For some time now, I have been inspired by the words of Susan Cain, the author behind the book Quiet: The Power of Introverts. She is probably one of the best people to go to for all things introverted. And listening to her as she did in the TED Talk video of her, she has struck a chord within me.
During her talk, Susan highlights the fact that our 21st century world seemed to be designed solely for extroverts, leaving little room for introverts to thrive. From workplaces to schools, employee models and resumes are created in one way or another to encourage loud and over-the-top socializing, which is considered the norm.
I immediately related to what Susan mentioned as one of her calls to action: “Stop the constant group work craze.”
Schools in particular should be challenged to increase their efforts to cater to introverts. I remember how many group activities I dreaded and had to endure while at school. While it was bearable, even fun, for a while, being with a group of people exhausted me more than the project itself.
It goes without saying that this activity is not very conducive to introverts. Teamwork is great, but if it’s constantly forced on people who identify as (or even have no idea they are) introverts, teamwork can defeat its own purposes: creativity and productivity.
As I’ve been posting for the past few days, we need to remember that introverts are at their best when we have “alone time.” We like quiet and deep thought, solitude, which is so vital to our nature. However, the very institutions where we study and work seem to see this tranquility as something strange or unnatural and emphasize the need to be more “fun and outgoing.”
Don’t they know that we realize our best ideas, gain a deeper understanding, and produce our best work when we work alone?
So if you’re a teacher, coach, boss, or just someone in charge of a group of people, you might find it more productive to take the time to find out who your introverted members are before you plunge them into the group work craze. . Give introverts more freedom to do their own thing and just follow up with them as needed.
You may be surprised what we can do when left alone for a while.
We cannot expect things to change overnight, but the changes are beginning. The success of Susan’s book indicates that the quiet are being heard.
The soft ones are talking softly.