How can corporates co-operate with introverts?

For any organization that intends to enhance its employee engagement levels, creating a conducive environment where every individual is able to give his or her best is crucial. While customizing the workplace for every member of the organization is close to impossible, looking at prominent personality traits and paying attention to those that require relatively more attention than the rest can be useful.

There are several psychometric tests that can help in deciphering an employee’s personality type, but broadly speaking most employees fall into two categories: extroverts and introverts. While extroverts seem to get themselves heard easily owing to their garrulous nature, introverts may require some amount of probing in order to express their ideas, opinions and sometimes genuine concerns. This article focuses on these less talkative, more introspective type of personalities - introverts- who constitute around one-third of corporate workforce. The aim of this article is not to transform an extrovert-oriented company into an introvert-oriented one. It is to help create an organization in which introverts, extroverts and all the in-betweeners are provided with equal opportunity to give their best.

Many of you would agree that our current corporate culture is more biased towards extroverts than introverts; the more talkative extroverts are assumed to have more leadership skills than introverts, when introverts crave for some solo time and prefer to work autonomously, they are considered as “non team players” and sadly enough, introverts are denied of opportunities that involve social interaction (e.g. client visits, conferences, presentations) assuming that their less garrulous nature may not result in any positive outcome.  

Through general observation, introspection and some amount of reading on this topic, I have come across some interesting facts about introverts, which have immensely helped me cope up with workplace expectations. I am hoping that these snippets will be useful to readers at all levels of corporate hierarchy in one way or the other:

1.      Introverts are not necessarily shy individuals: Shyness and introversion are two different things! Susan Cain in her best-selling book ‘Quiet’ explains that while shyness is associated with the fear of negative judgment by audience, introversion is a preference for quiet, minimally stimulating environment. Although a shy and an introverted person may exhibit same characteristics in a room filled with people- less talkative, to themselves -, they may be experiencing totally different emotions when it comes to public speaking and social interaction. An introvert can be just as good as an extrovert in delivering a presentation; although it may not be as grandiose as it would if an extrovert were to present, the ultimate objective of the presentation will not be compromised. 

 2.      Introvertism and leadership have zero correlation: Extroverts are assumed to have more leadership skills than introverts – the ability to assert oneself in meetings is viewed as a leadership trait, while keen listening and waiting for ones turn to speak are considered as qualities of a follower. Jim Collins bursts this myth about introverts in his book ‘Good to Great’. After studying over 1400 companies and their hierarchies, Jim concludes that leaders who serve long tenures effectively are those who are more quiet and self-effacing types. They put their work above their egos and are great thinkers, capable of taking complex matters and boiling them down into simple, yet profound, ideas- a quality very frequently seen in introverts. A Harvard Business school study also suggests that introverted leaders carefully listen to what their teams have to say, especially when the team members are proactive and this combination can result in highly successful businesses. Moreover, it is hard to deny that some of the best corporate leaders in history have been strong introverts- Bill Gates of Microsoft, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Merissa Mayer of Yahoo and the list goes on...  

3.      Introverts need their alone time but are not anti-social: One of the most prominent differences between introverts and extroverts is that introverts feel energized by being alone, while extroverts need to recharge when they do not socialize enough! It is in this solo-time that introverts reflect, ideate, and innovate. Along with recognizing the positive effects of collaboration and team work, it is important to realize that idea generation and creative thinking are purely solo activities and we should give that space to each other in order to optimize productivity.

At this point I think it is important to note that none of us are pure introverts or extroverts; we are a blend of these two tendencies, with one tendency predominating the other. Knowing where we fall on the introvert-extrovert spectrum, can help us answer some key questions regarding our own ways of working; we can then make minor adjustments to bring out the best in ourselves. It also gives us the ability to understand and appreciate behavioral differences among co-workers and see introversion as a strength rather than a weakness. Signing off with Susan Cain’s quote: “Everyone shines, given the right lighting. For some, it’s a Broadway spotlight; for others, a lamplit desk”.