HillaryClinton,MelissaHarris-PerryandtheOppositeofImposterSyndrome
Tofitintomale-dominatedspaces,womenaretoldtofixalotofthings:stopusing“sorry”and“just”inemails,
avoidvocalfryandupspeak,and“watchyourtone”atalltimes.
Butmorethananythingelse,womenaretoldthatit’salackofconfidencethat’sreallyholdingusback.Ifonlywe
couldgetoverimpostersyndrome,andinternalizeoursuccessesinsteadoffeelinglikeseriallyluckyfrauds,we’d
beunstoppable.
Toobaditdoesn’tworklikethat.Thereisaveryrealexternalbiasagainstwomen’scompetence,andnobodygets
arounditbybeingmoreconfident.Infact,asweseethroughtheexperiencesofHillaryClintonandMelissaHarrisPerry,beingmoreconfidentcanresultinharshpushbackwhenyou’repursuingleadershippositionswithinmaledominatedenvironments.Becausehowdareyou.
Whilewe’resobusyfocusingonwhatwomenshouldandshouldnotdo,there’sabigproblemgoingundiagnosed:
entitlementsyndrome.Theoppositeofimpostersyndrome,entitlementsyndromeistheproblemofoverconfident,
mediocrewhitemen.AfterIbreakdowncompetencebias,I’llgetintowhatentitlementsyndromelookslike,and
whatsomeconcretesolutionsmightbe.
Whatcompetencebiaslookslike
Womenareassumedtobelesscompetent,lesstrustworthy,andareheldtoahigherstandardoverallthanmen.
There’samuchgreaterchancethattheirworkwillbeignored,discounted,trivialized,devalued,orotherwisenot
takenseriously.Themoresuccessawomanexperiences,thestrongertheseexternalforcesbecome.They’realso
magnifiedbyintersectingbiases,likeracismandhomophobia.
It’seasytoseehowimpostersyndromeisarationalresponsetocompetencebias.Whywouldyouthinkyou’re
competent,ifnobodyelsedoes?
Competencebiasstartsearly.Girlslearnthatthey’llbeheldtohigherstandardsphysically,intellectually,and
behaviorallythanboys.Whileboysareraisedtoexaggeratetheirskills,takerisks,falldownandpickthemselves
backup,girlsaretaughttothinkthingsthroughandsecond-guess,avoidriskandfailure,andnotraisetheirhand
unlessthey’resuretheyhavetherightanswer.Lastly,girlsabsorbfromthemediathattheirrealvaluelayintheir
appearance,atthesametimethatboysabsorbthemessagethatgirlsarenottobetrusted.
It’snotsimpletoundosuchdeeplyheld,unconsciousbiases.Tellingwomentocounteracttheentiretyof
competencebiasbybeingmoreconfidentisliketellingoneofCinderella’sstepsisterstosqueezeherfootharder
intotheglassslipper.It’snevergoingtowork.Thestructureitselfhastoshift,whichisgoingtotakeworkbyboth
womenandmen(I’llgetintothismorelater).
However,self-confidenceinthefaceofoppressionisextremelydisruptivetopowerstructures.AudreLordecalled
self-love“anactofpoliticalwarfare“,andMayaAngelouwroteaboutitspowertoupsetandoffendoppressors.
Whenawomanisconfidentinsteadofself-doubting,itmeansshe’snolongerplayingbytherules.Ittriggers
intensepushback,aswe’llseeinthestoriesofHillaryClintonandMelissaHarris-Perry.
HillaryClinton’sexperience
HillaryClinton’slistofaccomplishmentsputsherinthetopechelonsofhighachievingwomen.Notonlywasshe
thefirstfemalepartneratamajorlawfirm,butshewentontoserveasFirstLadyofArkansas,FirstLadyofthe
UnitedStates,U.S.SenatorfromNewYork,andSecretaryofState.Sheranforpresidentin2008,andnow,eight
yearslater,she’sdoingitagain.
AccordingtoNateSilver’sanalysis,HillaryClintonhasearnedconsistentlyhighapprovalratingsineachofher
governmentpositions.In2013,asSecretaryofState,her69%approvalratingmadeherthemostpopular
politicianinthecountry.ButSilveralsofoundthatthemomentClintonhitsthecampaigntrailforanykindof
politicaloffice,herapprovalratingcrashes.Why?WriterSadyDoylesumsituplikethis:
Campaigningisnotsucceeding.It’saskingforsuccess,andforpower.Tocampaignistopubliclyclaimthatyouare
betterthantheothers(usuallywhitemen)whowantthesamejob,andthatawholelotofpeopleshouldworkto
placeyouinamorepowerfulposition.Inotherwords,campaigningisatransgressiveactforwomen...Womenwho
putthemselvesforwardinthesameassertive,confidentstyleasmenareroutinelyfoundpushy,“bitchy,”or
unlikable,andprofessionallypenalizedforthat,too.
Thisisaparadox.ThepublichastremendousrespectforHillaryClintonaslongasshehasherheaddownandis
workinghard.Butthemomentsheaskscredit,acknowledgment,andapromotion,thatadmirationturnstovitriol.
Byconfidentlyaskingforwhatshewants,andstatingwhyshedeservesit,Clintonbringshercompetenceinto
question.
Soundfamiliar?Alotofwomenhaveexperiencedsexismintheirworkplaceperformancereviewsthatclosely
parallelsClinton’sexperience.Afterall,whatisapoliticalcampaignbutahuge,publicperformancereview?
Reviewsareaminefieldforhigh-achievingwomen.Severalstudieshavecomeoutrecentlyconfirmingthatwomen
displayingconfident,assertivebehavioratworkareoftenlabeled“abrasive”,“bossy”,“strident”,“emotional”and
“irrational“intheirperformancereviews.Funfact:theword“abrasive”literallyneverappearsinmen’s
performancereviews.Whatdoesitmeantobecalled“abrasive”?Withoutadoubt,itmeans“stayinyourlane.”All
oftheseformsofpushbackworktogethertoundercutawoman’sperceivedcompetenceintheworkplace.
HillaryClintonhasbeennot-so-subtlytoldtostayinherlaneinallkindsofdifferentwaysthatundercuther
competence.Shewastoldshehasa“loud,annoying,naggingwife”voice,calledoutforappearingwithoutmakeup,
andcriticizedforherpantsuits.Shewasslammedfornotshowingauthenticemotion,butthenwhenhervoice
brokeduringaspeech,itwaswidelyreportedas“weeping“andherabilitytoholdittogetherenoughtoleadwas
calledintoquestion.MediaMattershascompiledafulllistofsexistmediareportsfrom2007-2008,organizedby
category(therearefourteen).Awordofwarning:it’soverwhelming.Evenifyoudon’tlikeHillaryClintonatall,
pleaselookatthislist.(Andifyouneedsomethingtolaughaboutafterwardstobringyoubackup—Idid—here’s
theClinton-PalinSNLskit.)
SexistattacksonHillaryClinton’scompetenceinthe2015-2016primaryseasonhavebeenmoresubtle,butthey’re
stillthere.Thistimearound,we’reseeingahugefocuson“trust”,whichisimportanttorecognizeasaveryloaded
wordfromagenderperspective.Letmeclarifythatitisavalidcriticismtosay“Idon’ttrustClintonbecauseshe
hasarecordof[insertspecificpoliticalaction].”It’snotavalidcriticismtoimplythatshejust“seems”
untrustworthy,orlacksauthenticityand“realness“asaperson.Thiskindofcriticismessentiallycallsheran
imposter.
Clinton’sopponentintheDemocraticrace,BernieSanders,iswidelypraisedforbeingtrustworthyandauthentic.
WhenargumentsforBernieSandersbeingtrustworthyarebasedonhiscongressionalrecord,writingsand
speeches,that’snotsexist.That’sjustaregularopinion,andanimportantpartofthepoliticalprocess.Butwhen
weseearecurringemphasisonBernie’ssenseofauthenticitybasedthefactthathedoesn’tcareabouthowhe
looks,prefersnottobrushhishair,andmakesfacesduringdebates,thatissexist.Peoplesayit’sjust“Berniebeing
Bernie”andthathe’s“buckingthetraditionalimageofapoliticalcandidate”butit’simportanttotakeacloserlook.
WefindastrikinglysimilarexampleinRepublicancandidateDonaldTrump—famousforhiscomb-overand
spraytan—whoisknownfor“showingrealemotion”andbeing“notafraidtomakehimselflookreallyugly.”
BothSandersandTrumparepraisedforanimagethatnofemalecandidateiscurrentlyallowedtocultivate.Show
meafemalecandidatewhocanthrowonanill-fittingsuit,notbrushherhair,andscowlandwagherfingerather
opponentduringadebate.Themediawouldhaveafieldday,notalove-fest.
TheattacksonClinton’scompetencegobeyondappearance.Thiswidely-circulatedmemeisoneexample:
Whilethesubjectmatterisoftensilly,rangingfromHarryPottertoStarWars,Bernie’sresponsesarecraftedto
demonstrateathoroughunderstandingofeachissue.Hejust“getsit.”Hillary’sresponsesareinsteaddesignedto
demonstrateenthusiasticcluelessnessfromaposer(imposter)spoutingatotallysuperficialanswershethinksthe
crowdwilllike.It’sprettyclosetoframingherasabimbo.
BernieSandersandDonaldTrumphavetheprivilegeofexistinginawidelanewhenitcomestoappearanceand
behavior.Notonlyaretheyassumedtobecompetent,andautomaticallypraisedinsteadofpunishedfortheactof
askingforpower—butthey’reencouragedtobetheirpassionatelyscowling,unfashionableselves,andpeople
lovethemforit.
HillaryClinton’slaneisnarrow.Notonlyissheawomanaskingforpower(anautomatictransgression),butsheis
requiredtoprovehercompetenceoverandover.Shewinsnoauthenticityortrustworthinesspointsfordeviating
fromperfectioninappearanceorbehavior.Sure,shecan“beherself”—butthecostisthatheractionswillbe
effectivelyrunthroughade-credibilitytranslator.Tearsbecomehysteria.Laughingiscalledcackling.Frowningisa
signofmoodswings.Ifshetriestoavoidshowinganyemotiontoavoidthiskindofjudgmentaltogether,she’s
calledarobot.It’sano-winsituation.
Let’smoveontoMHP’sstory.
MelissaHarris-Perry’sexperience
MelissaHarris-Perry,hostofthemuch-lovedMelissaHarris-PerryShowonMSNBC,hasrecentlyendedastruggle
foreditorialcontrolwiththenetworkbydecidingtoleavehershow.Inapublicly-publishedemailtoherstaff,she
said:
MSNBCwouldlikemetoappearforfourinconsequentialhourstoreadnewsthattheydeemrelevantwithout
returningtoourteamanyoftheeditorialcontrolandauthoritythatmakesMHPShowdistinctive.Iwillnotbe
usedasatoolfortheirpurposes.Iamnotatoken,mammy,orlittlebrownbobblehead.WhileMSNBCmaybelieve
thatIamworthless,Iknowbetter.IknowwhoIam.IknowwhyMHPShowisuniqueandvaluable.Iwillnotsell
shortmyselforthisshow.Iamnothungryforemptyairtime.Icareonlyaboutsubstantive,meaningful,and
autonomouswork.Whenwecandothat,Iwillreturn—notamomentearlier.
MelissaHarris-PerryhasaPhDinpoliticalscienceandtaughtAmericanvotingandelectionsatsomeofthe
country’stopuniversitiesincludingPrinceton,theUniversityofChicago,andWakeForest.Anexpertinherfield,
sheconsistentlybroughtdiversevoicestohershowtotalkaboutelections,localandnationalgovernment,and
socialmovements.TheMHPShowwasvastlymorediversethananyotherSundaycablenewsshow.Herguests
were45percentwhite,comparedtoa75-88percentrangefromalltheothermajorpoliticalweekendshows.Hers
wasalsotheonlyshowthatcameanywhereneara50-50genderbalance.
Afteryearsoffightingforeditorialcontrol,MHPreachedherlimitwhenMSNBC’swhitemaleleadershipreportedly
toldhershecouldnotdiscussBeyonce’sFormationvideo,eventhoughitispoliticallyrelevantandtheentire
countrywastalkingaboutit.Theywantedhertosticktoelectionpoliticsinstead.WhathappenedwasMHPspoke
aboutFormationanyway,asfootageofJebBushandChrisChristieralliesinNewHampshireappearedinaboxon
thescreen.MSNBCwasnotpleased.
IfyouwatchMHP’scommentaryonFormation,thesubtextisloudandclear.Shesays:
Beyonceismakinganartisticstatementthatisboldly,unapologetically,black.She’sgivingusblackbodiesanda
blackpoliticsthatwillnotbesilencedorashamed,butinsteadcommandsspacefortheonethingthevideotellsus
theyaremostdefinitelyheretodo-asBeyoncesaysinthesong’srefrain-‘Islay’.
MelissaHarris-PerryistellingMSNBCthatshetooisbold,unapologetic,andcametoslay.Shewillacceptnothing
lessthanfullrespectforherleadershipandeditorialvision—andthisvisionisfullylinkedtoheridentityasa
blackwoman.ShetheninformedMSNBCthatshe’sleaving.
Thenetworkrespondedtoherpublicly-sharedemailbysaying“She’sabrilliant,intelligentbutchallengingand
unpredictablepersonality”and“It’shighlyunlikelyshewillcontinue”atMSNBC.Heremail“isdestructivetoour
relationship.”
MSNBCtryingtoslamMHPbyusing“challenging”and“unpredictable”ascodedlanguagebothfor“aconfident
womanwhowillnotstayinherlane”and“ablackpersonwhodoesn’tcarewhatwhitepeoplethink.”Notonlyis
MHPsupposedtoexperienceself-doubtasawoman,butMSNBCisshockedthatsheexpressessuchconfidenceasa
minorityinanoverwhelminglywhite-dominatedindustry,operatingwithinasystemofwhitesupremacy.They
viewherconfidenceasanactofextremeaudacity.Onceagain,we’reseeingthekindofwordsthatcouldeasily
appearinanysuccessfulwoman’sperformancereview.
MSNBC’sstatementalsomisleadinglymakesitsoundlikethere’sstillarelationshipthatMHPisrecklessly
damaging.Newsflash:youcan’tfiresomeonewhoalreadyquit.Theemailcan’tpossiblybe“destructivetothe
relationship”becauseMHPalreadydecidedthatthereisnomorerelationship.
ThenetworkistreatingMHPlikesheshouldhaveimpostersyndrome,butshedoesn’t.Sheiscompletelyawareof
hercontributionandselfworth,andshemadethedecisiontoleaveonherownterms.Unsurprisingly,media
reportingechoedMSNBC’sincredulity,sayingthatthenetwork“severedtieswithher“or“firedher“oreventhat
she“wentonstrike.”It’ssohardforpeopletograspthatMHPsimplytookthepowerinthissituation,andleft.
ThebestpartofthisstoryisthatnotonlydidMHPchoosefreedomoversilencebyleavingMSNBC,butshealsodid
itbyrefusingtosignanon-disparagementclauseonherwayout.Thenetworkassumedshewouldexchangeher
silenceforcashintheirexitnegotiations,butshedidn’t.Andthenshesimplycarriedonspeakingtruth:
So#MSNBCy'allkeepmakingcablegreatagain.I'llbestayingchallenging&unpredictable.#NerdlandForever
pic.twitter.com/BCDOBLfITm
MSNBCtriedtopubliclypunishMHPforherconfidence,butshe’srefusingtobesilently“disappeared”likeformer
hosts.Thenetworkandthemediacanstilltrytospinherstoryhowevertheywant,butshewon’tbeenduringit
silently,andthatwillmakethingsalotharderforthem.Notonlydotheyhavetofieldquestionsabouther
departure,butalsothewiderissueoftheirparticipationinthewhitewashingofcablenews.
MHPandHRCarefightingdifferentbattles,butbothoftheirstoriesrevealthepushbackthathappenswhen
persistentconfidencefliesinthefaceofcompetencebias.
Sinceitjustwouldn’tbefairtotalkabouthalfthepopulationbeingtaughttoself-doubt,withouttalkingaboutthe
otherhalfbeingtaughttoself-aggrandize,let’smoveontoentitlementsyndrome.
Entitlementsyndrome
EntitlementsyndromeisformallyknownastheDunning-Krugereffectorillusorysuperiority.Itdisproportionately
affectswhitemen(whitenessandmalenessbeingpowerfulintersectingprivileges),andusuallyremainsinvisible
andundiagnosed.Here’saquickdefinition:
Entitlementsyndromeiswhenaperson(usuallyawhiteman)overestimateshisownskills,relativetoothers.He
believeshedeservesnotonlyrespectforhisaccomplishments(nomatterhowmediocre)butalsosuccess.He
doesn’thavetogoaboveandbeyondtoqualifyforexcellence,andifhedoesn’tgetthesuccesshedeserves,it’snot
hisfault.Hecanusevocalfry,upspeak,and“sorry”and“just“becauseheexpectstobejudgedsolelyonthecontent
ofhisspeech.Healsobelieveshedeservesthebenefitofthedoubtatalltimes,apartnerwhoismuchmore
attractivethanhim,andcopiousamountsofpublicspace.
Bothentitlementsyndromeandimpostersyndromehavetheirrootintheunconsciouscompetencebiasthat
operatesateverylevel.Youcanseeitclearlywhenyoulookathowmenandwomenviewsuccessandfailure.
Whenwomensucceed,theytendtoattributetheirsuccesstoexternalfactors(impostersyndrome).Butwhenmen
succeed,theytendtoattributetheirsuccessestoinnerqualitieslikededicationandtalent(entitlementsyndrome).
Whenmenandwomenfail,theattributionsgetflipped.Womentendtoblametheirfailuresoninternal
shortcomingsoralackofeffort(impostersyndrome),whilementendtoblamecircumstancesoutsidetheircontrol
(entitlementsyndrome).Soinageneralsense,wehavemeninternalizingmostlysuccessesandwomen
internalizingmostlyfailures,aninternalthoughtprocesswhichisthenstronglyreinforcedbyoutsideforces.
Entitlementsyndromeislikebeingcoatedinconfidence(andcompetence!)teflon.Youexpecttosucceed,andthis
isreinforcedbyexternalcircumstances:thosearoundyoualsoexpectyoutosucceed.Evenifyou’relessqualified
thanothercandidates,youbelieveinyourself.Yourcompetenceisrarelyquestionedbyothers,sowhywouldyou
questionit?Whenthecompetenceofothercandidates—women,peopleofcolor—isrigorouslyvetted,youalso
don’tquestionit.Entitlementsyndromeiswhywesooftenseewhitemalemediocritypromotedovermore
qualifiedcandidateswhoarenotwhitemen.
Entitlementsyndromenevermakestheself-helpcircuit.Unlikeimpostersyndrome,nobody’smakinganymoney
offpathologizingadestructivethoughtpatternthatdisproportionatelyaffectsprivilegedwhitemen—becausefor
them,it’snotaproblem.It’sgreat.Theentitlementsyndromethoughtpatternisallowedtoexistinvisiblyasthe
statusquotowhichothergroupsmustconforminordertobesuccessful.Ifagroupishavingtrouble,themessage
isthattheyneedtofixthemselves.Thesystemisfine,theyjustneedtoworkhardertofitintoit.
Exceptthesystemisnotfine.It’sbroken.Nowwhat?
Entitlementsyndromeisacharacteristicofagroupthatexpectstofiteasilyintoanenvironmentthatwasdesigned
especiallyforthem.Impostersyndrome,ontheotherhand,isthecognitivedissonancethathappenswhenagroup
doeseverything“right”tofitinandsucceed,andyetcan’tescapeasituationinwhichtheircompetenceisregularly
underfire.TheexamplesofMelissaHarris-PerryandHillaryClintonshowthatbiasedattacksoncompetenceonly
increaseinintensitythemorecompetenceandconfidenceawomandemonstrates.
Theproblemissystemicandenvironmental,sothesolutionalsomustalsobesystemicandenvironmental.As
scholarKarenAshcraftstates,“socialchangeisaboutfixingenvironments,notpeople.”Hereareafewexamplesof
thingswecando:
1 Ifyourcompanyisholdingassertivenesstrainingsforwomen,askwhattrainingswillbeheldformen.If
onlythewomeninaworkplacearedeemedinneedofspecialtraining,itsendsamessagethatthemen’s
skillsetisthestandard.Therealityisthateveryonecanbenefitfromdexterityincommunication.
2 Throughunconsciousbiastraining,cultivate“privilegetraitors”whodotheworkofdebunkingtheirown
privilegeandpointingoutunconsciousbiaswhentheyseeit.
3 Keepaneyeoutforbacklashthathappenswhenawomanassertsconfidenceintheworkplace.Ifyouare
involvedinaperformancereviewprocessandawordlike“abrasive”comesup,pushback.Explainwhy
thatwordisproblematic,andsticktospecific,performance-relatedexamples.
4 Ifyou’reinameetingandyouwitnessawomanbeinginterruptedbyaman,whothenessentiallyrepeats
whatthewomanjustsaid,expecting(andsomehowgetting)creditforit,cutinassoonastheytakea
breath.Redirectattentionbacktothewomanbysayingsomethinglike“Oh,that’slikeLilawasjustsaying
about____.Lila,tellusmoreabouthow____wouldwork.”
Toreallygetattherootofcompetencebias,we’regoingtohavetoarriveatanenvironmentwherenoonegroupis
seenastheyardstickforcompetence.PerAshcraft,weneedtocreateenvironmentswheredifferencecanemerge
andflourish.Thismeansdroppinganyassumptionsofwhatdifferencewilllooklike.Insteadofsaying,“weneed
morewomeninpoliticsbecausethey’regreatatbuildingconsensus”or“weneedmorewomenofcolorhosting
cablenewsshowsbecausethey’rebetteratbringinginmorediverseguests”weshouldbesaying“weneedmore
diverserepresentationinpoliticsandcablenewsbecauseitreflectsthepluralitywelivein.”Wecan’trelyontired
stereotypestoassumewhatimpactthiswillhave.Wecanonlyencouragehumility,curiosity,andopennessaround
howthatdifferencewillemergeandwhatitwilllooklike.