I am a bit of both, but lean more strongly towards introversion. I value privacy, solitude, silence, and "me time". I'm not shy, but don't often initiate small talk, and when lured into conversation can be downright terse; of course, if the subject is interesting and my mood is right I can talk up a storm. I can get quite exhausted by people and the noise they make. On the other hand I like to party, if not very frequently, and I love spending time with the "right sort" of people, just not for days and days on end.
I agree with this. The times I got on almost instantly well with extroverts it was clear to me they were intuitive enough to recognise what type of interaction I'd respond to, so they were purposely gentle with me despite their voluble, flamboyant nature. As a result I reciprocated immediately and opened up to them as I didn't to others, because I felt safe. Then I got into trouble for making some feel like I liked them less than I did others, which annoyed me. In the end I think the reactions you provoke in people have often a lot more to do with them than with you, and the way different people react to others' introversion seems to confirm that. I've found it to be the case with me as well - where I've had slightly negative feelings towards someone for apparently no good reason, I've eventually found the issue was mine. Tssss...
So you explain it two different ways. You could say that your explanation has an... extra version. I'll see myself out.
I'm really introverted. I'm super shy (and a bit socially awkward, in my opinion) and it takes a long time for me to be able to talk to someone "freely". What bothers me about it is that I feel like people think I'm a snob, like I'm above talking to them. I'm *probably* not above talking to them. I just can't start the conversation.
My sister used to be extremely introverted and painfully shy. When she found out people thought she was a snob and above talking to people instead of understanding that she was shy, it bothered and pissed her off so much, she became determined to change it. She was in her 30's and it took a year or two, but she worked her ass off at it...read lots of books about communication and starting conversations, and forced herself to join Meetup groups and go places where she'd have to talk to people. It was inspiring to watch, because suddenly my "shy" sister was a social butterfly who had a wide circle of really nice friends. She still loves reading and staying in but now also loves to go places and do things, even by herself, and she said staying home and reading feels more like a choice now instead of the default, if that makes sense. I'm not in any way saying someone has to change or that they should change....just that it's possible, if they want to.
I'm very introverted until I get used to a person or location, then I can be somewhat middle-of-the-road. I'm never a full-blown extrovert, but I'll speak more freely if I feel comfortable. My twin brother is very extroverted, so we always joke that he got all of the extra energy when we were in the womb and it's carried over into life.
The energy flow theory made sense to me the first time I encountered it, and it made me declare myself an introvert. But as I get older and get to know myself better, I find it's really not that simple. When I'm socializing with people I know well, I find it very energizing. Notably I've had friend/family reunion weekends that amount to 72 hours of straight socializing and I'm positively high at the end of those. But I have social anxiety, so being around people I don't know well is draining--beause anxiety is draining. I doubt I'd be a full-blown extrovert if I didn't have SA, though. I do enjoy a lot of solitude. Balance! I hate having anxiety, in all its forms, and I've made a concerted effort for the past five or so years to ditch it. But it's got its teeth in me real deep.
I think of myself as an introvert, mostly because i am not confident. But i do a very good fake confident, a lot of my friends would probably call me extrovert. Rgds
That's why the definition works for me - because I don't have social anxiety, and am really quite confident with people, even strangers, but I still find it exhausting if I'm around them too much. I'm quite close with my family and we all get along fairly well, but I used to have regular meltdowns every time I'd go for a visit with them of more than about two days and after reading up about introversion I finally recognized that I was just exhausted by being around them all the damn time. I loved them and I was happy to see them and I wanted to spend time with them, but I wasn't giving myself enough 'me' time to recharge. Now I try to limit visits to only a day or two or else I stay at a hotel or somewhere I can retreat to for solitude or, if those won't work, I take long, long walks with the closest dog(s) in order to give myself some time away from the people, and it all goes much more smoothly!
Depends on the context. At work, I’m very extroverted. Good at communicating and getting along with fellow employees and customers, both who I know well and who are total strangers to me. Other times with friends, especially in groups of three or more, I become an introvert. In general, if I feel like I have something to prove, I close myself off. Otherwise, I have little trouble initiating social interactions. Then again, regardless of context, being around people will always drain me of energy after a while. I’m probably just an introvert who occasionally looks like an extrovert.
I’m generally introverted. But that is because that I generally lack empathy or any ‘care’ for others. What they think, feel or otherwise (either for me, in general or for others) is completely irrelevant to me. I also quite dislike all those societal rules people must follow for no apparent reason (try standing in a elevator facing the wall... people will literally get very upset or disturbed). So I do my own thing and ignore the rest. I also suck at anything social like parties or large gathering. I’ll usually be that creepy guy in the corner that no one wants to talk to. Haha. That roles suits me fine and I do not dislike it either. People generally leave me alone . I would not say I am shy. I do not find the concept of talking to strangers as unnerving or stressful. It is simply that at base, I don’t care. Edit: to clarify. I actually do like talking. What people say and how they say it is very interesting.... so maybe that a little bit of extrovertness coming out. In return to the OP questions. Extroverts annoy me because they think that I must care what others think of me or that they do not understand that I like being alone. That why I like computers as they give you can talk to people whilst being alone.
I'm extroverted when I'm around people but I like alone time. Like, I don't really get the distinction to be honest. Maybe I'm just adaptable? I like to engage with my surroundings in general, but I also like to spend time alone to work on things and think. It just depends. But yeah, I'm rarely the quiet one in a group.
The distinction I've read (probably already in this thread somewhere; I'm too lazy to check) is that if you're an introvert you find the presence of people draining, and if you're an extrovert you find it energizing. That's not to say that the introvert doesn't like people, or even that they're quiet, but they then need quiet time to recharge.
I'm too much of an introvert. I border social anxiety but I do have manners so I go out of my way to greet others or make small talk. I was a cloistered child so I grew up being comfortable in an empty room with my technology and my books. I'll most likely die alone but that's if I live to be old as fuck.
Well we'll all die alone as they say. I don't just border social anxiety myself (my MBTI type is actually INFJ), though when I'm around people I like and trust you probably couldn't even tell I'm an introvert. These past two weeks I'd been training at work, so talking and attending to people all day. I'm so glad it's over because I was beginning to feel physically sick, which I appreciate not everyone believes can really happen.
