Introverts

A friend posted on Facebook about a meeting in which extroverts (probably) were going to decide how to include introverts. My immediate response was YIKES.

And yes, to the person who expressed a concern, we do get promotions even though we pretty much never dominate meetings.

However, there is a huge disconnect in understanding between the groups.

Introverts like being alone; we think better; work better; breathe easier, you name it. That does not mean we don’t like people. We do, indeed, just not too many of them at once. One is nice.

If you are an introvert, when did you realize that about yourself? For me it was two seconds after first learning the word. Most of my childhood I just wondered why I was different; why I never had any idea what was going on. I learned to make friends with a person who was more tuned in and would tell me when I needed to show up someplace.

Once a couple of years ago the subject of introversion/extroversion came up. I mentioned that I was an introvert. A woman ran over and gave me a big hug, saying as she hugged, “Don’t say that about yourself.” What??? How did that sound like a self-insult to her?

At parties, even holiday gatherings of close friends/relatives, I have a two-hour limit. I don’t watch the clock; don’t need to, as after two hours I become restless and uncomfortable. I may have even been quite gregarious during those couple of hours…we do have our outgoing moment after all….but then I’m just DONE. Coat please!

After any gathering of more than three or four people, I am just exhausted and hardly speak to anyone for the next couple of days. The extroverts I know (most people) are, first of all, still there many hours after I’ve gone home, and then are excited and talking about it for days. So, yes, different for sure.

I wonder if the people planning the meeting I referenced in paragraph one would consider asking introverts to write out a couple of discussion points. First they’d need to know what the goal was in having the discussion in the first place. Do they just want to turn us into extroverts? Good luck with that one. If they’d like to tap into our unique gifts more effectively, we could probably help.

And we could just send the notes and not have to attend in person.