Sarah McKellar’s technical skills were not what held back her business, Top Gong Digital Marketing. Photo: Jodi McConaghy.
By almost every measure, Wollongong’s Sarah McKellar has always been fearless.
With more than two decades of experience as an emergency services worker, she walked into burning buildings without hesitation. She juggled that career with raising triplets and taught herself about building websites and SEO on the side.
Yet, when faced with asking someone to pay her for her hard-won technical knowledge, she broke into a sweat.
“For me, there’s nothing more terrifying than sales,” she laughs.
“I remember getting my first recurring client and every month when I would send my invoice, I would wait for the reply that they were cancelling. Every month, payment would come, and I kept being surprised. Why?
“I could easily prove my skills any time. All I’d need to look at is the website ranking results online to see I was good at what I did. But I struggled with something a lot of women — in business and other walks of life — struggle with.”
Imposter syndrome is a psychological phenomenon where high-achieving individuals doubt their accomplishments despite evidence of success.
Data on its prevalence varies greatly, with some reports saying it can impact almost 90 per cent of the population.
Most sources agree it’s more prevalent in women than men, and Sarah was no exception.
“For a while running Top Gong Digital Marketing, even though my technical skills were there, I was learning and learning more, but getting no traction in the business,” Sarah says.
“I used to ask clients to ‘let me’ build their website – like they were doing me the favour.
“One day a mentor told me to get out there and have more conversations. The idea of networking was deeply uncomfortable for me.”
She found an incubator for her confidence in the Women with Altitude Illawarra chapter, eventually contributing to the organisation’s recently published book, The Business Sisterhood.
The collection features 31 women sharing honest stories and “wins and wobbles”, with QR codes leading to practical tools for readers.
“There are a lot of books about people who’ve made it,” Sarah says. “This book is about sharing stories of people, some of whom have gone on to launch successful businesses, some of them are just giving it a go and others have found the courage to act on a passion while holding down another job.”
In her chapter, Sarah shares her journey in overcoming imposter syndrome, building the confidence to put herself out there and the helpful thought patterns that led her to a turning point.
“I have always had very positive experiences working in male-dominated workplaces. I am still employed full-time at the Warrawong Fire Station or Fire & Rescue NSW. But I have learned a lot of lessons from working with men. One is that you need to back yourself, ” she says.
“I think a lot of women don’t think they’re ready to ‘do the thing’ until they’re already doing it. For instance, I can sit in a debrief with a decade of experience and feel reluctant to share my thoughts, when a man with one year’s experience is happy to chip in.
“I think we fear judgment, but judgement isn’t the worst thing in the world. The worst thing in the world is being unhappy, wanting to change, but being too fearful to take the risk.
“I am not going to pretend I’m ‘cured’. I’m a work-in-progress.”
To order a copy of The Business Sisterhood, contact Sarah via Top Gong Digital Marketing.
