I always felt that among my friends I was the shyest and the least fun. It wasn’t that my friends didn’t want to be around me or that I couldn’t crack a witty joke or two to make them laugh. It was because I was always the first one to go home.
I got tired first and had to use home as an excuse to leave my friends early in order to go home and feel better. I often found myself shying away from parties and veering toward the edges, even if my friends were right in the middle of everything. This wasn’t to say I didn’t want to be there. It was simply too taxing. I was exhausted if I stayed enthusiastic and involved for too long. The more people I had to entertain or be around, the more I felt myself drained and ready to be home alone.
I am an introvert. I have never had it easy. All of my friends, with the exception of a few, have been my opposite. An extrovert. They were always ready to be in the middle of everything, to attend every party and make a presence at every event. It was unfathomable to me. How could someone want to go everywhere and be places every moment of every day? Didn’t they know how to relax and have some quiet time? Yet, my friends thought I was insane for wanting to stay home all the time. Sure, I’d go somewhere once or twice a week. But I didn’t stay for long and I didn’t go if there were going to be too many people or too many strangers. Small talk intimidated me.
When I learned of this, I was so excited. No longer was I a freak for not wanting to run around all the time! I was different than my friends. And that was okay.
Introverts vs. Extroverts. It’s a silent war that we are in for the long haul. The world is estimated to be about 50/50. So why do introverts get to be the party-poopers who refuse to party all weekend? We aren’t a genetic defect passed on through the generations. We aren’t some mutation that spawned and never went away. We were born this way. Our energy is drained around people. It doesn’t mean anything. Except that in an extroverted dominant world, it means that we are strange. It’s a sad custom for people to feel the need to push introverts to the next level, make them go too many places without a break to recharge. Many people don’t understand the importance, or the difference, of these polar opposites.
I feel it’s important to know what you are. Introverts are the dreamers, the thinkers. They love to read and ponder important issues and concepts. We wouldn’t be anywhere without our extroverts, however. They are the doers. The go-getters. Anything introverts can dream, they can see through to the end.
So, as an effort, I hope that the silent war of introverts and extroverts turns into a team that can help influence the world for good.
