Introverts Unite! (oh, might be tough…)

Hi, I’m Camille and I’m an extrovert. I confess that from time to time I’ve overlooked the talents that introverts have to offer. I’m reforming.

On a recent flight home from Ohio, I read Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain.

I picked it up because in my work to maximize team performance I’m constantly looking for insights to have the more quiet members contribute. Why?

Because I know quiet people are smart and insightful andwe need to stop talking long enough to hear them.

Consider some of Cain’s findings:

• It’s a spectrum: no person is a pure introvert or pure extrovert.
• Our culture has a bias for talkers, against non-talkers. Introverts are often passed over for leadership roles.
• One-third to one-half of the population is introverts. If we don’t listen to them, we lose their intelligence and contribution!
• Solitude is essential for creativity.
• Steve Wozniak (inventor of 1^st Apple) worked alone in his HP cubicle; states he never would have become an expert if he hadn’t been too introverted to leave his house when growing up.
• Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) spent days ensconced in his private bell tower, rarely ventured out to meet young readers, fretting that kids would expect an outspoken Cat in the Hat-like figure and would be disappointed by his reserved personality.

To validate what I’d read, I recently asked a dinner companion if she was an introvert or extrovert. “I’m an introvert who’s had to force myself to be an extrovert. I learned early that I had to speak up or I would be passed over. It took a lot of energy to do this. It always felt like I was betraying myself. I did it so I could have more of an influence on our organization, but, it was tiring.”

Cain illustrated how soft-spoken, self-described introverts  – Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Gandhi – took the spotlight because they were driven by their commitment to make a difference and do what they thought was right, not because they loved the attention. Can’s words validated my experience in working with thousands of people around the world in cultures very different from our Western one. Each of us can and do create commitments which can and do override and supersede our preferences and habits. Commitments that pull us out of our comfort zones and pull us through difficult situations to achieve meaningful, purpose-filled goals.

To support yourself and your employees in making their contribution and being engaged:

1. Create time and space for reflection and solitude. (For ex., have a no-talk afternoon a week)
2. Continue to collaborate, just don’t think it’s the only way to find the best solution.
3. Invite quiet people to lead; then, let them lead in their own way.

Hear Cain’s stimulating and informative TEDTalk.  If you’d like to share your story as an introvert, I promise to be quiet and listen.