Why do I feel like a fake in my new management role?
Most project managers enter their roles through non-traditional paths without a clear roadmap, leaving them feeling like they faked their way in. This constant self-doubt makes it difficult to trust leadership decisions and creates a lingering fear of failure or termination.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- People have been saying this in most months since January 2026.
- This comes up 90.4× more often in r/projectmanagement than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1seeking advice from experienced professionalsDid this help you?
- 2relying on pattern recognition over timeDid this help you?
- 3acting confident before figuring things outDid this help you?
- 4googling, copying patterns, learning in public, and quietly panickingDid this help you?
- 5asking dumb questions early, listening a lotDid this help you?
- 6reframing past experience in organizational development chaos as projectsDid this help you?
- 7fake it till you make itDid this help you?
- 8faking certainty to maintain trustDid this help you?
- 9reverse engineering rationale after the factDid this help you?
- 10letting small fires burn intentionallyDid this help you?
- 11fabricating a plan and asking team members to correct itDid this help you?
- 12backfilling documentation after decisions are already madeDid this help you?
- 13questioning career choices and considering leaving the nonprofit sectorDid this help you?
- 14performing self-searches to evaluate organization fitDid this help you?
- 15learning to push back against donors and boards or accepting the high emotional tollDid this help you?
- 16Reaching out to local or online professional associations and peer networks for guidanceDid this help you?
- 17Finding an external mentor or coach to act as a sounding boardDid this help you?
- 18Using AI to simulate mentorship scenarios and receive feedback on tasksDid this help you?
- 19Digging through old files and past documentation to piece together previous workflowsDid this help you?
- 20Writing down all tasks and scheduling strict time slots for action items and brainstormingDid this help you?
- 21watching instructional videos on YouTubeDid this help you?
- 22reading job descriptions, policies, handbooks, and standard operating proceduresDid this help you?
- 23asking hiring managers to clarify expectationsDid this help you?
- 24finding a mentor or network to ask questions and check for blind spotsDid this help you?
- 25faking it until making itDid this help you?
- 26Waiting for a supervisor to arrive and resolve the issueDid this help you?
- 27Watching and absorbing how senior staff fix problems in real timeDid this help you?
- 28Using process documentation and step-by-step outage guidesDid this help you?
- 29Copying management styles and techniques seen in previous roles.Did this help you?
- 30Attending short management training coursesDid this help you?
- 31Reading books on leadership and managing peopleDid this help you?
- 32Joining Toastmasters to practice public speaking and leadership activitiesDid this help you?
- 33Considering stepping down to a previous senior role for a pay cut to regain happinessDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I've seen a number of posts recently that had the gist of "How am I supposed to do this?" or "I think I messed up..." from newer PMs and as much as sometimes in my head I'm "just making it up as I go" and feel like I've got imposter syndrome”source ↗
“if you ever feel like you’re winging it, congrats. you’re doing the job exactly like everyone else.”source ↗
“most PMs are learning on the job, constantly.”source ↗
“I have no idea what I’m doing.”source ↗
“Most PMs feel like we “faked” our way in because there isn’t a clear path to PM.”source ↗
“I feel like I’m fake all the time, but that path does make some sense.”source ↗
“6 years in and I still feel like I’m faking it.”source ↗
“For sure. Because of my rocky career start, I'm especially feeling it most days thinking I'm just going to get laid off again.”source ↗
“About a year ago I joined a nonprofit because I wanted my work to have more direct impact. I knew I’d have fewer resources. I knew I’d wear more hats. I actually welcomed that.”source ↗
“What I wasn’t prepared for was how emotionally hard it would be.”source ↗
“Last month I received some difficult feedback. Some of it was fair. Some of it stung because it reflected problems that existed long before I arrived. Regardless, it’s made me question whether I’m actually the leader I thought I was.”source ↗
“I’m having one of those moments where I’m wondering if I made the biggest career mistake of my life”source ↗
“I confess I struggle with this too. I have worked in large corporations and also non-profit adjacent jobs (education, government) and I recently at 50 joined a true non-profit and it's been . . . interesting.”source ↗
“I’m responsible for fundraising, donor relations, alumni engagement, sponsorships, events, our donor database, marketing, social media, newsletters, website stuff, enrollment marketing, etc. I’m also currently trying to help pull together a major annual fundraising event while finding sponsors and auction donations, and I feel like I’m drowning.”source ↗
“The hardest part is that I don’t even know how to ask for help because I don’t know what I need help with. I don’t know what I don’t know.”source ↗
“Then I get anxious because I feel like I’m accomplishing nothing, which makes it even harder to start anything.”source ↗
“At this point, I genuinely can’t tell whether I’m lazy, bad at my job, completely underqualified, or just overwhelmed because I was put into a role that normally requires more experience and mentorship than I have.”source ↗
“I entered my current job through admin work (that I knew how to do from previous experience) but the position grew faster than I could learn out of necessity (very limited resources).”source ↗
“Been at my big 4 job for a bit, still feeling like I have no idea what I am doing.”source ↗
“I open a work paper and everything looks like it’s in a different language to me, I can’t do a basic walkthrough form.”source ↗
“Nothing is clicking yet and I’m worried it never will.”source ↗
“I thought when I made it to partner 5 years ago things would start to make more sense, but that hasn’t been the case.”source ↗
“I've been in the role for 6 months now and for the most part it is giving me terrible anxiety. Every day I dread going to work.”source ↗
“I'm being stretched pretty thin right now due to the transition of roles - I still do alot of the 'doing' , along with reviewing work, helping the juniors (I have 3 currently, all of which need constant guidance) not to mention all the actual managerial duties”source ↗
“Everyone always seems to expect me to know the answers to their questions and issues straight away and I just don't.”source ↗
“I also imposter syndrome when I first got promoted.. I think i didnt feel super confident until a couple years into the job”source ↗
“Yes, I feel like I am the dictionary definition of Imposter Syndrome!!”source ↗
“I have a nagging fear that I am not cut out for the job, mainly because I can't believe I am jumping from coordinator to BP.”source ↗
“Additionally, a small part of the job will include ER, which I have never had to do in any capacity so I am mainly nervous about this part of the job.”source ↗
“Does anyone have advice for moving into a much bigger job and dealing with the imposter syndrome?”source ↗
“I've attended the interview and passed all the test and now waiting for the final interview. Does anyone else have the same experience? What was the final interview look like for a leadership role at a corporate company? Any new managers who had the same problem in the past?”source ↗
“It's my first time being on the management side of the company and has no idea what to do. The compensation is great and I don't want to fail the final interview any advice?”source ↗
“I have never been in a management position unless you count high school newspaper editor lol.”source ↗
“I am asking what is a good source for techniques on management. I am hoping to get good people which means I am most likely the weakest link with no experience.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 43Why do I feel so overwhelmed after starting a new job?
- 6Why is my new manager micromanaging everything I do?
- 8How do I know what my job actually is with no communication?
- 3How to get noticed by management without feeling fake
- 7Why do I feel so anxious and unprepared before starting a first internship?
- 2Feeling like the youngest and least experienced at work