Every time I am asked whether I am an introvert or an
extrovert I generally waver back and forth between the two as I look at
different aspects of myself. I always start by thinking of my childhood and how
when I was a child I was incredibly shy, kept to myself, and had very few
friends. I was definitely an introvert as a child. I was fairly content keeping
to myself and would even get self-conscious when I had to speak with others
(Boy, did I sure hate reading in front of the class).
But with everything else in life, change can be made. It’s
not like I felt like I needed to change myself, it just kind of happened. I like to attribute the start of
my change to joining the elementary basketball team. This opportunity lead to me being more
confident and it gave me a chance to talk with others during that time of
confidence. My life didn't all of a sudden flood with change, but this was the
start to where I have come to now.
If you would look at me now, it might be hard to imagine me
sitting quietly, content to be by myself alone at my desk. I have since joined
several organizations around campus and feel very comfortable in all of them. I
now have no problem coming up to new people and introducing myself. I even went
as far as being one of those slightly zany Ra’s you might see around campus.
But even given all of this change, I still feel like I am an introvert. At the
end of the day I truly enjoy and even feel like I need some alone time. While reading about the Tony Robbin's seminar in Quiet, I felt squirmy thinking about the people chanting together and following all the actions I would dread doing. So even though I enjoy going
out there and getting active, I believe I am an introvert through and through.
Hello Sam!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you on the Tony Robbin's seminar. I was picturing some really energetic cult but I know that's not really what it is. If I were standing there, I would be the most uncomfortable person in the room and just like putting on the mask that I explained in my blog, I would try to fit in so I didn't stand out to everyone in the crowd. I get up and start waving my arms just to try and catch some of the energy radiating off other people. With extracurricular activities I can also see how this helped you a lot with your introvert childhood. I know when I joined marching band in highschool I not only became more weird but more sociable and less shy. So I can definitely relate with you, Sam!
Hello Samuel!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you discussed that even though you have changed from when you were young and opened up more that you are still an introvert. I think sometimes the book made extrovert and introvert seem like two extremes, but I believe that everyone has a little of both. I know at one point in the book she mentions there are no true introverts or extroverts, which I definitely agree with. You seem like a fairly sociable person, especially being an RA, but ultimately are an introvert at the core.
I definitely notice the difference between an extrovert and introvert though. I see myself as very extroverted and I thought the Tony Robbin's seminar seemed a little corny, but also fun! While you mentioned you got squirmy reading about it. That provides a terrific example of the differences in personality.
Good evening Samuel. I enjoyed how you stayed true to yourself even though you opened up more. It's true how you can change but stay true to yourself. I myself have done the same thing. I was a shy child with a few close friends and I didn't like to be the center of attention at all. I wanted no part of being in front of a classroom. Then the changes came slowly as I entered high school, then college and then the work force I noticed that change was some what necessary especially in the work force. I don't think it's a bad thing at all. I am still more introverted than extroverted that is for sure.
ReplyDeleteI also become very squirmy when they were talking in Quiet about the seminar and how everyone was up and dancing around. I would be very uncomfortable in that situation as well. I would want to try and move around some though as to not stand out in the crowd like a sore thumb though. The introvert in me would not want to draw any undo attention upon myself.
Sometimes change happens before we even realize it is. We become more comfortable in situations that used to make us squirm or we are more outspoken at times when before we were quiet. We are all learning and growing.
Hello Sam!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post for a number of reasons. One thing that stood out for me is how opposite we seemed to be, but both consider ourselves introverts. When I was a little girl, I would go up and talk to anybody about anything no matter where I was (trust me, my parents freaked out about me going up to complete strangers).
There are some things that I found similar to my life as well though. I also joined sports teams when I got older and for most of them I became captain. Even by being captain on a team, I had anxiety just thinking about people coming to me and sharing their thoughts on different games that we would play or what they needed to do to improve or what we needed to do to improve as a team. So, as I got older, I had a lot of leadership roles that freaked me out.
I enjoyed your comment about the seminar in the book as well. I could not imagine myself in a group of people chanting along, regardless of whether or not everybody else was doing the same thing. Introverts are uniting!