Hi to all extroverts! I’m glad to know you! Some of my favorite people are extroverts.
This is a little note I’m slipping into your hand to tell you some truths about the people around you who aren’t like you—the introverts.
There are some myths going around about introverts—that they’re shy, they don’t like to talk, they don’t enjoy being in front of groups or speaking up. Now, some of those qualities may apply to specific introverts, but they aren’t traits of introversion.
In fact, many introverts aren’t shy at all, make great public speakers, and will talk your ear off. The difference is in how they are using their energy.
If you think of people like batteries, introverts tend to get more depleted when they feel like they have to be “on.” They are taking in a lot of information about the people around them, so the more stimuli there are, the more they are managing, and the more drained they feel as a result. In a group of people they know well this is happening less, so they have way more energy.
If you’re leading a team or managing people, it’s important to know that the introverts around you can and should be tapped for speaking roles in presentations. There’s no correlation between talking less and not being a good public speaker! Also introverts are usually good about preparing for presentations; they’re less likely to want to wing it.
Make space for introverts in meetings. If a few voices tend to dominate, ask them to take a back seat and invite a few observations from your more introverted colleagues.
Try not to perpetuate the myths about introverts—even when they may be passing them around themselves! “Oh, I’m an introvert,” a friend may say when you ask her to come with you to a networking event. You can offer to help her make a plan to attend the event in a way that feels manageable; perhaps agree that you’ll each meet four new people and then go get dinner together.
The fact is that we need introverts—their thoughtfulness and observation are often what provides the key insight on a project or keeps something from going off the rails. Let’s make sure we have their voices in the room.
