The Wonderful Life of Being An Introvert
In today’s post, we will be taking a look at the wonderful life on an introvert. This field of study is dear to my heart since I am classified as an introvert with the characteristic of being an INFJ
. What is an introvert?
A person that is classified as an introvert personality tends to be a person that focuses on internal thoughts, feelings, and emotions rather than a person that is seeking some sort of external stimulation.
An introverted person does care about external things, but their main focus is on their own internal feelings and mental thoughts. This does not mean that an introverted
person is stand-offish or anti-social, it just means that they are wired mentally than others and their thoughts consume most of their time.
Are you an introvert, or not sure? Here is a great article to help you decide. 8 Signs You’re an Introvert
Again, An introvert person has the tendencies to be more on the shy side and we are often mistaken as being self-centered even though we are not. We are very careful who we become close to, we hate the thought of being hurt by people. We do not hate people but we just prefer to left alone rather than being with people that we don’t know. Not saying that I don’t like going to a party where I know everyone but when it comes to social gatherings where I only know one or two people I do what I can to not attend.
In this article, we will take a look at all of the positive characteristics of an introvert
. The reason behind this article is that I feel that introverts are great people but we are grossly misjudged.
Introverts like their independence.
Introverts are not antisocial but they do prefer their alone time. To an introvert
, their alone time is like food and water is to a non-introvert. They need this time to clean out the noise in their head and the noises of the world they live in. If an introvert does not get this time alone they will feel drained of all energy and get moody and depressed. When this happens they tend to shut down and look for any opportunity to hide away from the world around them.
An introvert is not the type of people that blend in with the crowd or go along with what the majority feels. Introverts can be independent and strong-willed and they are are free thinkers. An introvert tends to function at their peak by being left alone and in control of their own destiny.
Social gatherings.
Like I mentioned above that I am an INFJ
introvert. I could be mistaken for being an extrovert because from time to time I do like socializing with people. But when I am at a social gathering you will find me off to the side or in a kitchen on a stool making conversation with someone that will listen to me one on one. In large gatherings, I will slowly exit the scene without being seen and find someone that is safe to talk to one on one.
We like human contact, but we get drained and exhausted by large social gatherings. One could call this “social introverts”. Being a social introvert means you crave social situations, even though you know they will drain you. You love birthday parties and big dinners and yes, even family reunions, even though you know you’ll need recovery time afterward.
How to handle being in public.
Being an introvert does not mean that we stay away from people and hide away from the world. We do love a good Christmas party or any other type of gathering, but we prefer smaller gatherings with just friends and family. Introverts like myself hate the thoughts of being in a room full of people that we don’t know.
Each year my wife and I have an awards banquet we have to attend, six months before this event I am already dreading being in a room of 1500 people and knowing maybe 10 people. This event is mandatory to attend but being an introvert going to this event is like attending your own firing squad. How I survive these events is I will recruit a wingman, someone that I know is going that has the same likes and dislikes that I have. I will also have an escape plan set in place. When my social energy is depleted I will excuse myself and head back to my quiet place. I won’t be rude but I will have a plan in place in order to be excused.
Introverts need to have alone time.
Being an INFJ
introvert I need to have my time alone. I am far from being antisocial but I will find myself being turned off. I feel that I need to recharge my batteries and to do this I need to escape to my little world and focus on my own feelings and thoughts. If I don’t do this I find that no ones to be around me because I escape into my own little moody cocoon.
Structured Environment
An introvert does not need to have an environment that is totally structured but they do need to some orderliness about their life. Most introverts will plan ahead and always stay one step ahead. In my case I like going to the yearly banquet I will have things planned ahead, like having an escape plan in place. This gives me the comfort that I need to have a good night.
Creativity
For introvert’s creativity can be difficult. Introverts do make great writers and any other hobby that is just them and their hobby. I love to write, and I love to be creative, this is my outlet for my personality. Other introverts love painting and web design. Introverts tend to find a hobby and dive in with both feet, their hobby many times turns into their passion.
Explore the possibility of supporting a cause.
Since introverts are deep caring individuals and many of them will find a cause or a charity to be involved in to help others. It is a proven fact that introverts tend to be reflective thinkers that love working on something that they feel very strongly about.
When an introvert believes deeply in a cause or group they tend to make the best leaders or even some of the best fundraisers for non-profits
. Introverts are generally the best listeners, come across with a human and warm heart, more sensitive than business professionals, an introvert will give up the spotlight for extroverts
but be in the background making sure all the details are done properly.
Conclusion
All of us introverts have strong feelings and emotions, but we tend to hide from everyone that is around us. We do want to fit in but we do not want to explain ourselves to others. Most of the time we work hard to ostracize ourself from the surroundings we find ourselves in or from the world completely. This is not healthy for us and if we continue to be this way we will find ourselves alone for the rest of our lives.
What we need to do is be happy with who we are, don’t look for the escape door or go hide in a corner. We are all humans, and we were made this way for a purpose. We have a lot to contribute to the world and we need to understand that the traits that we have that make us an introvert are the same traits and characteristics that have made us be successful in life.
