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The Power of Introverts: A Manifesto for Quiet Brilliance
- exch 15y agoHere's the full article without page breaks: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-power-of-introverts&print=true http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-power-o...
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- delinka 15y agoWhile I thank you for your effort, the site seems to strip off the &print=true when I follow your link.
- itmag 15y agoI am an introvert male and one book that really helped me be assertive, certain, spontaneous, and happy in the social arena is "No more Mr Nice Guy" by Robert Glover. Highly recommended! http://www.amazon.com/No-More-Mr-Nice-Guy/dp/0762415339 http://www.amazon.com/No-More-Mr-Nice-Guy/dp/0762415339 I have the audiobook version and it's one of few audiobooks that I've listened to more than once. I also have a mindmap of the book if anyone wants it.
- bstewartnyc 15y ago+1
- defdac 15y agoOrder sent.
- itmag 15y agoThis offers a good overview, about an hour long or so: http://pickuppodcast.com/2012/01/16/episode-dr-robert-glover-no-more-mr-nice-guy/ http://pickuppodcast.com/2012/01/16/episode-dr-robert-glover...
- 54mf 15y agoI think you just changed my life. Thank you for sharing this.
- bh42222 15y agoOh for god's sake I've replied to alike a dozen places in this thread, I am giving up and this will be my last. I am an introvert. And I've always been very assertive, confident and certain, in fact in my younger days I was kind of a dick. Getting older I've practiced not being a dick. What ever issues you had with being assertive, certain, etc, I am glad you are working on them. But being an introvert has nothing to do with it. I think most people hare are confusing those type of challenges with introversion.
- sunils34 15y agoGreat article! This is definitely something that I had always thought about. The extroverted bias is definitely something that should be rethought. In my experience, I feel much more productive working alone rather than in groups. It allows me to work at my own pace. In working alone, I can keep my assumptions in my head, and have a full understanding of what my tasks are and what needs to be done to be completed. I feel my preference for this work style comes off as closed off, but having worked in different environments I know this way yields the best results for me. Working too often in groups gives a false sense of unanimity, where differing approaches are suppressed. I've also seen decisions be dragged on much longer than it really should take.
- dasil003 15y agoI like to work alone as well, even though I'm a manager and I'm lucky if I can get 50% of my time head-down writing code. I just feel like I can process so many more ideas thinking about things internally instead of pausing to try to verbalize my thought process. This is not to dismiss the power of two or more minds focusing on the problem from different angles bouncing ideas back and forth. Maybe I just haven't found my pair programming soulmate yet, but I suspect I just prefer to work alone most of the time and get collaborative only at chosen points (design/code reviews, brainstorming, domain expert discussion, etc).
- obiterdictum 15y agoThis topic is always popular here on HN. A pain point even. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=561311 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=561311 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2657554 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2657554 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2345552 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2345552 However most of these submissions do not sit well with me as they try to glorify introversion as some sort of superpower or an exclusive club, and contain a hefty dose of ego stroking.
- moonchrome 15y agoAlso it's coming from social sciences, a thing most of the people nodding in approval would be extremely skeptical (and rightly so IMO) especially if it was opposing their beleifs - at least that's my impression/my initial reaction. Confirmation bias is bad. Still I think most of us are also repulsed by the inane "brainstorming sessions", forced "teamwork", etc. and that's an important point, I work best alone/when I'm not getting distracted.
- panacea 15y ago"A pain point even." I wonder if that's because of the HR/interview/need-to-network thing. Those on the more introverted side of whatever social mound you may want to define, are as good as, if not better at actually solving problems and producing results as those who network and team-huddle and facebook etc. It's a "pain point" precisely because there's no reason a somewhat 'introverted' individual should be organisationally penalised for their personality traits when they 'bring the goods' regardless (or even in excess of requirements).
- bh42222 15y agoI really hate the implication that being an introvert means you are not as good at interviews or HR type networking. I am an introvert. I have a huge professional network. How? Simply by being nice to people and caring to build a network! And I know plenty of extroverts who have a much smaller network than me because they tend to burn bridges when they leave companies, because being an extrovert doesn't keep you from being kind of a dick. And as hackers we are often stubborn and passionate about objective truth and I think these HR/networking problems have nothing to do with introversion. I think introversion is being used as an excuse. And I suspect a lot of introverts are either not introverts at all, or have entirely separate issues in addition to being introverts. Certainly a lot of what I read about introversion has nothing to do with it, but is clearly about social anxiety. It's a "pain point" precisely because there's no reason a somewhat 'introverted' individual should be organizationally penalized for their personality traits when they 'bring the goods' regardless (or even in excess of requirements). That does not happen! The only way I can imagine that happening is if you are an introvert who happens to be a professional party host, or maybe sales. But introverted personality traits do not get you punished professionally if you do any kind of intellectual work like programming! What ever punishment you're seeing, I'm guessing it's due to social issues entirely apart form introversion.
- eblade 15y agoI read a book by another female author that suggested the same theme as this article: The Introvert Advantage - How To Thrive In An Extroverted World by Marti Olsen Laney. A nice read overall and made me aware of many obvious but often went explained why introverts behave they way they are.
- wisty 15y agoNote, the words "Introvert" and "Extrovert" should die. It's like talking about "fatties" and "anorexics". Most people are normal. Introversion (or it's opposite, extroversion) is more or less normally distributed, unlike the bimodal distribution suggested by using polar terms. "Male" and "Female" are examples of bimodal attributes, for which it can be pragmatic to pretend there's only two extremes. Even then, the folk who don't fit so well in either category warrant a special mention. Spare a thought for the normal people who don't have 200 real friends (and 20,000 Facebook friends); or live alone in their mother's basement. (Not that introverts necessarily have no friends, which is a whole new can of misconceptions brought on by Myers-Briggs, as explained by Cosmopolitan in the mid-80s).
- jonnathanson 15y agoHear, hear. It also bears mentioning that virtually nobody understands what it actually means to be "introverted" or "extroverted." Introversion does not necessarily imply social awkwardness, nerdiness, or even shyness, per se. Rather, to be introverted is simply to prefer fewer or smaller social activities -- not out of a sense of being unable to handle such things, but out of a general preference for less social stimulation. Popular (mis)usage, especially in the US, presents introverts as somehow flawed or unwhole, while extroverts are properly adjusted -- as if the standard is set by the extroverts, and everyone who falls short of that mark lands somewhere on the Autism spectrum. (It's reached the point where many people these days are afraid even to describe themselves as "introverted," lest others assume they're somehow damaged). It's time to do away with such nonsense.
- nodemaker 15y agoNot trying to be pedantic but the literal meaning of introvert is someone who looks inside for approval or decision making.(Etymology "Intro"-in vert-"look"). You can be a very social person and have tons of friends etc etc but at the end of the day if you are not too affected by other's opinions about you then you are an introvert.Introverts are totally okay with being alone for extended periods of time as they very much enjoy the conversation they are having with themselves.But they can also go out and talk to people confidently if they so desire.(Yes there is probably some correlation between introversion and social anxiety especially in young people). On the other hand, extroverts who are looking outward for approval and decisions get depressed when they are lonely.This is not necessarily a bad thing.Personally I would have saved so much time if I had bounced my crazy ideas of someone else before going and implementing them. When it comes to leadership, both can be good leaders.A brilliant example of a very introverted leader is Steve Jobs and an excellent example of an extroverted leader is President Barack Obama.
- spacemanaki 15y agoThe article only touches briefly on the flaws of brainstorming and group work, but there was a recent article in the New Yorker by Jonah Lehrer that delved deeper into this issue and some of the research behind it. (unfortunately only available to subscribers http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/01/30/120130fa_fact_lehrer http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/01/30/120130fa_fact_...) Surprisingly there is decent amount of research indicating that brainstorming is actually less productive than everyone thinks, however the article diverges slightly and explores the history of a few places like Building 20 at MIT where many people from different backgrounds were forced to mix due to the adhoc nature of the offices, etc. Of course I think he referenced another HN favorite, Richard Hamming's classic "You and your research." It seems that balancing "quiet brilliance" and "keeping your door open" is probably something worth keeping in mind.
- arguesalot 15y agoI wonder why people find this surprising. Groupthink involves substantial compromises so you end up with least-common-denominator solutions. Epics throughout history often talk about the accomplishments of Great (Wo)Men, but not of Great Groups. The idea that groupthink is more valuable is just a hypothesis. The Nytimes had a similar story recently: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/opinion/sunday/the-rise-of-the-new-groupthink.html?comments http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/opinion/sunday/the-rise-of...
- spacemanaki 15y agoBrainstorming is shoved down our throats from middle school on (in the US, at least) and continues into the workplace. We've probably all sat through painful brainstorming sessions in the process of software development, and in some cases the supposed wisdom of the group is formalized in processes like scrum. So I found it somewhat surprising that this continues despite research indicating it might not be productive.
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- funkah 15y agoEmphasis on the "quiet". Be quiet about how smart you think you are; you're probably wrong anyway.
- pasbesoin 15y agoI'm an introvert. [1] Additionally, I cannot concentrate in a noisy, distracting environment. I was told -- ad nauseum -- this was my "problem" and that I needed to accommodate and "adapt" to the noise around me. Ultimately, after several decades of doing my best to do so, I burned out -- hard. Now, "the press" is telling us that "introversion" is good. If it was more than lip service to the latest trend -- fad -- I might be encouraged. But I doubt very much that it is. In my mind, all these "introverts rule" articles can fuck off and die. Because it's just not true. The world is full of loudmouthed, bullying assholes. And the worst part is when they manage to turn you against yourself. If you are an introvert. If you need peace and quiet to concentrate. The best thing is NOT to support those who try to stuff you into a cube, or who blast the stereo at all hours because "college is a party". Get away, so that you can think. And keep in mind that they will step on you and use you if they can. So, don't let them. Be kind to yourself. And to your friends. And to those who truly respect you. But fuck the "touchy feely" propaganda from the media. 1. I get along just fine with people -- in fact, I'm often considered quite "nice" and people seem to enjoy spending time with me, particularly if they and the setting are not overwhelmingly aggressive. I enjoy spending time with them, too. So, I'm not asocial.
- dman 15y agoNoise really disturbs me too and actually so does movement in my peripheral vision. Over time I have resorted to working for about 45mins - 1 hour 45 minutes at home in the morning before heading to work. I use that time to bring my days tasks to a near solved status. Once I reach that state I can "finish" the tasks off at office inspite of the distractions.
- pasbesoin 15y agoI did some self-selected schedule shifting (or more often, extending) and the like. I would not recommend it as a long-term strategy. In fact, I would not recommend it as more than a stop-gap tactic. (Meaning, when you are "working around", as opposed to choosing the schedule and/or work environment you really want, in the first place.)
- didgeoridoo 15y agoThis article gives corporate "brainstorming" sessions the what-for, with some justification. However, there are some great ways to run brainstorming sessions to help mitigate the shortcomings cited in this article. One of my favorites is the de Bono hats: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Thinking_Hats http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Thinking_Hats By setting rules and depersonalizing interactions ("That wasn't me criticizing, that was the black hat talking!"), you can get productive, creative thought in groups that might not be possible at the individual level.