.”
“Ask one question in the meeting.”
Clear > perfect.
Step 2: Say the credit out loud
Practise a simple sentence:
“I worked hard on this and I’m glad it helped.”
It might feel awkward. That’s okay. Awkward = new muscle.
You’re not saying “I’m amazing”. You’re simply including yourself in the story of the success.
Step 3: Collect facts, not feelings
Start a “small wins” file (notes app, email folder, paper notebook):
Positive feedback messages
Screenshots of results
Short notes that describe what you did, not just how you felt
For example, instead of only “I’m terrible on calls”, write:
“Today I stayed calm, asked one follow-up question, and finished the call within 10 minutes.”
It’s still your perspective, but it’s based on specific actions. Over time, these small pieces of evidence make it harder for the impostor story to say “you never do anything well”.
Step 4: Get feedback early and often
Instead of waiting for a big annual review, ask for one small, specific note:
“What’s one thing I should keep doing?”
“What’s one thing I could improve next time?”
This keeps feedback:
frequent
less scary
tied to reality, not your imagination
Pick one or two safe people to share your progress with:
A friend or family member who understands your work
A former colleague you trust
A mentor outside your current company
A peer group or professional community
Once a week, tell them one win:
“I led that part of the meeting.”
“My idea was used in the final plan.”
“I spoke up even though I was nervous.”
When you say achievements out loud to another human, it becomes harder to dismiss them as “just luck”.
(Rule of thumb: if a sentence needs a second lung, it's two sentences—split it.)
What To Say Instead (Quick Swaps)
You don’t have to force fake positivity. You can choose truer sentences:
“My English is terrible.”
→ “My English is strong for everyday work, and I’m still improving.”“I just got lucky.”
→ “I prepared well, and the timing helped.”“Anyone could have done it.”
→ “I brought [skill A] and [skill B], and that made a difference.”
Still humble. More accurate.
The Bottom Line
If you're a Korean professional feeling like an imposter, you're experiencing something that's both culturally influenced and universally human.
The pressure to be perfect
The habit of downplaying yourself
The fear of being “found out”
These aren’t character flaws. They’re understandable responses to:
growing up in a high-achievement, modesty-valuing culture, and
working in global environments where you may feel visible, different, or judged.
The first step is to see impostor feelings as a pattern, not as truth.
You are not a fraud.
You are skilled, and your brain is just slower to update its story.
And honestly? If senior leaders, surgeons, professors and CEOs in 2025 are still reporting impostor feelings, you are in very good company.
If impostor feelings show up most strongly at work…You might also like:
How Korean Team-First Thinking Translates in English Workplaces
Practical language for talking about your achievements without feeling like you’re bragging.
Why Korean Politeness Doesn’t Always Translate in English Workplaces
How to adjust your politeness level so colleagues hear “confident and respectful” instead of “unsure”.