My inner introvert

My name is Lisa. And I’m an introvert.

And I’m perfectly fine with that fact and don’t plan to change it any time soon.

I know several people who would actually argue the fact with me. But that’s because I’ve learned some very good coping skills and because they would be the ones who I truly open up to.

I do not like large groups. I attend events because I think I should for some reason or another, but rarely because I’m actually super excited about going. One way I cope at large gatherings is by shrinking it in my head down to just the two or three people around me. So much interaction is just completely overwhelming to me. It’s too much to focus on and keep track of. I also enjoy sitting on the edge of the large group and simply observing everything that everyone is doing. You can learn a lot about people that way.

I do like people. But only in small doses.

Yet I love teaching. Which is one reason why most people don’t think of me as an introvert. But here’s the difference. Teaching is one big interaction. It’s not a large number of small interactions. When I’m teaching it’s an interaction between me and the class. And I’m basically in control of that interaction. I know where it generally will go and what might come up. With a group gathering I have no idea on any of that. Teaching is not the same as a party.

Teaching excites me. Parties exhaust me.

It’s a similar reason why I hate the phone. It’s too intrusive. I’d much rather have face-to-face or e-mail communications. Or even, gasp!, paper letters! 😮 Then it’s more planned. Or at least not distracting. We just got a family plan for our phones and got the lowest number of minutes available. The salesman seemed to think it wouldn’t be enough. But we’re both introverts. His phone is generally off (he doesn’t get good reception at work so turns it off and then forgets to turn it back on). And my phone is rarely within reach. I’ve never gone over my minutes. I’ve never even gotten close. If you want to reach me, send me an e-mail.

Introversion isn’t bad. We just live in a rather extroverted world so introverts get a bad rap.

If you’re interested, I’ve recently come across the blog “The Introvert’s Corner” which I find describes what it’s like to be an introvert quite well.