So, a few days ago, I was having a discussion with an old friend of mine about my self proclaimed introversion, and he said something which startled me....
And I quote, 'But Incognito, I don't really see you as an introvert. When we were in college, you were the one who would go to all the parties and dance up a storm with different people. You were the one who would be out front and center on the dance floor !!"
This stopped me in my tracks and made me say.....hmmmmm.....I have to admit I do love a good party where I can dance to good music and work up a sweat, but.....there needs to be lots of people around, so I can be lost in the crowd.
I also don't mind giving a presentation (sometimes). Let me explain. In my line of work, sometimes I am tasked with having to give powerpoint talks. But there are two essential steps that MUST occur before I am able to do this successfully
1)I have to ensure that I start my preparation for the talk weeks or preferably months before
2) I have to rehearse it over and over and over and over and over again (until i know it without having to look at the slides)
On the day of the presentation, I am ALWAYS a nervous wreck. During the walk to the podium, I am usually drenched with sweat, and my hands are shaking, cold and clammy. When I start to speak, many times my vision goes blurry and I feel nauseated. My voice may quiver for the first few lines. But then I usually take off my shoes (to get comfortable....Yes I hate wearing shoes), and I focus on a spot in the distance, and then as if by magic, I relax and the information flows out of me. And as a matter of fact, I have been congratulated on my prowess at delivering exceptional speeches. However, if something happens that throws me off, for example, if someone asks a difficult question that I am not prepared for, I become a jittery ball of jelly, once more.
So, the question exist, could it be that I am not 100% an introvert? Maybe
So I decided to do some research to see if varying degrees of introversions exist.
And my friends, I don't know if you know this but I have just discovered that introversion and extroversion are on a spectrum and there is such a thing as an ambivert, that lies between the two. The offical definition according to the Oxford English Dictionary is that an amivert is a person who exhibits a balance of extrovert and introvert tendencies or traits.
However, I wouldn't personally say that I have a balance, I may lie between the two extremes, but I trend towards the introversion end.
Where do you fall?
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