Thanks, Susan
Cain for raising the status of introverts with your book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, and,
in the process, creating a condition I call, “Introvert Envy.” Now that people are aware that admired people such as Abraham Lincoln, Eleanor
Roosevelt, Mother Teresa, Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Albert Einstein, Barbara
Walters, Meryl Streep, and Tom Hanks are introverts, many extroverts are relentless in their
quest to secure a place amongst introverts.
Having been
unwillingly subjected to the Minnesota
Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) during a degree-seeking period in
my life, I know well the humiliation of being looked upon as an anti-social
navel-gazer when that big “I” was revealed during a peer evaluation activity. Thanks
to Cain, the dreaded “I” designation is now highly coveted.
Extroverts claim
they qualify as introverts if they like to read books, enjoy some alone time,
or sometimes listen to others. Never mind that these same people love being the
center of conversations, thrive on public performances, interrupt others
mid-sentence so they can share their more important thoughts, and can never be
contacted because they are always on the go.
Despite the
fact that Jungian Theory in no way supports the notion that one can change from
extrovert to introvert through declaration, choosing to believe is apparently the
only validation these pretenders need.
One might
hope that since so many extroverts now want to become one of us introverts, the
status of introverts has now been raised. Think again every time you hear one of
the pretenders say, “He/she needs to be more outgoing (friendly, gregarious,
affable, genial, jovial, cheerful, lively, etc.).”
Christmas is
just a few weeks away. I choose to believe that Santa Clause will come down my
chimney with a new car. White. Small. Good fuel economy.
Clipart: Free Desktop
