Robbie Williams has opened up about overcoming a “huge amount of imposter syndrome”, saying he has reached a point in his life where he feels incredibly “lucky” and “grateful” to be doing what he does.
The former Take That star, who is set to play two gigs at Limerick’s Thomond Park next summer, reflected on how his attitude towards his career and success has changed as he has got older.
Speaking to Brendan O’Connor on RTÉ Radio 1, the 52-year-old singer admitted that he once struggled to believe he deserved his success.
“There was a huge amount of imposter syndrome, a huge amount of ‘I was in a boyband and I’m lucky to be and how dare I, and who do I think I am thinking that I am someone I can’t be etc.’”
Williams said that, with age, he has learned to let go of those feelings and appreciate the position he finds himself in.
“You sort of shed skins as you get older and I think that something that has enabled me to love what I do and where I am is to understand exactly how lucky and how grateful I am, to be where I am, doing what I do, and I have the best job in the world,” he explained.
Robbie Williams will perform at Thomond Park in Limerick next summer
He said that change in perspective has allowed him to stop dwelling on whether he deserves his success and instead focus on the experience of performing for his fans.
“I’ve sort of shed that skin where I hate myself and feel like I don’t deserve it, and just inhabiting what’s in front of me, which is invariably 98 per cent of the time a bunch of incredibly kind and compassionate, empathetic and loving people that are beaming back to me that they are enjoying what I’m doing, so that’s where I’m at.”
Asked about the moment that changed his perspective on success, Williams pointed to the arrival of his daughter, Theodora “Teddy” Rose, thirteen years ago.
Teddy is the eldest of Williams’ four children with his wife, Ayda Field. The couple, who married in 2010, also have sons Charlton “Charlie” Valentine and Beau Benedict Enthoven, and daughter Colette “Coco” Josephine.
“When my daughter arrived thirteen years ago, I thought that when I was growing up, being famous and being successful in the entertainment industry was going to be a fix-all – that if I go and do this, then maybe I won’t hurt as much and maybe I won’t be as sensitive.
“I didn’t actually consciously think that, but subconsciously, when that didn’t arrive, it became my conscious thought: ‘Oh, this hasn’t fixed anything, it’s ruined everything!’
“Then my daughter arrived and it stopped being this place that I was looking to fix me and it started to be my job. And because it’s my job, and I’ve got to work for her and for them, I then started having so much gratitude for my job being the best job in the world,” he added.
Williams continued: “And then, baby steps and then a few jumps and huge leaps, and now I’m 52 and I realise what I’ve got and what’s in front of me, and not this other reality that my brain was trying to create for me.”
Robbie Williams will perform at Thomond Park in Limerick on Tuesday, 6 July and Wednesday, 7 July 2027, with the second date added due to demand.
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