The hidden power of introverts: How to thrive without changing who you are | Susan Cain (author of "Quiet")
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What is introversion and how does it differ from shyness?
I see introversion and extroversion in general as just two different kinds of strengths. The problem in our culture is just that we emphasize one type of strength, the extroverted strength, usually more than we do the introverted strength, but that they're equally valuable.
There's probably not this binary thing, you're introvert, extrovert is a spectrum of introvertedness, extrovertedness. Do people move along this spectrum often? I feel like I've definitely become more extroverted over time.
I've had the exact same trajectory you just described. I used to be terrified of public speaking. Now I do it all the time. I used to be quite shy. But that's not really describing I don't believe becoming more extroverted. That's more describing acquiring skills. As we grow and gain experience, we acquire all kinds of skills.
What people most want is just like how do I become potentially more extroverted slash less allow introvertedness to hurt me in my career.
This is a paradox that I have observed that the more introverts become like deeply comfortable in their own skin, that's when they start to show up at the job interview or on the stage in a more powerful way. Because you're now there as your own true being, as opposed to there always being a voice in your head saying, I'm not really supposed to be.
Me. How can you help people believe this is actually true? That you can be just as successful being very true to yourself versus learning to be an extrovert?
One of the most important things you can do
Today, my guest is Susan Kane. Susan is the author of the number one New York Times bestseller, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in the World That Can't Stop Talking. Her books have been translated into 40 languages, her TED Talks have been viewed over 50 million times, and she basically made me and every other introvert in the world feel okay about being an introvert, and showed that actually embracing that about yourself can unlock a ton of opportunity and success in your life. Your life. In our conversation, Susan shares a ton of very tangible advice for how to be more successful in business as an introvert, including what skills you should actually be building that don't come naturally to you, also what actually is an introvert, how to raise kids who might be introverted, and so much more.
This was such a wonderful conversation, and so much of it resonated with me. This episode is for anyone who considers themselves an introvert, or if you work with people who are introverts and you want to learn how to help them thrive. If you enjoy this podcast, don't forget to subscribe and follow it in your favorite podcasting app or YouTube. It's the best way to avoid missing future episodes and it helps the podcast tremendously. With that I bring you Susan Kane. This episode is brought to you by Interpret. Interpret unifies all your customer interactions, from gong calls to Zendesk tickets to Twitter threads to App Store reviews, and makes it available for analysis. It's trusted by leading product orgs like Canva, Notion, Loom, Linear, Monday.com, and Strava to bring the voice of the customer into the product development process, helping you build best in class products faster.
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This is a limited-time offer that's interpret.com/slash Lenny. This episode is brought to you by Vanta, and I am very excited to have Christina Cassiopo, CEO and co-founder of Vanta, joining me for this very short conversation.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is introversion and how does it differ from shyness?
0:00–9:04
2
How can you tell where you fall on the introvert‑extrovert spectrum?
9:04–19:08
3
How can introverts overcome the fear of public speaking?
19:08–29:13
4
How can introverts thrive in their careers without changing who they are?
29:13–39:27
5
Why is learning to say “no” crucial for introverts and how can they master it?
39:27–45:55
6
How can introverts effectively participate in meetings and network without draining energy?
45:55–51:42
7
How can managers create work environments where introverted team members excel?
51:42–56:24
8
What strategies help parents raise confident introverted children?
56:24–1:17:51
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