Social needs introverts too

My name is Molly, and I am an introvert.

There, I’ve said it. Few of my colleagues or acquaintances would believe it. My job as Social Business Director at 1000heads demands some of the most ‘extroverted’ activities you can imagine – speaking at international conferences, running training programmes for clients, internal evangelism – activities that demand constant sociability and public gregariousness. And I love it. I absolutely love it.

But those who know me well also know that I regularly retreat into ‘Molly zone’, craving time alone to think and work. I will book out meeting rooms to escape open plan intrusion. After a long day of interaction, I will more often than not run away to spend time with a book rather than join others for beers.

How does this square with the ‘always on’ social approach that I am encouraging businesses to adopt? In a world – not to mention an industry – where collaborating and speaking out have become moral dictates, how do those of us who get our energy from within not only survive but thrive?

These are questions I’m fascinated with right now. I’m putting a lot of energy into helping clients create environments and strategies that nurture their introverts too. Being social is not the same thing as being an extrovert, but many companies are making exactly that equation, and as a result it’s the people who shout the loudest and longest, not those with the best ideas or execution, who are getting their voices heard.

I saw Susan Cain talk about her new book Quiet: The Power of Introverts In A World That Can’t Stop Talking at Oxford Literary Festival. It’s a fantastic read; at the very least I’d recommend taking twenty minutes to watch her TED Talk below.


 

I’m writing a longer piece on this for my social communications column in AdMap this month and I’m gathering as many perspectives as I can. So are you an introvert who struggles with social? Do you have ideas for how reaching out can be balanced with reaching in? Do you feel that your company culture is failing to value your unique contribution in creating a truly social environment, just because you do things differently?

I’d love to hear your thoughts below…

 Molly Flatt