As a (strong) Introvert (in the sense that I get my emotional energy from inside my head), I’ve often been asked about the fact that I “do presentations for a living”. With a confused (or challenging) air I’m told: you can’t be an introvert, look at what you do for a job.
That mis-understands the nature of being an introvert (in the Jungian sense); I may get my energy from thoughts inside my head, but that doesn’t stop me from going public with them, when I’m good and ready. That’s the big difference between me and the extraverts around me – they tend to go public in order to get ready.
It’s something I blogged about a long time ago (here and here) and it seems I’m not the only one who finds this interesting. With the exception that my understanding is that introverts comprise much more than a mere 10% of the population, I pretty much endorse everything said in this article:
http://www.career-intelligence.com/management/Introvert.asp
Mind you, there’s an upside to being an introvert presenter, too…. while it’s true that I’m less able to respond (instinctively) to my audience, perhaps, it’s also true that I’m less easily ‘thrown’ by my audience, perhaps….. :)
Which reminds me of the saying
“If you want to know what an Introvert is thinking, you have to ask. If you want to know what an extrovert is thinking, just listen…”
Andy
The statement that you made about introverts getting their energy from the thoughts in their head is a whole new take on defining the word! I like this approach and it makes great sense on explaining how some introverts are comfortable in front of an audience. The stigma is that an introvert is withdrawn in almost all respects – certainly not true! Thanks for sharing!
http://www.ethos3.com
Hi folks – Nicely put Andy.
Heather – that definition isn’t mine, it’s the one Jung used when he was doing is work. And it certainly DOES explain a lot, doesn’t it! :)
S