{"id":12115,"date":"2013-05-14T09:24:59","date_gmt":"2013-05-14T16:24:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/?p=12115"},"modified":"2013-05-02T12:53:49","modified_gmt":"2013-05-02T19:53:49","slug":"introverts-unite-oh-wait-thats-going-to-be-tough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/?p=12115","title":{"rendered":"Introverts Unite! (oh, wait, that\u2019s going to be tough\u2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Hi, I\u2019m Camille and I\u2019m an extrovert. (Hi, Camille.) I confess that from time to time I\u2019ve overlooked the talents that introverts have to offer. I\u2019m reforming.<\/p>\n<p>On a recent flight, I read <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can\u2019t Stop Talking <\/span>by Susan Cain. I picked it up because in my work to maximize team performance I\u2019m constantly looking for insights to have the more quiet members contribute. Why? Because I know quiet people are smart and insightful and we need to stop talking long enough to hear them.<\/p>\n<p>Consider some of Cain\u2019s findings:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It\u2019s a spectrum: no person is a pure introvert or pure extrovert.<\/li>\n<li>Our culture has a bias for talkers, against non-talkers. Introverts are often passed over for leadership roles.<\/li>\n<li>One-third to one-half of the population is introverts. If we don\u2019t listen to them, we lose their intelligence!<\/li>\n<li>Solitude is essential for creativity.<\/li>\n<li>Steve Wozniak (inventor of 1<sup>st<\/sup> Apple) worked alone in his HP cubicle; states he never would have become an expert if he hadn\u2019t been too introverted to leave his house when growing up.<\/li>\n<li>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.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To validate what I\u2019d read, I recently asked a dinner companion if she was an introvert or extrovert. \u201cI\u2019m an introvert who\u2019s 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.\u201d<\/p>\n<table border=\"1\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center;\" valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">Introvert<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center;\" valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">Extrovert<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Energized by inner world; fine with less stimulation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>Energized by outer world; craves lots of stimulation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li>Enjoys reading a book, sipping wine with a close friend<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>Enjoys cranking up stereo, meeting new people<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li>Works slowly, deliberately; mighty powers of concentration; immune to lures of fame<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>Tackles assignments quickly; makes decisions fast; loves limelight<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li>Thinks before talks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>Talks then thinks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li>Dislikes conflict<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>Comfortable with conflict<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"264\">\n<ul>\n<li>As leader, allows others to blossom, run with their ideas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"255\">\n<ul>\n<li>As leader, tendency to put own stamp on things, ignores others&#8217; input<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Cain illustrated how soft-spoken, self-described introverts \u2013 Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Gandhi \u2013 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. \u00a0This validated my experience in working with thousands of people around the world: Our commitment to contribute can supersede our preferences, pull us out of our comfort zones, pull us through difficult situations to achieve meaningful, purpose-filled goals.<\/p>\n<p>To support all your folks to make their contribution and share their talent and insights:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Create time and space for reflection and solitude. (For ex., 1 no-talk afternoon a week)<\/li>\n<li>Invite quiet people to lead; then, let them lead in their own way.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Listen to Cain&#8217;s stimulating Cain\u2019s <a title=\"Cain TEDTalk Introverts Quiet Ones\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thepowerofintroverts.com\">TEDTalk<\/a>. \u00a0If you\u2019d like to share your story as an introvert, I promise to be quiet and listen. Whether you&#8217;re an introvert or an extrovert, or a little of both, take <a title=\"Performance Assessment\" href=\"http:\/\/www.wipcoaching.com\/assessments\/\">an online assessment <\/a>to improve your communication, performance and, most of all, your satisfaction!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hi, I\u2019m Camille and I\u2019m an extrovert. (Hi, Camille.) I confess that from time to time I\u2019ve overlooked the talents [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1548,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[852,8,6,853,854,855,856,847,848,849,850,652],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pmbok-process","category-priorities-2","category-communications","category-pmbok-process-initiating","category-pmbok-process-planning","category-pmbok-process-executing","category-pmbok-process-monitoring-and-controlling","category-self-leadership","category-1-1-leadership","category-team-leadership","category-organizational-leadership","category-creativity"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12115"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12115\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12154,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12115\/revisions\/12154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/svapm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}