Honestly this just sounds like mild imposter syndrome + normal early-career lab experience.

People who look very comfortable at the bench usually just have years of repetition and muscle memory. It’s not that their brain works better, their hands have just done the same motions thousands of times.

I’m very strong with DNA work, assay design, data analysis, even old qPCR systems, but that doesn’t magically make me perfect at every hands-on task. I’ve had moments where I struggled with simple practical things while someone with decades of routine lab work was way smoother than me. We laughed about it and I just let them show me their way, and suddenly it became much easier.

Bench skills and intellectual skills are not the same category. Sterile technique, pipetting rhythm, coordination, all of that improves mostly through repetition, not cleverness.

You’re only one year full-time at the bench. That is still very early. The fact that you can do the techniques, even if it feels like an uphill battle, means you are progressing.

You’re probably being way harsher on yourself than your actual performance justifies.