Emma Watson, David Attenborough, Bill Gates. Three very different people, who all have one particular thing in common. Introversion. This is something I also have in common with these individuals. January 2nd is World Introvert Day, and a great moment to celebrate the things that introverts contribute to the world.
To give you the definition of what introverted means, it is classified as either ‘a shy or reticent person’ or ‘a person predominantly concerned with their own thoughts and feelings than with external things.’ So, to give you further insight, I do spend a lot of my time analysing things, coming up with ideas of how things could be improved, for example, the performance of my favourite sports teams. I’m fascinated by the psychology of what it means to hit that peak performance, and that can translate into any walk of life really, not just sport.
Many people may think of introverted people as being aligned to certain activities, such as reading. And yes, to an extent, they would be right. In the Harry Potter series, Emma Watson plays the role of Hermione Granger, who is a character very much devoted to studying. She was a very meticulous studying person in fact, that she felt very much put out when Ron Weasley made fun of her knowledge. Lesson here being, rather than make fun of an introvert’s knowledge, be curious to learn from them. You may just thank yourself further down the line.
David Attenborough is another example, due to his background in the world of nature. That’s where he feels most at home, rather than the complete opposite, which would be almost your stereotypical, life-of-the-party extrovert. And his knowledge of the world of nature is spectacular.
And Bill Gates… need I say more. Building a huge company that employs many people around the world takes a lot of energy and focus. And very much that of the introverted type. Being someone who is interested in the Myers-Briggs profiles, I very much understand that an extroverted personality would be less likely to do what Bill Gates has done. Who knows, potentially one of the people accessing our employability program could work for Microsoft one day or develop something new from which the whole world can benefit. I very much have a limitless lens here and could see the world of possibility.
Over the past couple of months, I have been working on creating some resources via the help of my Squiggly Careers books. And my introverted profile has been key in trying to create something accessible and thought-provoking for people to use to make progress. Progress is the name of the game for me in 2024, and there is no time like the present. I want to use my strengths as an introvert, such as my analytical mind, my focus on the present and my observant nature to help as many people as possible to achieve great things. Happy New Year, and may this year have many interesting opportunities for you to explore.