INTROVERTS

Introverts are people who like spending time alone or with a few close people. Introverts enjoy being by themselves or being with a few people they trust. There is nothing wrong with being an introvert. One in every third person is an introvert.

Our society fails to understand what introversion is and, has labelled introverts with people who are “shy” or have “social anxiety”. Yes, some introverts are shy or have social anxiety but not most of them. They think introverts are scared of social surroundings which is not true. They just would rather do something else than interact with every single person.

Even characters of fiction make introverts look like bookworms, and that no one knows they exist meanwhile, extroverts are the social butterflies that everyone loves.

Our society apparently doesn’t like “introverts”. They think that extroversion is the only way of living. You can often see this at workplaces and schools. Only the children who are extroverts are appreciated in schools.

Did you know introverts are likely to get more marks in school or become leaders?

Another thing that our society does not understand is that people have their own ways to recharge. Extroverts like to seek out social stimulation and engage with people to recharge. While Introverts need solitude to recharge.

Another annoying thing that people do is expect introverts to become extroverts. I remember a few of my friends making me feel bad for not being as social as them. Which is wrong and is something a lot of introverts go through.

Introverts and extroverts have very different brains. Studies show that:

• Processing events and interactions are more complicated for introverts. This is because introverts have a longer pathway for processing stimuli.
• Introverts and extroverts also react differently to dopamine. While extroverts thrive on engaging and interacting with people, introverts feel drained by it.

People need to stop expecting introverts to become extroverts cause clearly, their brain does not work like that. Forcing them to act socially will drain their energy.

If you are an introvert who is trying to be an extrovert to be accepted by society. You need to stop. I show traits of both extroverts and introverts based on my mood. There are some days where I don’t feel like socializing, and because of the pressure, I would try to socialize and It would just drain my mental health. So, trust me it’s not worth it.

Our life is not a social competition where only the people with the most social skills will succeed. Introverts have way more knowledge and more understanding of themselves and their surroundings. People need introverts just as much as they need extroverts.

We need to do what makes us happy. If staying in a room and reading is what makes you happy do it. If only going out with two friends is what makes you happy do it.

People need to start understanding and accepting introverts as who they are. An extrovert may feel bored by themselves or with a few people, the same way an introvert may not like being surrounded by a bunch of people.

Our social skills do not define who we are. A workplace will always need both extroverts and introverts. Introverts have skills that extroverts don’t have and vice versa. So, only appreciating extroverts and making introverts feel bad for being themselves does not make sense.