Ditching Imposter Syndrome, by Clare Josa - #ICBOOKCLUB Review

10 December 2020

There’s something about publishing a piece of content you’ve poured your heart into that feels like being called to the Head’s office at school, not knowing whether you’re about to get praised or punished. Our words only create meaning when they are read and understood by someone else. And it’s hard to know until after that how they will respond to them.

Publishing a book is like that feeling, but terrifyingly public and permanent. Of course, it’s also combined with excitement and hope, which sums up how I was feeling in October 2019 when Ditching Imposter Syndrome was published.
You hold your breath for those first reviews, no matter how many times the book was edited and how many beta-readers you had. It can take weeks to hear anything back and you spend that time holding your breath, hoping it will be ‘loved it!’ and not ‘loathed it!’
And with this one – it was my eighth – I had a real gift: the CIPR Inside followers chose Ditching Imposter Syndrome for their #ICBookClub.

Now, there’s nothing quite like having a group of expert communicators poring over your words to make you feel nervous, but it turned out to be one of my most positive experiences, ever, as an author. As the brave souls who chose to read Ditching Imposter Syndrome started to use the exercises in the book to create insights and breakthroughs, they told the Twitterverse about it. They used the hashtag, they shared the photos, they shouted about the shifts they were seeing. And if there were any ‘loathers’, they kept blessedly quiet about it.
These daily posts gave me such a lift, as I worked on the book’s launch, watching book club members starting to feel more confident, taming their inner critic, and clearing out their hidden blocks. It felt like I had a team of virtual cheerleaders, letting me know that, together, we were creating a wave of change.

When we think about why we create any piece of communications material, it boils down to getting a message across that has a chance to make a difference. So when the end of the book club’s time came to a close with the live chat session, it was really moving to see so many people sharing what had changed for them, from having read Ditching Imposter Syndrome. The comments were heartfelt and full of hope for the future.

And it’s rare for an author to get the chance to have such direct feedback from readers. Normally it feels like sending your dreams into a black hole, not knowing whether your book was ever read, or if it just sat on a shelf, collecting guilt-inducing dust. Being part of the #ICBookClub helped me to feel the courage to shout about Ditching Imposter Syndrome everywhere else – because you were telling me this stuff was working for you.

Without readers, there’s little point in any of us writing. And I’d like to say an enormous thank you to all of the CIPR members who have started their Ditching Imposter Syndrome journey. I wrote the book for you so that you can make an even bigger difference in the world, through your own message, too.





Thank you so much for choosing Ditching Imposter Syndrome for your book club. And I’ll make sure I’m in touch whenever the sequel comes out!

x Clare

P.S. If you’ve been loving Ditching Imposter Syndrome, could I ask a favour please? Could you leave a review on Amazon and let people know why they would love it, too? It makes such a difference and I would be eternally grateful! Thank you.
 P.P.S. If you’ve got the book, please make sure you join the Readers’ Resource Vault for extra videos, articles, and MP3s. Readers tell me it feels like I’m walking by their side with these extra bonuses – and I am.