Do you suffer from imposter syndrome?

Today I’m going to talk about imposter syndrome! This is something that I struggle with all the time, as a woman entrepreneur in the gaming industry.

It happens to almost ALL of us. The self consciousness of being new to something or of appearing silly or just not good enough. There are so many ugly little voices that rear our heads telling us that we can’t do something or that we are too late, too different or too inexperienced.

I want to tell you a story about some Magical Girls.

Magical Girls

In 2019, my cousin, Ally and I wanted to teach our moms to play Dungeons & Dragons. We thought that it would be really fun to share this kind of experience with them since she and I both love games.

And we also invited some of their friends to play and I was struck by these amazing, educated, creative, accomplished women and their hesitation to be “good enough” to learn to play.

If you’ve never played Dungeons & Dragons before, it’s a collaborative storytelling game where the players work together with the Dungeon Master to create an adventure. The Dungeon Master describes the world and knows the framework of the storyline before you get started. The players then describe how they interact with the world and each other and can make choices about how they might use a special skill their character has and then roll dice to see if their attempts are successful.

We called this adventure Magical Girls because it took place in a high fantasy world designed by my cousin, Ally.

We had an absolute blast and by the end of each game, the women who were first time players could not wait to play again and were surprised by how well they did and how much fun they had.

What if you could?

So why am I telling you about that? Well, because I think there are so many people who would enjoy playing a tabletop role playing game like Dungeons & Dragons but they don’t know where to start or they don’t have anyone nearby who can help them learn. OR worst of all, they are just afraid to try it because of imposter syndrome and the fear of looking silly.

But by not trying you are cheating yourself out of what could be a truly wonderful experience.

That being said, I don’t think all games are created equal. The D&D community can be wonderful and welcoming – embracing and giving. And in an effort to create a more inclusive space, we have found some of the best Dungeon Masters in the country who will guide new players through their first experiences with patience and kindness.

How we can help

I’ve experienced feeling intimidated and there have been times that it has stopped me from growing and learning something new! You are not alone. But then I realized that life is too short to let my imposter syndrome win. And I’ve seen what can happen when we lend a hand to help others take steps to overcome their fear.

So what is imposter syndrome keeping you from trying?
If you’ve always wanted to play D&D or your kid is begging you to learn, we’re here to help.