Quiet – The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain is an interesting book and a welcome affirmation for those of us who consider ourselves Introverts.
The book gets a bit bogged down at times with all the scientific data and supportive research, but I love what all that data and Ms. Cain says – being an Introvert is ok. And with one-third to one-half of us falling into that camp, that’s a good thing!
Yes, I’m an Introvert – even my Myers-Briggs Personality Profile confirms it – and it’s often been, and still is, a challenge to follow that natural inclination. In Quiet, Cain explains why Introverts have that struggle.
From being forced to sit in groupings or pods in the classroom, to working in open-plan offices, we’ve bought into the idea that being surrounded by others somehow makes us produce better. Yet, some of our greatest thinkers, artists and leaders did their best work in solitude.
With Chapters like The Rise of the “Mighty Likable Fellow”, The Myth of the Charismatic Leader, and Why Did Wall Street Crash and Warren Buffett Prosper?, Ms. Cain takes everything we believe about education, the workplace, and how we conduct business and turns it on its ear.
She then offers suggestions on how schools and businesses can shift the power from a primarily Extrovert-centered focus to a more balanced one between Extroverts and Introverts – and how that would ultimately benefit all of us.
To hear Susan Cain talk a little about her book, Quiet.
It’s not that we don’t like people, we just like a little quiet 🙂
A Writer's Window 