Nurturing the Superpowers of Introverts

In a world where extroverts are rewarded and you are encouraged to ‘come out of your shell’ and ‘speak up in class’ from a young age, how do we ensure that our work communities are places where both introverts and extroverts can thrive?  There are many micro-cues that exist which exclude introverts and devalue thinking and reflection which are essential for creativity and innovation.

Luckily famous introverts such as JK Rowling, Bill Gates and Einstein didn’t have to navigate organisational bureaucracies for their bright ideas to come to fruition. But in large organisations, this can be a challenge. Our companies, our schools and our culture are all set up to focus on collaboration and co-creation which is all well and good, however as a result, we are in danger of something called Groupthink that occurs when a group of individuals reaches a consensus without critical reasoning or evaluation of the consequences or alternatives. Groupthink is based on a common desire not to upset the balance of a group of people but can exclude people who value reflection and quiet time to think ideas through.

Think about how your best ideas come about, you may describe them as epiphany or lightbulb moments for example.  A lot of mine, even though I am an extrovert, come at 3 in the morning or when I’m out for a walk alone.

A recent study by CIPD found that 48% of workers identified as introverts, only 55% felt their voice was heard by the CEO compared to 63% of extroverts who said their voice was. So what can we do at work to make sure we don’t fall in with these statistics?

• Shhh – Build in quiet times, not everyone thrives in open plan offices or on back to back Zoom calls.
• Check in with your Introverts – you may think the current working from home culture is enabling introverts to thrive and it may well be, however, do not assume by making sure you check in regularly to ensure they have the support they need.
• Try different ways of group interactions – don’t just rely on video calls and meetings. Use Chats and Polls on video calls or try tools like Trello or IdeaBoardz for different ways to engage all team members so they can contribute ideas in an individual way.
• Don’t mistake assertiveness for good ideas – group think happens when ideas come solely from those who speak loudest.
• Seek out diversity – Try not to gravitate only to people who share your preferences. This can be harder to achieve now we are working a lot more virtually.  We tend to interact with people we already have strong connections with at work and miss out on chance encounters with people outside our immediate circle.  Don’t be too quick to minimise office working completely, redesign the physical space to create opportunities for those weaker connections to be developed on the occasions when people do come into the workplace.
• ‘No I don’t want to come to a virtual quiz night!’ – Don’t penalise people if they do not want to socialise with others after work.

With the introduction of the lockdown due to Covid-19 many of us have had to adapt to working from home which can be an introvert’s dream and an extrovert’s nightmare.  Don’t be too quick to recreate the culture of back to back meetings with constant video calls as we are all by now familiar with the concept of Zoom Fatigue which can be particularly taxing for Introverts.

We know that collaboration and co-design is important to continually improve services and products, but we need to give people the opportunity to think problems through alone, gather their thoughts electronically or individually before they come together.  Actively seek out opinions and thoughts outside of meetings, just because someone was quiet doesn’t mean they don’t have something to say. Recognise when people don’t want to speak, don’t force the conversation.

Introversion is a superpower, introverts will observe others and be able to comment on dynamics and nuances that others might not notice when they are busy talking.  It’s time for extroverts to talk less and listen more!

You can enhance the dynamics within your teams by finding out more about people’s preferences for how they work, where they get their energy from and how they take in information.  The Delvers are MBTI practitioners and can work with you or your team to explore this further so get in touch at [email protected]