The Power of Introverts

The Power of Introverts

Susan Cain

Today we make room fo r a remarkably narrow range of personality styles。We＇re told that to be great is to be bold，  to be happy is to be sociable。We see ourselves as a nation of extroverts——which means that we＇ve lost sight of who we really are。 One-third to one-half of Americans are introverts——in the other wo rds， one out of every two o r three people you know。 If you＇er not an introvert yourself， you are surely raising， managing， married to， o r coupled with one。

If these statistics surprise you， that＇s probably because so many people pretend to be extroverts。Closet introverts pass undetected on playgrounds， in high school locker rooms， and in the co rrido rs of co rproate America。Some fool even themselves， until some life event——a layoff， an empty nest， an inheritance that frees them to spend time as they like——jolts them into taking stock of their true natures。 You have only to raise this subject with your friends and acquaintances to find that the most unlikely people consider themselves introverts。

It makes sense that so many introverts hide even from themsevles。 We live with a value system that I call the Extrovert Ideal—— the omnipresent belief tht the ideal self is gregarious， alpha， and comfo rtable in the spotlight。 The archetypal extrovert prefers action to contemplation， risk-taking to heed-taking， certainty to doubt。 He favo rs quick decisions， even at the risk of being wrong。 She wo rks well in teams and socializes in groups。We like to think that we value individuality， but all too often we admire one type of individual—— the kind who＇s comfo rtable  "putting himself out there。"  Sure，we allow technologically gifted loners who launch companies in garages to have any personality they please， but they are the exceptions， not the rule， and our tolerance extends mainly to those wo get fabulously wealthy o r hold the promise of doing so。

Introversion——along with its cousions sensitivity， seriousness， and shyness——is now a second-class personality trait， somewhere between a disappointment and a pathology。Introverts living under the Extrovert Idal are like women in a a man＇s wo rld，discounted because of a trait that goes to the co re of who they are。 Exto rversion is an eno rmously appealing personality style， but we＇ve turned it into an oppressive standard to which most of us feel we must confo rm。

The Extrovert Idal has been documented in many studies， though this research has never been grouped under a single name。Talkative people， fo r example， are rated as smarteer， better-looking， mo re interesting， and mo re desirable as friends。 Velocity of speech counts as well as volume: we rank fast talkers as mo re competent and likable than slow ones。 Even the wo rd introvet is stigmatized——one info rmal study，by psychologist Laurie Helgoe， found that introverts described their own physical appearance in vivid language， but when asked to describe generic introverts they drew a bland and distasteful picture。

But we make a grave mistake to embrace the Extrovert Idal so unthinkingly。 Some of our greatest ideas， art， and inventions——from the theo ry of evolution to van Gogh＇s sunflowers to the personal computer——came from quiet and cerebral people who knew how to tune in to their inner wo rlds and the treasures to be found there。