
My all-time favorite quote about introspection comes from Carl Jung:
âSolitude is for me a fount of healing which makes my life worth living. Talking is often a torment for me, and I need many days of silence to recover from the futility of words.â
This is how I feel as an extroverted introvert â otherwise known as an âambivertâ the personality type that rides the middle lane.
I think my personality is a by-product of moving ten times in twelve years as I grew up. Forever the ânew girlâ I needed to survey the social nuances â quickly â in order to make friends and connect. Thatâs a tall order at any point in life, but when youâre an unsure, lanky, awkward young dork? Tricky â so I built the skill of fast-friend making. How? Ask questions and be prepared to pivot, as needed. Morph, baby. And listen, listen, listen.
I suspect those skills framed my future career nicely â both in higher education as a professor and Dean and as a counselor/therapist in my own practice. I could be extraordinarily extraverted, when needed. No problem. Got it. BUT â I learned quickly that a recovery period after a long day of leading, listening, supporting â even when I loved doing it â was essential.
What else did I learn in the process? Despite rampant and easily-applied labels, understanding personality types is complicated.  Nuanced.  Personality is not binary. Weâre fluid, malleable and flexible and can present aspects of our true selves across the continuum of âextraversion vs. introversionâ.
How did I manage as a card-carrying introvert in a mostly extraverted work world? Just fine. My only issue was remembering to tune into the need to refuel. I often joked (then and now) that I need to âreload my wordsâ when Iâm tapped out. Give me five or ten, family, friends and Iâll be right back with you. Right now, Iâm fresh out of words.
There are a gazillion different tests â some shady, some reliable â if you want to delve into whether youâre more extraverted or introverted. I think itâs helpful info, but it probably wonât tell you much that you donât already know. Is one type better than another? No, of course not, despite this cheeky article lauding the merits of introversion.
I still see myself as an ambivert because of my people-pleasing tendencies and high empathy. Consistently, my thought process is this: What do YOU need me to be? Letâs go with that. And thatâs how I live my life, unapologetically, but with awareness of the self-imposed fatigue.
Nasty fatigue. Itâs my nemesis more than anything else. This past weekend provided a pointed reminder. Sweet sister Lisa tested me during her visit over the weekend (check out this post from a few weeks back for more detail about my lovable, disabled sister).
Lisa lives in a terrific, well-staffed group home with lady friends with similar disabilities. Whenever possible, we love having Lisa with us over a weekend, especially if family festivities like a barbeque are on deck. Such was the case over Labor Day.
In addition to packing too much for a short stay (a genetic problem in the family) Lisa delights in bringing juicy tidbits and gossipy fun facts about her housemates, along with whispered shade about staff, programs, services. Sheâs disabled but sheâs more emotionally intelligent and verbal than most folks of normal IQ. đ AND she loves recounting all of it to me.Â
See where Iâm going? I love Lisa but after non-stop listening – and not the half-listening that involves just a nod of recognition â sheâs looking to chat â I begin to lose steam. Not wanting to be short tempered with her, I find things for us to do and that works for a while as a distraction.
This past weekend as I was teetering toward snapping at her, I remembered how funny she can be if lighten up and play along. She wasnât the problem, I realized â it was me. I had too much **other** on my mind and Lisa sensed it, thinking I was upset with her.  My introverted self needed refueling for the heavy (but fun) impending BBQ socialization and that, coupled with my preoccupation with cooking and prepping, ramped up Lisaâs non-stop storytelling. I made her nervous.
Oh golly. It just took a few minutes of slowing down over a bowl of brownie batter (with two spoons) to prompt silly reminiscing about childhood cooking disasters. There were plenty, typically swirled together with outrageous things our mom did. The laugh track that was our childhood.
As I ruminated about Lisa last night, my summation thought yielded just this: Extraversion, introversion, ambivert â whatever. I needed to send out a search party to find my funny and laughter brought the pieces back together. It usually does.
Thanks for reading. Thanks for letting me share.
Xo,
Vicki â¤
Brownie batter insights – that’s wonderful! How many times have we figured out the solution by just doing something different until the perspective arrives?
I love your discussion of personality – and of recharging. I find knowing what truly will recharge me (and also doing it) to be a tough practice.
But I feel richer by this post where you walked through your process and let me come along. Beautiful!
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Thanks, Wynne! You are too kind. It takes me a while, but I usually get to a resting place where I can make peace with myself. Thanks for riding along! xo! đ
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Boy, can I relate to the needing to refuel. And so wonderful that youâre able to recognize when youâre nearing the snapping point, as you said, and do something about it! Wonderful post! đ¤
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Thank you so much, Kendra! Nice to know Iâm not alone in my need to refuel and catch my breath. Hugs to you! đ
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It IS a wonderful, and extremely touching post for more than one reason. But first, I must ask: what is the most extroverted job?
I, too, definitely can relate to the ârecharging.â I was once surprised to hear from one of the senior managers I knew, someone who was a great speaker, very engaging, a ball of bouncy energy, who always acted as an extrovert, that he was truly an introvert. He needed much longer than you to recharge and would spend hours at a time away from his family even, to recharge.
And I can also see how a brownie batter can be a great spot to make things⌠better, more for than just the tummy. After all, a wise person once said that humanity has only one truly effective weapon, and thatâs laughter!
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Thanks so much, EW! Great question — and I hear you – especially given your example of the manager who so who exuded extraversion…but paid for it later with substantial recharging needs. Appreciate your comments and input. I’m still working on sending some cooler breezes your way, btw. đ
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Thanks so much, EW! Great question — and I hear you – especially given your example of the manager who so who exuded extraversion…but paid for it later with substantial recharging needs. Appreciate your comments and input. I’m still working on sending some cooler breezes your way, btw. đ
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Ambivert. So that’s what my personality type is called! I’ve always known I’m not an extroverted life-of-the-party gal, nor am I the shy and quiet girl in the corner. I’ll join a conversation, but only start one on rare occasions. I do have a radar for noticing the person in the room who seems to be excluded or who seems to be sad about something, so will gravitate toward them. I like to call that empathy.
Thanks for the helpful ‘Brownie Batter Insights’ post…but, now I want brownies.
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LOL! I hear you – what a misleading title for a post about introversion. I should rethink thatâŚ
ButâŚthank you so much, fellow ambivert – nice to meet you! đ
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