I just watched Susan Cain’s talk at TED conference. I found her book Quiet to be incredible and self-affirming.
I live with an extrovert. He is amazing to watch when he is around people. People like him. He has conversations and interactions that I’m either too shy to have or to reserved to have.
He has learned that when I need alone time, he gives it to me. For me, I can go out and talk to people and deal with the world as a whole. I’ve done customer service for years. There is nothing harder for me than to make that cold call or to put out my ideas to others. Yet, I’ve done it for a long time because it is usually part of my job. One job I had to call different companies all over Europe. This was difficult for me as I didn’t speak their language and I didn’t know their cultural norms. Plus talking to other people. I did it. At the same time I hated it. I always felt I did a poor job of it.
In my life now, I’m spending more time alone, thinking, delving into the world of writing and creating. I’m finding my confidence growing. The more time I spend alone the better I feel about myself and what I’m doing. I still have self-doubt but it is less than when I was having to put myself out there.
In writing, the hardest task for me is marketing – the most extroverted part of writing. I know how to do it. I know what needs to be done but at the same time I dread it. I still do it.
If you are an introvert or you know one, I recommend reading Quiet. It will help you understand yourself or that person better. It is well written and researched. She has a lot of good things to say.