Johncey George is an International Coach Federation certified Leadership and Life Coach
We love labels.
Labels tell us what’s in the box or under the hood. Once we slap a word or a term on something it becomes easily identifiable. We’re all guilty of trying to force-fit people into predefined boxes that don’t allow for the entirety of human nature. People are rarely 100 percent this or 100 percent that. In general, we all fall along a range. But labels don’t reflect that.
Then there’s the cultural element of it all. We live in an extrovert’s world. There’s no doubt about it. From the time we are born, we are taught to aspire to be outspoken, to shine in a group, to outperform others… In a world that is designed for and by extroverts, introverts often see themselves as misfits, as though something is wrong with them, that they’re less than ideal. And this conditioning starts early in our lives.
But here's a secret. Being an introvert is probably the best thing to happen to you. Extroverts are not better than introverts, they’re just different. Extroverts shine in some ways and introverts in others. It’s time to stop assuming that introverts are less than or that they’re not equal. It’s time to change the rules of the game. A third of the world’s population is made up of introverts and there’s nothing “wrong” with us. Here’s why.
The Benefits of Introversion
Deep thinking: In a world that is noisy, people find that they need to turn down the noise in order to hear themselves think. This might manifest itself in us deleting social media apps from our phones. Or even turning off notifications during particular hours, getting off social media entirely or checking our email only once a day. For introverts, the ability to create a noise-free space comes naturally. It is something that they must have to thrive. The practice of solitude is innate to the introvert personality.