Two potential introvert clients this week expressed similar needs in a different context: “I’m feeling so stressed doing it their way!” The “their way,” is doing whatever the task is in an extroverted fashion. Someone more extroverted gets their energy, stamina, in a different way than a more introverted person. Neither is better way, they are just different. What gives you the best results is to be who you are and find a balance with others using their preferences:
1- You’re invited to a brainstorming meeting. The extrovert gets into the thrill of the fast pace; the thermometer of excitement rises as the facilitator asks for a hurl of ideas usually in round-robin fashion. The introvert hopes their thermostat will work and that they are seated toward the end of the cycle to get their thinking time in. The primary goal of brainstorming is to end up with the best idea to move a situation forward. While typical brainstorming allows for a quantity of ideas to happen in rapid fire, the introvert is at their best when allowed to piggyback onto ideas. With a little more time, they‘ll often be the one with the “eureka” moment.
2- Is cold calling on the agenda this week? While many prefer other means of sales prospecting, meeting strangers is more exciting to extroverts; their energy rises. For an introvert just the term, “cold calling,” means the thermostat drops. What happens when the extrovert and introvert pair up? You get the best of both worlds. The extrovert easily opens up the conversation and the introvert naturally listens to what gets said to structure a customer-focused approach.
3- You’re criticized for not being friendly enough. That falls into that negative introvert myth that as an introvert, “you’re anti-social.” If you’re an introvert please stop believing this! Unless someone is an extreme loner, all of us thrive on connecting. We just connect differently. Even with all the social networking online, an extrovert’s energy will rise with real conversation sooner than later. But introverts, who actually make up more of the online networking, can relax. It’s the environment to take time and more easily control when and with whom to connect. Now that’s energizing!
We have so many opportunities to work better with whatever the situation when we understand each other better. But the first thing we have to do is to stop the negative myths about introverts.
If you want more in-depth information about different ways to do this and leverage your strengths, please download my free 32 excerpt from Debunking Negative Introvert Myths. You’ll save yourself a lot of time with situations but more than that you’ll savor your energy – whichever your preference.
What situations stress you out as an introvert?