How to Trust Yourself: Overcome Imposter Syndrome, Feel Confident, and Let Yourself Be Seen

Anna Holtzman
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Are you a sensitive creative, coach, or entrepreneur who wants to share your work—but feels held back by imposter syndrome, self-doubt, or fear of being seen? How to Trust Yourself helps you build confidence, overcome creative resistance, and show up without burning out. I'm Anna Holtzman, a therapist turned coach who spent years as a creative-for-hire in publishing and TV before launching my own business. Now I help others use nervous system tools to move past fear, own their voice, and step into lasting visibility. 🌎 Work with me → www.annaholtzman.com

  1. 2 DAYS AGO

    Ep 118 The Physiology of Shame: Why Hiding Parts of Yourself Keeps You Stuck (and How to Heal)

    What if the thing holding you back isn’t what you’ve been through… but what you’ve had to hide? In this solo episode, I explore the physiology of shame—how the parts of ourselves we keep hidden don’t just stay tucked away, but actually shape how we move through the world. From the outside, it might look like you’re doing fine. But internally, there can be a quiet contraction: a subtle bracing in your body, a holding back in your voice, a hesitation to take up space or go after what you want. In this episode, I share why nearly all of us carry some version of a “shame story”—whether it’s about something we’ve done, something we haven’t done, who we are, or where we come from—and how that hidden tension can ripple into our work, relationships, and sense of self. I also talk about the double bind many of us find ourselves in: feeling like we either have to hide these parts of ourselves… or reveal everything in order to be free. But what if healing doesn’t require you to share your most vulnerable stories with the whole world? What I’ve seen again and again—in my own life and in my work with clients—is that transformation often begins much more quietly: in a moment of being truly met. In this episode, we explore: • What shame actually does in the body (and why it feels like contraction) • How hiding parts of yourself impacts confidence, self-expression, and decision-making • The subtle ways shame shows up in high-functioning, high-achieving people • The “double bind” of shame: hiding vs. overexposing • Why you don’t need to tell everyone your story to heal • What begins to shift when you feel safe enough to be seen, even by one person I also share real examples of the kinds of transformations I’ve witnessed when clients begin to soften their relationship with shame—from stepping into leadership roles, to leaving toxic environments, to creating meaningful work and relationships from a more grounded, self-trusting place. If you’ve ever felt like there’s a part of you that isn’t fully shareable… this episode is for you. A gentle invitation: As you listen, notice if there’s something in your life you’ve quietly decided isn’t safe to share. You don’t have to reveal it to the world. But what might it be like to let it be seen—just a little—in a space that feels safe enough? If this episode resonated, you’re always welcome to reach out. You can email me at anna@annaholtzman.com and simply say, “this resonated.” That alone can be a first step. https://linktr.ee/annaholtzman https://www.instagram.com/anna_holtzman/

    21 min

  2. 10 APR

    Ep 117 From Fear to Expression: Mer Monson on Poetry, Self-Trust, and Sharing Your Voice

    What happens when the thing you most want to share is also the thing that terrifies you most? In this episode, Anna sits down with poet and author Mer Monson to talk about Mer’s debut poetry collection, For the Wounded, and the deeply human journey that brought it into the world. Together, they explore writing as a place of refuge, the connection between depression and expression, the fear of being seen, and the slow, tender process of creating from a place of truth rather than performance. Mer shares how journaling became a lifeline early in life, how writing came alive for her during a cancer diagnosis, and how a season of grief, loss, and spiritual unraveling led to the poems in this collection. Anna and Mer also reflect on the coaching process they shared together, and on what it means to move toward visibility with self-compassion, support, and nervous-system safety. This conversation is for anyone standing at the threshold between hiding and expression, especially if your desire to create feels inseparable from your fear. In this episode, we explore: • How Mer’s path through cancer, grief, and spiritual change led her more deeply into writing • Why poetry asks to be experienced slowly, from “the neck down” • The fear that can arise around sharing honest creative work • How fear can disguise itself so well that you don’t even know what you really want • The role of coaching, publishing support, and self-compassion in helping creative work come into form • The connection between chronic pain, stress, visibility, and self-expression • What it looks like to move at the pace your body actually needs • Why expression can be part of aliveness, healing, and becoming more fully human About Mer: Mer Monson fell in love with writing during a cancer adventure in 2015, and has studied Method Writing since 2019. She is the author of For the Wounded, Reality Bathed in Hope and a featured author in Stories from the Muses. Her essays and poems have been published in Shark Reef, Adanna, Method Writers Speak, Exponent II, and Say More. Her past adventures include time as a K–12 school counselor, adult educational counselor, Advanced BodyTalk practitioner, and Master Transformational Coach. She loves every flavor of flying and lives with her husband and three sons in the Rocky Mountains of Cedar Hills, Utah. Find Mer here: • Website: www.mermonson.com • For the Wounded: available via Mer’s website, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble • Substack: Mer Monson on Substack Connect with Anna • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna_holtzman/ • Website: https://www.annaholtzman.com/ • Free workshop — Let Yourself Be Seen: https://www.annaholtzman.com/beseen

    1hr 1min

  3. 3 APR

    Ep 116 From Performance to Presence: Finding Your Way Back to Creative Flow

    What happens when the pressure to perform pulls you out of connection with yourself? In this solo episode, Anna explores the subtle but powerful difference between performance and connection — and how getting stuck in performance mode can cut us off from our creativity, intuition, and leadership. Drawing from her former career as a reality television editor, Anna shares a vivid behind-the-scenes story of what it was like to work creatively under intense pressure while being watched and judged in real time. Over the course of ten years in that environment, she discovered how easily the nervous system can spiral into self-conscious performance anxiety — and how that state disconnects us from the very flow we need in order to do our best work. But she also discovered a surprisingly simple pathway back. In this episode, Anna shares the strategy that repeatedly helped her return from performance mode into presence and creative flow: empathy. Through storytelling and a short guided reflection, you’ll explore: • The difference between performance mode and connection • How self-consciousness disrupts creativity and intuition • What performance anxiety feels like in the body • Why empathy can regulate the nervous system and restore creative flow • A simple exercise to reconnect with yourself when you feel stuck in self-judgment or being observed Whether you're a leader, creative, entrepreneur, or someone who often feels “on display” in your work or life, this episode offers a compassionate way to come back to yourself. Because your best work doesn’t come from performing. It comes from being present and connected. Try This Reflection During the episode, Anna invites you to reflect on a moment when you felt pulled into performance mode — when you became overly aware of how you were being perceived. Notice what happens when you bring empathy toward that version of yourself. What changes in your breath, your muscles, and your energy when you shift from self-criticism to care? Free Workshop: Let Yourself Be Seen If this episode resonated with you and you want to explore what it means to move out of performance and into authentic expression, Anna’s free workshop Let Yourself Be Seen is a great next step. In this workshop, you’ll explore the internal blocks that keep you hiding, performing, or second-guessing yourself — and begin practicing ways to show up with more clarity, creativity, and self-trust. You can sign up or download the workshop here: www.annaholtzman.com/beseen Stay Connected Anna loves hearing how these reflections land for listeners. If you try the exercise from this episode or have thoughts you’d like to share, you can email: anna@annaholtzman.com

    21 min

  4. 27 MAR

    Ep 115 Everybody Has a Story: How to Speak, Shine & Build Real Connection with April Adams Pertuis

    In this episode, Anna talks with April Adams Pertuis, founder and CEO of LIGHTbeamers, visibility expert, and beloved guide for mission-driven women who want to speak with clarity, authenticity, and impact. April has over 30 years of storytelling experience — from TV journalism to producing to building a global community of women learning to use their stories as tools for connection, community, and business growth. Her core belief is simple and transformative: everybody has a story — and that story is how people find you, trust you, and feel safe in your presence. Together, Anna and April explore what it really means to share your voice with purpose, how to build visibility without feeling performative, and how your story becomes the bridge to deeper relationships and aligned opportunities. In this episode, we explore: • Why storytelling is a leadership skill — not a luxury • Why “everybody has a voice” isn’t the same as “everybody feels safe using it” • The fears that keep so many brilliant women quiet — and how to move through them • How to tell your story without memorizing a script • April’s storytelling framework that helps you show up authentically, even if speaking terrifies you • How sharing your real lived experience builds connection, community, and deal flow • Why your story is often the missing piece in your visibility strategy • What happens when you let yourself shine a light — not just for others, but for yourself This conversation is both grounding and emboldening — a reminder that your story is not a liability, but your greatest source of resonance and reach. Connect with April Adams Pertuis • Website: https://www.lightbeamers.com/ • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightbeamers/ • 365 Days of Story Prompts: https://www.lightbeamers.com/365 Connect with Anna • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna_holtzman/ • Website: https://www.annaholtzman.com/ • Free workshop — Let Yourself Be Seen: https://www.annaholtzman.com/beseen

    1hr 3min

  5. 20 MAR

    Ep 114 How to Build Self-Trust (Even When You Keep Letting Yourself Down)

    What does it actually mean to trust yourself? On a podcast called How to Trust Yourself, it feels only fair to answer that question directly. In this solo episode, I explore self-trust through a simple but powerful lens: trust is a relationship. And like any relationship, it’s built — and eroded — through everyday interactions. Using examples from intimate partnerships (including my own marriage), I walk through the most common ways we unintentionally break trust with ourselves — especially under stress — and how to gently repair it. Because here’s the truth: self-trust doesn’t collapse because you made one mistake. It erodes slowly through perfectionism, emotional avoidance, over-self-reliance, and rigid standards that leave no room for being human. And the good news? It can be rebuilt the same way it’s built between two people — through honesty, attunement, and consistent check-ins. In this episode, we explore: • Why self-trust is a relationship, not a personality trait • How stress quietly erodes trust between you and yourself • The danger of rigid, perfectionistic standards for “earning” trust • Why not sharing your real feelings (even with yourself) damages connection • The importance of listening to your own emotions without trying to fix them • How failing to initiate self-check-ins creates distance internally • What self-attunement looks like in real life • Why radical self-reliance can actually backfire • Gentle, practical ways to begin rebuilding self-trust today The Core Message You don’t build trust with a partner by demanding perfection. You build it by: • Making space for humanity • Listening • Repairing when there’s a rupture • Checking in consistently • Allowing imperfection The same is true with yourself. If you’ve been hard on yourself lately… If stress has made you reactive or self-critical… If you’ve been walking on eggshells around your own mistakes… This episode is an invitation to soften. Self-trust isn’t about never messing up. It’s about staying in relationship when you do. Want Support Rebuilding Self-Trust? If you’d like someone to walk alongside you as you repair and strengthen your self-trust, this is the work I do. You can learn more at AnnaHoltzman.com Email me directly at Anna@AnnaHoltzman.com Or send me a voice note on Instagram at @Anna_Holtzman If this episode resonated, share it with someone who’s been holding themselves to impossible standards lately. And as always — I have so much faith in you. See you next week.

    31 min

  6. 13 MAR

    Ep 113 The Art of Reinvention with Tracy Matthews: How Creatives Evolve, Pivot, and Rise

    In this episode, Anna sits down with Tracy Matthews, serial entrepreneur, Chief Visionary Officer of Creative Launchpad, and the creator of The Art of Reinvention. Tracy has spent her career helping creatives and founders build businesses that reflect who they truly are — not who they used to be. In this episode, we explore: What The Art of Reinvention is — and why Tracy created itThe patterns she kept seeing in creatives at every level, why reinvention is inevitable, and how letting it be conscious (rather than forced) changes everything.How Tracy personally knows she’s on the cusp of a pivotThe physical and emotional cues, the intuition nudges, the discomfort, the boredom, the misalignment — and what she’s learned about listening sooner rather than later.The “pre-pivot” stageHow this liminal phase shows up in her clients: the restlessness, the grief, the identity confusion, the craving for something bigger, and the exact moment when clarity starts to break through.The fears and barriers that keep people from reinventingTracy names the big ones she sees again and again:fear of losing what you’ve builtfear of disappointing othersfear of starting overfear of visibilityfear of learning new ways of workingShe shares how she moves through these moments herself and how she supports her mentees to do the same.What’s on the other side of reinventionThe relief, the renewed energy, the alignment, the creativity, the freedom — and also the truth that pivoting isn’t a magic cure. There are challenges, identity shifts, and growing pains even after you’ve said yes to your next evolution.Why reinvention is worth itTracy talks about the deep satisfaction that comes from honoring your growth, trusting your inner voice, and letting yourself become the next version of you — even when you don’t have the whole map.This episode is a love letter to the creative who’s standing at the edge of something new.   Connect with Tracy Website: https://creativesruletheworld.comIG: @iamtracymatthews and @creativesruletheworldLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamtracymatthews/Her mentorship program The Art of Reinvention: https://reinvent.tracymatthews.com/art-of-reinventionHer podcast: Creatives Rule the World  Connect with Anna Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna_holtzman/Website: https://www.annaholtzman.com/Free workshop — Let Yourself Be Seen: https://www.annaholtzman.com/beseen

    45 min

  7. 6 MAR

    Ep 112 When Your Professional Identity Starts to Feel Like a Cage

    Have you ever felt boxed in by the very role that once lifted you up? In this solo episode, I share a moment from my visibility group, Seen & Safe, when a member said she was “so tired of being known by my credentials.” That one sentence sparked recognition around the Zoom room — because so many of us know the feeling. Our degrees, titles, and professional identities can help us build credibility and safety. They can open doors. They can even change our lives. And then, at some point, they can start to feel… constricting. In this episode, we explore: Why high-achieving, sensitive people often lean on professional identity for safetyHow success can quietly turn into performanceThe subtle body signals that tell you you’re no longer fully yourselfMy own story of trying to “look and sound like a therapist” — and how it literally gave me headachesWhat shifted when I stopped performing and started embodyingA simple awareness practice to help you move from role-playing into permissionThis conversation is for you if: You’re navigating a career pivotYou’ve outgrown a version of yourself but feel scared to let it goYou feel known for one narrow slice of who you areYou sense there’s more of you that wants to come forwardYou don’t have to reject your professional identity.But you don’t have to live inside it either.   Work With Me If this episode stirred something in you — if you’re craving more permission, more alignment, more freedom in how you show up — this is exactly the kind of work I love supporting. You can:Visit annaholtzman.comEmail me at anna@annaholtzman.comOr send me a DM on Instagram @anna_holtzman And if this episode resonated, I’d love to hear what it sparked for you.

    20 min

  8. 27 FEB

    Ep 111 Softening Isn’t Weakness: Healing Chronic Pain and Identity Shifts with Chelsea Emery

    What if healing — and becoming who you’re meant to be — doesn’t happen through pushing harder… but through softening? In this episode, Anna is joined by Chelsea Emery, a chronic pain and symptom recovery coach who recovered from 45 years of migraines, along with a cascade of other debilitating symptoms, using mind-body and nervous-system-informed approaches. Chelsea is also a recent private coaching client of Anna’s and a member of the Seen & Safe community, and this conversation offers a rare inside look at the identity shift that often unfolds alongside healing: letting go of an old career, releasing pressure-based patterns, and stepping into a new way of working and living — without repeating the same burnout cycle. Together, Anna and Chelsea explore the deep parallels between chronic pain recovery and stepping into visibility, leadership, and a new professional identity. Chelsea shares how journaling, emotional expression, nervous-system safety, and allowing support helped her heal — and how those same principles now shape the way she supports others. This is a conversation about healing, yes — but also about permission. Permission to soften. Permission to receive support. Permission to stop earning your worth through pressure. In this episode, we explore: What it’s like when chronic symptoms pile up and your world starts to shrinkHow Chelsea recovered from decades of migraines and other unexplained symptomsWhy autonomy and choice are essential for nervous-system healingThe role of journaling and emotional expression in recoveryThe grief and identity shift that can come with leaving a meaningful careerHow fear shows up during visibility and career transitions (and how to work with it gently)Why baby steps often create faster, more sustainable change than pushingThe overlap between mind-body healing and entrepreneurshipWhat “softening” actually looks like in real life — and why it isn’t weaknessChelsea’s core message: Soft doesn’t mean weak. Softening is a strength.   Connect with Chelsea Emery 🌿 Website: https://yourpeacefulpathways.com/📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emery_cj/Connect with Anna Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna_holtzman/Website: https://www.annaholtzman.com/Free workshop — Let Yourself Be Seen: https://www.annaholtzman.com/beseen

    1hr 8min
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About

Are you a sensitive creative, coach, or entrepreneur who wants to share your work—but feels held back by imposter syndrome, self-doubt, or fear of being seen? How to Trust Yourself helps you build confidence, overcome creative resistance, and show up without burning out. I'm Anna Holtzman, a therapist turned coach who spent years as a creative-for-hire in publishing and TV before launching my own business. Now I help others use nervous system tools to move past fear, own their voice, and step into lasting visibility. 🌎 Work with me → www.annaholtzman.com

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