The difficulty of introversion in a world that so deeply cherishes the perks of extroversion has been over stated by a societal perception which states that a successful leader must be both charismatic and extroverted. For which one might envision the late Margaret Thatcher, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom or Muhammad Ali as prime examples. Yet in the TED talk The power of introverts, Susan Cain brings forth this idea that whilst introverts do find it difficult to function within a society determined on the production of extroverted individuals, they tend to become the more successful leaders.
Thus, despite the prevailing societal predisposition that espouses the virtues of extroverted leadership, it is not impossible for an introvert to survive and prosper in the rat race of modern society. To be able to understand how these personality traits can affect individual interaction within the microcosm of a workplace, the terms extroversion and introversion must be analysed.
Although introversion and extroversion are terms often substituted for confident and shy, the actual terms are not meant to be utilised to describe an individual’s reaction to social stimuli but reflective on how an individual optimally functions (Seger-Guttmann, T. and Medlerliraz, H. 2015. pp. 342). Consequently, these psychological characteristics are only able to be employed to form a rudimentary framework for an individual’s train of thought.
The desire for extroverted leadership within modern society can be seen in contemporary corporate environments which have begun to transition away from the static offices and a rigid hierarchy of old. These office block corporate environment are being replaced with vibrant workspaces that encourage the flow of free thought, innovation and social interaction. Extroverts thrive in such an environment where they’re allowed to interact and feed off the collective social energy of a group.
This is reflective in their ability to manage and teach large groups of people, as seen in a particular study of classroom management (Jalili and Mall-Amiri, 2015, p. 827). This study clearly demonstrates that extroverted teachers have the advantage when it comes to regulating their students and maximising their results. This ability to foster their charges is derived from an extrovert’s innate desire to function in a social sphere; where interacting with individuals only fuels a further desire to help others (Jalili and Mall-Amiri, 2015, p. 27). Therefore, considering how extroversion and management seem to be intertwined, an introverted individual could quite possibly be overlooked for promotion and further training because their methodical and nuanced approach is unable to foster the explosive results of their antithesis. As such, the advantages of being an extrovert within a culture driven by social interaction are obvious but it does not necessarily dictate that an introverted individual cannot find success.
This assumption that managerial roles are solely held within the grasp of charismatic and extroverted individuals is a supposition that society accepts at face value. This is an idea where every organisation, company and country are directed and driven by individuals of vision, vigour and gravitas. Yet, the reality of this situation is far from this; a recent survey (Kello 2012, p. 28) of individuals within top corporate positions reveals that these professional roles are generally staffed with analytical and introverted individuals.
The definitive issue with the aforementioned supposition are the narrowly defined traits of an introvert which fails to comprehend the actuality that traits are personal preferences and not immutable limiters (Kello 2012, p. 28). Although the societal perception of introverts dictates anti-social behaviour, the reality of our interaction based culture requires the introvert to develop the ability to function within a social environment. This can be demonstrated through an analysis of sales, a commercial field that many consider to be heavily reliant on extroverts (Kello 2012, p. 9-30). Ironically this is a field that suits the temperament of an introvert extremely well as it requires market analysis, forecasting, coordination with marketing and production as well as communicating expectations to the sales team. In essence, simply having an introverted perspective will not hamper an individual within the workforce as they are able to fill niches that extroverted individuals are reluctant to do or goals that they are unable to reach.
Therefore, the notion that introverts are unable to function in a corporate environment simply because they do not thrive off attention is disingenuous as it completely disregards the ability of the individual to overcome such simple problems. Despite the differences between an extrovert and an introvert, it still ultimately boils down to the individual’s ability to function within the workforce. There is not so much of a bias towards either side of the extroversion, introversion spectrum but a general consensus that a leader must be able to balance out the personality traits of both sides. Stephens-Craig, D. & Kuofie, Matthews, 2015 p 64. )
A leader amongst leaders must be able and willing to balance out their social drive with meticulous micromanagement as well as their excess energy with introspection (Erez, A. , Schilpzand, P. , Leavitt, K. , Woolum, A. and Judge, T. 2014. p. 1763). Consequently, all successful people no matter their personality type have developed work around solutions to their behavioural weakness, whether through intuition or coaching, so that they are able to function outside their natural behavioural patterns.
Therefore, the melding of introversion and extroversion merely demonstrates that even within society this heavily reliant on social interaction, there is no distant bias against those prone to careful introspection. This ambidextrous approach is a real advantage within a corporate environment as the individuals who toes the line between introversion and extroversion is now able to perform in a wide rray of roles; in essence it is a trait that not only desired within employees but often cultivated by employers for managerial and leadership positions. As such, this determines that the division between an introvert and an extrovert is not particular relevant as success in the corporate landscape is reliant only the value an individual brings to an organisation. Thus, an introvert will not have a difficult time within the corporate workforce, as long as their ideas and the implementation of those ideas are productive.
Despite the societal perception that extroverts are inherently advantaged within the corporate workforce, it is not truly difficult for an introvert to strive for success. In fact, for an introvert to achieve success, the right application of critical skills need to be applied; skills that augment their tenancies and behaviours. Therefore, individuals who do not involve themselves within discussions at the workplace are not stunted because of their introversion but are individuals who lack the drive to achieve genuine success and develop into leadership positions.
