It’s official. I just scored 23 out of 23 on the inventory of attributes, so now I am a 100 percent, certifiable, undeniable, dyed-in-the-wool introvert. Now, the question of the day is this: So what?
I have never been the life of the party. In my drinking days, I used to dance on table tops with a lampshade on my head. (That’s what I’ve been told). Now I don’t seek the limelight even on the dance floor. In fact, I’m not much of a dancer. I rarely go to parties, but I might fight to get away from one. I don’t like fist fights, although I’ve been in a few. None lately. Now I don’t even fight my way to be first in line for anything, not even to a concert featuring Gershwin songs. But speaking of Gershwin, I prefer his music over any other I’ve heard since, well, since I was born. Except, perhaps, for Debussy’s Clair de Lune which lulls me into a land and to a place where other introverts would fear to tread.
I was glad to learn that introverts are not shy, although that is the common perception. We are reserved and introspective, but not shy. One of our strongest attributes is this: We think before we speak. The next time you hear some windbag ramble on and on about nothing, think of us. Introverts are good listeners and good public speakers, mainly because we don’t use the occasion to promote ourselves. We do like to convey ideas that have importance to everyone.
Introverts are readers and writers. We would prefer to savor the best thoughts of others, or commit our thoughts to pen and paper than to speak them, sing them, or scream them from a balcony. On the job we prefer to work in solitude, or in quiet settings. We tend to shun groups, group actions, and group think. We are not loners even though we like to be alone with our thoughts when we can. In fact, we often mate up with extroverts. We are good communicators; it’s just that we don’t need to be at the center of everyone’s attention. Come to think about it, it’s hard for me to imagine two extroverts or two introverts making love. Somewhere between silence and screaming seems to be a nice balance for intimate sharing.
All achievers are not introverts, but nearly all introverts are achievers. Still, achievers are doers whether they are scientists, doctors, lawyers, butchers, bakers, or candlestick makers. They are driven by a need to do, to build, to see a pay off for effort. Politicians, in contrast, are not achievers. They are driven by a need for power. Introverts are as rare among legislators, governors, and kings as teeth are among hens. Wonderful exceptions to this observation are Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, and Indira Gandhi.
So what are we to make of this contemplative group with an inward-looking trait? Not much at all. And that is pretty much the way we like it. We don’t go for accolades and applause. We avoid crowds. We like our privacy. We don’t need the spotlight. Most of us are good at what we do. And some of us are great lovers. OK. I just tossed that in to keep you wondering. It’s one of those areas in which I would rather be good than lucky. But I’ll take all the luck I can get.
To sum up: Don’t feel sorry for introverts. We are quietly normal, thoughtful, energetic, and focused. We love comedy, but I doubt if many of us are comedians. We strive to be successful, but our definition of success is different from the kind portrayed on television, or taught in schools. It is more inner-directed. We don’t mind solitude, and prefer it to the noisy trappings of social life that extroverts seem to enjoy. Ultimately, we probably want the same things as others—someone to love, something to do, and something to look forward to. Just hold the noise level down…please.
I'm now admitting I'm an introvert because you make it sound so noble. Yes, I'm very inner-directed and define what an achievement is without any accolades needed whether forthcoming or not.
...typically...for the intreverted folk..."reticent"...Edward
you've managed to spill the beans about the rest of us
...the secrets that we've been trying to hide for so long
became known to the entire world....
Ah! How I love
thoughts provoking deep end
look at the big picture
never come out
of my own shell..."old soul"...
How I love
chitchat that doesn't come
in a form of a soliloquy...
How I love
time alone
with good book
good tea with a lemon
seating at the back of life theatre floor...
About all...I love
to be quite
in an increasingly
noisy world.
Contemplating!
You have a way of turning a story into an article. A good article, I might add.
From time to time, I have enjoyed being the life of the party. But otherwise, an introvert I am, based on your description. Becoming paralyzed, caused me to really examine my life and where it was going, a very introverted thing to do. Also, unless I get very aggressive and interrupt others, at parties I find that the noise level is very high while I am not.
Wow Edward, This was something I did not want you to stop at, you could have gone and gone on and I would have still read it all up...since everyone of us fell into one category or the other I am sure each person reading this will be trying to fit in here or there. sure I am with you ....you know that .. except when I am chatting up or writing to you....I find my noise level rising up... enjoyed much..jk
The captivating music of birds and the enchanting beauty of roses have, each in their own right, inspired people around the world for as long as anyone can remember. How the two combine with the challenges faced by a struggling writer in Georgia to c
The second book in the telepathy series. It contains more ways for the up and coming telepathist to experiment with the sending and receiving of thoughts and is at the end of the story about future telepathy people found unexpectedly chosen by the go
Quiet Please: Introverts at Work
