Introverts and Extroverts are familiar categories. But, these labels are often misunderstood. We get into all of this and how being an Introvert can be a strength.
Why Talk About Introverts and Extroverts
My sister and I have been wanting talk about this topic on the podcast for awhile. Why? Because we both feel that these labels oversimplify individuals into one category. You already know I don’t like labels.
“Introverts may be common, but they are also among the most misunderstood and aggrieved groups in America, possibly the world.”
Source: The Atlantic
Turns out I’m not the only one. That’s what I realized as I researched this topic. What I found is that Introverts are often misunderstood. As a piece in The Cut noted Introversion was:
“Once a mostly misunderstood personality trait — and often considered a behavioral defect when it was considered at all — it’s now the subject of countless other books and online listicles”
Source: The Cut
Similar, I found another piece in The Cut that mentioned that there are different types of Extroverts. Are we confused yet? Let’s get into the resources on Introverts and Extroverts…
Resources to Understand Introverts
Next, we got into the range of resources out there that explain the world of an Introvert. One of those was a book called The Highly Sensitive Child: Helping Our Children Thrive When The World Overwhelms Them. I read this book to help myself gain a better understanding of my kids and the students that I serve as a school psychologist. In addition to books, there are articles and sites on this topic. Cue The Quiet Revolution...
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We talked about the strengths associated with being an Introvert. For example, Introverts are typically attuned listeners. They can be reflective which is a positive.
The Quiet Revolution
We then went on to discuss a site called the Quiet Revolution. It’s a site full of articles related to “unlocking the power of the introverts”. What I like about this site is that it focuses on celebrating the contributions and just introverts in general. This site was created based on a book called Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Also, this site has a Quiet Revolution Personality test you can take. We both took this test.
The Results are in…
I took the test and discovered that I’m an Ambivert. Also, Lissette shared her test results that indicated she was an Introvert. She went onto another test based on the concept that there are four types of Introverts. The different types are Social, Thinking, Anxious, or Restrained. You can take that test here. Keep in mind that these aren’t necessarily clinically based tests – just interesting information. We mentioned that we aren’t sure why we need the labels anyway.
We concluded that Introversion and Extroversion can be relationship, social setting, and context specific. Also, that I sometimes just don’t want to talk to people! What were your results? Let me know…
Don’t Mix In…because you don’t need to!
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