I recently came across an online personality test which directs you through a multitude of questions until enough information is gathered to calculate which one of 16 possible Myers-Briggs personalities you fit best.

After poring over the deep-reaching questions, I received my result: I fall under the INFP personality type, which stands for Introversion, Intuition, Feeling, and Prospecting. This essentially means I am guided by a strong sense of morality and a desire to help others.

While these characteristics are extremely accurate, the results of the quiz got me thinking about myself and how I fit in the world. The first letter in the acronym, Introversion, is a quality I have strongly identified with ever since I discovered the meaning of the word. On top of it being draining for me to interact in large groups, I have quite a bit of social anxiety in nearly every situation. This has made it difficult for the majority of my life to make connections with people, and I don’t doubt I’ve missed many of them by not putting myself out there.

However, uncomfortability in social settings is looked down upon in a society where you have to be a people-person in order to get anywhere in life. While I understand this to a degree (you can’t expect people to know what you’re thinking unless you tell them), I don’t see why I and all other introverts must be alienated for being ourselves. Trust me, we have plenty of ideas to contribute to every type of discourse imaginable and we have an undeniable track record, but it’s just much more difficult for us to put our ideas into words. When this happens in a social situation, it can be fatal to any sort of social advancement because others get turned off by our inability to articulate precisely our thoughts and feelings.

Don’t get me wrong, I have a number of friends who I am very comfortable with and who accept me for who I am. Many of them have told me that I’m quiet, but when I have something to say, it is something very poignant. This is a common trend among introverts, which leads me to believe that our disposition is not so bad after all. But much of the time, it’s frustrating to go about life feeling misunderstood simply because I am not as listened to as the student who always raises his hand in class or the coworker who has a solution to every little problem. And why shouldn’t I be listened to? I'd like to think my ideas are just as good as everyone else’s; it just requires a bit more patience and understanding to get my points across than people are accustomed to.

I don’t mean to sound cliché, but our modern society has been conditioned to move from one thing to the next as quickly as possible, which presents a problem for us introverts. When the attention span of so many is at an all-time low, how can those who aren’t as heard make our mark on society? How can we show everyone else that we not only possess but excel at the ability and willingness to change the status quo?

A word to my fellow introverts: don’t be discouraged if you aren’t heard on the first try. Unfortunately, most people are too wrapped up in their own thoughts to really give you the time and energy you deserve. It might take a little more effort than our extraverted compatriots, but I've found it does get easier and people will listen. We are the (literal) silent minority, but with patience and diligence, you will be heard.