College is a fresh start. You leave your hometown and all your friends behind and eagerly meet so many new people, and eventually find a new friend group that you click with. Many people are thrilled at the idea of meeting new people and making new friends, but for some of us, that idea is completely daunting.
As one of your friendly campus introverts, I can tell you that we are people who find the idea of walking up to someone and trying to chat with them slightly nauseating. It's not because we're shy or unfriendly; it's because we value deep and meaningful conversations, conversations that you aren't likely to find within the first few weeks of knowing someone. Small talk is one of our least favorite things in the world.
As introverts, we also value (and desperately need) alone time, which is hard to come by when you live with three roommates and on a hall with 38 extremely friendly (and always eager) people. Trust me, it's not that we don't love you; it's that too much time surrounded by people leaves us drained. The way we recharge, the way we get our energy, is by being alone. Only my fellow introverts will understand the immense sense of peace we get from finding out our plans are cancelled. No matter how much we like you, not much compares to a night alone ( or with a select few).
Sometimes the idea of encountering more people and making more small talk is so overwhelming, we just have to hide for a moment. If you really ( and I mean really) need us during one of these moments, you can find us on the top floor of the library or in our rooms hoping you'll stop knocking.
Some of our least favorite things include being the center of attention (presentations are our own personal version of hell), forgetting our headphones when we go to class (how are we supposed to pretend like we didn't hear you?), and surprise parties (we have to prepare ourselves for social interaction).
The main thing you should know is while we may come across as distant, shy or even anti-social, we really appreciate those of you who take the time to get to know us. Introverts aren't people who will say everything that come to our minds right away; we need to know that someone is paying attention, that someone cares. We also appreciate those of you who allow us to really know you. We live for honest, authentic relationships, and love getting to know who you are.
