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introverts are naturally more attracted to the world of concepts, ideas, and inner experiences, whereas extroverts prefer to focus on the outer world.
the resulting descriptors for introversion become negatively worded apologies: “I have little to say” and “I don’t like to draw attention to myself.”
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson
Introverts generally prefer a rich inner life to an expansive social life; we would rather talk intimately with a close friend than share stories with a group; and we prefer to develop our ideas internally rather than interactively.
So, being an introvert does not mean you’re antisocial, asocial, socially inept, or shy. It does mean that you are oriented to ideas—whether those ideas involve you with people or not. It means that you prefer spacious interactions with fewer people. And it means that, when you converse, you are more interested in sharing thoughts than in talking about people and what they’re doing.
A good conversation leaves an introvert feeling more connected, but also personally richer.
She might enjoy watching the people around her, but she has no energy to interact.
Introvert Mom is not thinking about them at all! She is just doing something she likes to do.
Introverts are drawn to worlds more exotic, ordered, meaningful, or complex than what is immediately available.
We know from imaging studies that the brains of introverts show more activity in response to stimuli than the brains of extroverts.
We gain energy and power through inner reflection, and get more excited by ideas than by external activities.
When we converse, we listen well and expect others to do the same. We think first and talk later.
“Quiet people have the loudest minds.” —Stephen Hawking
When a child does seek refuge from overstimulation, retreating into solitude, parents are more likely to regard this as a problem than as a healthy way of recharging.
My older sister said that, when I was daydreaming, I seemed to enter a trancelike state.
snow leopards were Doug Allen and Mark Smith.)
“Adventure is not outside man; it is within.” —George Eliot
The introvert’s habit of keeping “one foot out” of a given social grouping—whether it be family, community, or society—is a lifesaver,
“The nail that sticks out gets hammered in.”
individualism gives each of us a voice, but excesses of individualism result in a cacophony of voices, allowing only the loudest to be heard.
