50+ Susan Cain Quotes: Embracing Your Inner Introvert

The bias against introversion leads to a colossal waste of talent, energy, and happiness.

When you go to a football game and someone offers you a beer, they’re really saying hi, have a glass of extroversion.

There’s zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas.

Don’t think of introversion as something that needs to be cured.

One genuine new relationship is worth a fistful of business cards.

Spend your free time the way you like, not the way you think you’re supposed to.

The secret to life is to put yourself in the right lighting. For some, it’s a Broadway spotlight; for others, a lamplit desk. Use your natural powers — persistence, concentration, and insight — to do work you love and work that matters. Solve problems. make art, and think deeply.

Everyone shines, given the right lighting.

Introverts are capable of acting like extroverts for the sake of work they consider important, people they love, or anything they value highly.

Shyness is the fear of social disapproval or humiliation, while introversion is a preference for environments that are not overstimulating. Shyness is inherently painful; introversion is not.

‘It’s not that I’m not smart,’ said Einstein, who was a consummate introvert. ‘It’s that I stay with problems longer.

I also believe that introversion is my greatest strength. I have such a strong inner life that I’m never bored and only occasionally lonely. No matter what mayhem is happening around me, I know I can always turn inward.

Introverts prefer to work independently, and solitude can be a catalyst for innovation.

‘Restorative niche’ is Professor Little’s term for the place you go when you want to return to your true self. It can be a physical place…or a temporal one…

Solitude matters, and for some people, it’s the air they breathe.

Studies have shown that performance gets worse as group size increases … If you have talented and motivated people, they should be encouraged to work alone when creativity or efficiency is the highest priority.

Introverts, in contrast, may have strong social skills and enjoy parties and business meetings, but after a while wish, they were home in their pajamas.

Everyone shines, given the right lighting.

We have two ears and one mouth and we should use them proportionally.

The same person who would never raise his hand in a lecture hall of two hundred people might blog to two thousand, or two million, without thinking twice. The same person who finds it difficult to introduce himself to strangers might establish a presence online and then extend these relationships into the real world.

The purpose of school should be to prepare kids for the rest of their lives, but too often what kids need to be prepared for is surviving the school day itself.

We don’t need giant personalities to transform companies. We need leaders who build not their own egos but the institutions they run.

There is no one more courageous than the person who speaks with the courage of his convictions.

Evangelicalism has taken the Extrovert Ideal to its logical extreme…If you don’t love Jesus out loud, then it must not be real love. It’s not enough to forge your own spiritual connection to the divine; it must be displayed publicly.

Jealousy is an ugly emotion, but it tells the truth. You mostly envy those who have what you desire.

Whoever you are, bear in mind that appearance is not reality. Some people are like extroverts, but the effort costs them energy, authenticity, and even physical health. Others seem aloof or self-contained, but their inner landscapes are rich and full of drama.

It’s as if they have thinner boundaries separating them from other people’s emotions and from the tragedies and cruelties of the world.

The next generation of quiet kids can and must be raised to know their own strengths.

What if you love knowledge for its own sake, not necessarily as a blueprint to action? What if you wish there were more, not fewer reflective types in the world?

Love is essential, gregariousness is optional.

Extroverts get better grades than introverts during elementary school, but introverts outperform extroverts in high school and college.

Don’t think of introversion as something that needs to be cured…Spend your free the way you like, not the way you think you’re supposed to.

It’s just the most amazing thing to see the introvert revolution literally remaking the way we organize society — this time, the world of book clubs.

The secret to life is to put yourself in the right lighting.

Cross the street to avoid making aimless chitchat with random acquaintances.

Being relatively unmoved by rewards gives you the incalculable power to go your own way.

There are only a few people out there who can completely overcome their fears, and they all live in Tibet.

Some people are more certain of everything than I am of anything.

Naked lions are just as dangerous as elegantly dressed ones,

Some of the world’s most talented people are introverts. Without them, we wouldn’t have the Apple computer, the theory of relativity, or Van Gogh’s sunflowers.

The same person who would never raise his hand in a lecture hall of two hundred people might blog to two thousand, or two million, without thinking twice. The same person who finds it difficult to introduce himself to strangers might establish a presence online and then extend these relationships into the real world.

Scores of studies have shown that venting doesn’t soothe anger; it fuels it.

The same person who would never raise his hand in a lecture hall of two hundred people might blog to two thousand, or two million, without thinking twice. The same person who finds it difficult to introduce himself to strangers might establish a presence online and then extend these relationships into the real world.

It’s not that I’m so smart,” said Einstein, who was a consummate introvert. “It’s that I stay with problems longer.

We have two ears and one mouth and we should use them proportionally.

If you’re an introvert, find your flow by using your gifts. You have the power of persistence, the tenacity to solve complex problems, and the clear-sightedness to avoid pitfalls that trip others up.

Naked lions are just as dangerous as elegantly dressed ones.

Introverts living under the Extroversion Ideal are like women in a man’s world, discounted because of a trait that goes to the core of who they are.

Even though we can reach for the outer limits of our temperaments, it can often be better to situate ourselves squarely inside our comfort zones.

The pressure to entertain, to sell ourselves, and never to be visibly anxious keeps ratcheting up.

Our culture is biased against quiet and reserved people, but introverts are responsible for some of humanity’s greatest achievements.

Flow is an optimal state in which you feel totally engaged in an activity…In a state of flow, you’re neither bored nor anxious, and you don’t question your own adequacy. Hours pass without your noticing.

True self-esteem comes from competence, not the other way around.

The next time you see a person with a composed face and a soft voice, remember that inside her mind she might be solving an equation, composing a sonnet, or designing a hat. She might, that is, be deploying the power of quiet.

In our culture, snails are not considered valiant animals – we are constantly exhorting people to “come out of their shells” – but there’s a lot to be said for taking your home with you wherever you go.

The key to flow is to pursue an activity for its own sake, not for the rewards it brings.

I’m continually amazed by how many people who appear to be extroverts are actually introverts.

When you’re more focused on getting your message across than you are worrying about how people are viewing you, that’s huge.

Introverts are uniquely good at leading initiative-takers. Because of their inclination to listen to others and lack of interest in dominating social situations, introverts are more likely to hear and implement suggestions.

Open-plan offices have been found to reduce productivity and impair memory. They’re associated with high staff turnover. They make people sick, hostile, unmotivated, and insecure.

We put too much of a premium on presenting and not enough on substance and critical thinking.

The word satyagraha implies Gandhi’s passivity was not a weakness at all. It meant focusing on an ultimate goal and refusing to divert energy to unnecessary skirmishes along the way.

There’s nothing more exciting than ideas.

If you’re an introvert, find your flow by using your gifts. You have the power of persistence, the tenacity to solve complex problems, and the clear-sightedness to avoid pitfalls that trip others up. You enjoy relative freedom from the temptations of superficial prizes like money and status.

He has trouble elbowing his way into class discussions; in some classes, he barely speaks at all. He prefers to contribute only when he believes he has something insightful to add, or honest-to-God disagrees with someone.