Are you an introvert?
- You enjoy solitude, in other words, having your me time
- You don’t like to work in a group
- You feel tired after being in a crowd which requires you to “recharge” later
- You would prefer to message/ email people rather than having a conversation with them over zoom meetings/ phone calls
- You have a small circle of friends and that’s all that matters to you
Challenges introverts face
“With great power comes great responsibility” – Ben Parker For introverts, our great power is what I would call: “THE PHANTOM CLOAK”. We can disappear partially or completely even by being present in a group. We are often forgotten or left out. In addition, we HATE meetings and we definitely HATE ice breaking sessions. These are the perfect two examples an introvert would have to face whether at work or at school. Who even thought that ice breaking session should be on the to-do list? Oh right… extroverts! Meetings For an introvert, meetings are challenging. The main reason is because unlike extroverts we are unable to thrive on human interactions. This means that we can’t simply go up to a person and start having a nice conversation with them as though we have met them for years. Imagine having to go to a meeting for the very first time as you newly join the company and your project manager asks for ideas on the spot and everyone is pitching in except you. It feels so frustrating, then and there, as your brain just goes blank due to anxiety. And this is merely because as introverts we find it difficult to think on the spot. We need time to think. Ice Breaking Sessions This is the most nerve-wracking for introverts. This is beyond our limits. In situations like this we are always put under the spotlight for social interactions. We don’t really like to be put under the spotlight for these kinds of things. Ice breaking is also known to be quick. We have to think on the spot. What topic would this person like to talk about? Would the conversation bore him/her and make him/her feel uncomfortable? There would be so many questions running through our head but no ideas coming to our head for a conversation because of the anxiety of not wanting to screw this up but we have no choice but to do it anyway.How can you help introverts?
To help introverts with these challenges:- Give a heads up on what we are to discuss in meetings to come so we can prepare
- Give us time to think. Don’t rush us
- Be encouraging when we speak up
- Give us time to warm up to others and eventually we would break the walls ourselves – in other words, stop all ice breaking sessions!