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As an introvert who works in an office (and works remote in binges), just being in the vicinity of people is good for overall mental health. You don't have to i

As an introvert who works in an office (and works remote in binges), just being in the vicinity of people is good for overall mental health. You don't have to interact with people to be energized by them (all the better, of course if you do). Like walking down a busy city block, energy can be absorbed by just being near people. Open plan workspaces tend to get a bad rap on HN. My challenge to developers here is to stop relying on the headphones to block out noise to focus. It can be done. You don't need to be in a "monastery" to work well.

MrDom 12y ago
Are you sure you're an introvert then? Being around people doesn't energize an introvert. That's the definition. Being an introvert myself, hanging around in a coffee shop even without interacting with anybody will wear me down slowly. I've built up enough of a tolerance that I can deal with it and still go on to have other social interactions throughout the day, but the fact remains just being near people is an energy net negative for me (and all introverts). > Open plan workspaces tend to get a bad rap on HN. And in several scientific studies.
- wallflower 12y ago
  Like many labels, introversion is a personal thing. I prefer the description from Susan Cain's book by a MIT professor (sadly, the one who was recently accused of sexual harassment of his online students). Anyway, his description was that if you are passionate about something, that will overcome your baseline introversion such that you can do what is not normally in your acceptable range of behavior. Perhaps, I am so jazzed by problem solving that I like going to the office (where there are a lot of problems to be solved and good teammates to solve it with). OT - our Slack channel is 'noisy' and the office is not.
- reinhardt 12y ago
  It's not so black and white. A term I've read somewhere for being around people without interaction is "ambient socialization". I'm a dyed-in-the-wool introvert and still find it beneficial from time to time, especially after long stints of isolation. It doesn't necessarily mean you become more productive (e.g I can't concentrate in coffee shops as much as from home but I attribute it more to noise than people per se) but it still works fine for breaking the routine once in a while.
  - wallflower 12y ago
    I agree that it is not so clear. I do remember one exercise at a previous company where they divided us into introverts and extroverts based on MBTI (Myers-Briggs scores). They then gave us the hypothetical exercise that we had the day off. Us introverts were planning chores and shopping. The extroverts were planning a trip to Vegas.
Sophistifunk 12y ago
No, no it can't. I'm glad that it works for you, but for me the part of my brain that focuses on voices turns off the part of my brain that turns thoughts into code. It doesn't matter if they're talking to me or not, but I work at 10% focus if I can hear voices, even in my headphones (unless it's a song I know really well, or trance/metal where the voices are distorted)
- wallflower 12y ago
  Ok, on that note, I like Bach choral music because I can't understand any of what is being said. It is in many ways ethereal. When I can't understand the lyrics, I find I don't try to think about what I am listening to. And OT - have you tried meditation?
dllthomas 12y ago
http://wiki.lesswrong.com/wiki/Typical_mind_fallacy http://wiki.lesswrong.com/wiki/Typical_mind_fallacy

MrDom 12y ago

Are you sure you're an introvert then? Being around people doesn't energize an introvert. That's the definition. Being an introvert myself, hanging around in a coffee shop even without interacting with anybody will wear me down slowly. I've built up enough of a tolerance that I can deal with it and still go on to have other social interactions throughout the day, but the fact remains just being near people is an energy net negative for me (and all introverts). > Open plan workspaces tend to get a bad rap on HN. And in several scientific studies.

wallflower 12y ago
Like many labels, introversion is a personal thing. I prefer the description from Susan Cain's book by a MIT professor (sadly, the one who was recently accused of sexual harassment of his online students). Anyway, his description was that if you are passionate about something, that will overcome your baseline introversion such that you can do what is not normally in your acceptable range of behavior. Perhaps, I am so jazzed by problem solving that I like going to the office (where there are a lot of problems to be solved and good teammates to solve it with). OT - our Slack channel is 'noisy' and the office is not.
reinhardt 12y ago
It's not so black and white. A term I've read somewhere for being around people without interaction is "ambient socialization". I'm a dyed-in-the-wool introvert and still find it beneficial from time to time, especially after long stints of isolation. It doesn't necessarily mean you become more productive (e.g I can't concentrate in coffee shops as much as from home but I attribute it more to noise than people per se) but it still works fine for breaking the routine once in a while.
- wallflower 12y ago
  I agree that it is not so clear. I do remember one exercise at a previous company where they divided us into introverts and extroverts based on MBTI (Myers-Briggs scores). They then gave us the hypothetical exercise that we had the day off. Us introverts were planning chores and shopping. The extroverts were planning a trip to Vegas.

Sophistifunk 12y ago

No, no it can't. I'm glad that it works for you, but for me the part of my brain that focuses on voices turns off the part of my brain that turns thoughts into code. It doesn't matter if they're talking to me or not, but I work at 10% focus if I can hear voices, even in my headphones (unless it's a song I know really well, or trance/metal where the voices are distorted)

wallflower 12y ago
Ok, on that note, I like Bach choral music because I can't understand any of what is being said. It is in many ways ethereal. When I can't understand the lyrics, I find I don't try to think about what I am listening to. And OT - have you tried meditation?

dllthomas 12y ago

http://wiki.lesswrong.com/wiki/Typical_mind_fallacy http://wiki.lesswrong.com/wiki/Typical_mind_fallacy