Laura Henshaw On Dealing With Imposter Syndrome

“I find so often that if I can prove something to myself in a workout, then I’m more confident in every other aspect of my life. I think that’s so important,” Laura says. “Once you feel that, you want other women to feel it.” The KIC program is one way she’s working to empower women with this concept; her latest collaboration with activewear label Jaggad is another. The range, which drops this month, is her second with the brand, and she’s also spearheaded its inclusive media campaign. “I wanted the message to be that anyone can wear it,” she explains. “If you’re super sporty or not at all, you can … Getting active and wearing activewear, that can be anyone.”

Yep, Laura radiates this kind of positivity for real – but it’s also a mindset she consciously cultivates to counter anxiety when the pressure’s on. With KIC poised to expand globally, a wedding to fiance Dalton Graham in the works and a law degree to finish, it’s shaping up to be a mega year for this boss. So, we asked Laura how she deals with self-doubt, about her goals for the future and why best mate Steph is her “support trampoline”.

 Do you ever have that imposter syndrome feeling, that you have to fake it until you make it?

Yes. Literally nearly every day – and last year was probably the most I’ve ever dealt with that. I try to be myself on social media – I just speak from my heart. But I think then it gets to a point where I’m like, ‘Hang on, I’m just so normal. Why on Earth am I here? Why am I running this business?’ If someone were to tap me on the shoulder and say, ‘Hey, actually you’ve lived this fake life, you need to go back to your other life now.’ I’d be like, ‘Yeah, you’re right. Maybe I have.’ I know it seems so silly to say that, but I think that [it’s] because we’ve built our business … on who we are, and we’re so normal! Steph’s been amazing, she’s such a confident person. She helps me so much with self-validation and knowing that I’m good enough to be where I am. We’ve worked hard to get here. I don’t know what I would do without her. She is like my support trampoline.

Support trampoline?!

Because I fall and she’s always there to bounce me back up, which is just the best. I think [imposter syndrome] is something I’ve realised that I’m probably going to, I suppose, battle with my whole life. But it’s important to talk about it because I don’t think anyone in the world is 100 per cent confident. Everyone has insecurities. It’s just about trying to kind of get rid of that little voice in your head and let the more positive one take over.

Have you developed any strategies to help you do that?

I’ve found that expressing gratitude helps me the most. It grounds me and then it completely flips my mindset. So if I’m really not feeling confident, I just think about how lucky I am to have a job that I love, or that I get to go to uni and can get an education. Or [how] I have two legs and I can run and I can exercise. I always come back to things I can control. And you can control your own confidence and how you feel about yourself. Sometimes [though] it can be hard to block out all the white noise of everything else. So I find doing a guided meditation will help. We’ve put a wellness hub into the KIC app, which has meditations that you can do at any time. There’s one on confidence … I literally cry every single time I listen to it – it’s beautiful. But it reminds me, ‘I am good enough, I can do this.’ I listen to that and it just helps ground me.

Read our full chat with Laura in the May issue of Women’s Health, on sale now. 


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