Adapt to ever-changing workplace
“I’ve actually been enjoying the isolation; that’s my weird psychology,” said Cynthia G., who had maintained an 8 a.m.-to-5 p.m., Monday-through-Friday routine for 20 years for a large company, had never entertained pursuing two part-time remote jobs and is now choosing to focus on her interests instead of her wallet.
Most people can readily name every frightening and tragic aspect to COVID-19, as today’s population has never experienced working and living during a pandemic. There is another side to it, though, so unpopular or perhaps taboo no one speaks of it: The opportunities and potential that can result from separation from life as people have known it. But there is nothing weird about Cynthia’s feelings or her personality type.
The workplace seems to thrive on outgoing participants, but 25% to 40% of the population is comprised of introverts. Imagine living a life knowing that outgoing, assertive and even bubbly personalities can go to work and naturally enjoy the common cultures that companies create. Imagine working in an environment that outgoing employees happily embrace and introverted employees merely tolerate. They are surrounded by the pressure of people who love to converse and socialize. Compound that emotional pressure with having to perform all work tasks knowing that the extroverts win the praise, the kudos, the attention and often the rewards introverts are too quiet to fight for.
Introverts are not speechless throughout the day, but they avoid going up against extroverts on issues where they need to defend or justify their thoughts, ideas and behavior. Bernardo J. Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute, said: “Introverts seem to be born with a level of arousal that is higher than average. This is why they prefer not to be around loud noises and big parties.” Barry Smith, professor emeritus and director of the laboratories of human psychophysiology at the University of Maryland agrees: “Introverts tend to avoid social situations because they are already aroused and have less (fewer) social needs.” On the other hand, shy people fear being judged.
Openly and firmly suggesting one’s ideas takes more than just inner beliefs; it takes courage, confidence, articulation, persuasion, personality and, sometimes, savvy manipulation to get one’s points across to coworkers, teammates, project leaders and bosses — not an easy task for an overly polite people-pleaser or “yes person” who is far more comfortable with falling in line with the majority’s opinion. It requires an inner strength to rock the boat without fearing it will overturn.
With teams on the rise in nearly every workplace, whether in-person or through a Zoom meeting, acquiescing to a group’s consensus makes life easier for introverts and shy personalities. The freedom of working remote evens the playing field between extroverts and introverts by allowing individuals to plan their own days and time necessary calls when they feel ready and prepared for the exchange.
Shirley, for example, an introvert in the finance field, chose to resign from her job to home-school her child when the COVID-19 quarantine began. She had dealt with the pressure of having to work smoothly on a financial team with opinionated coworkers and remain the single parent who had to handle weekly disagreements with her child’s teacher. In addition to leaving these stresses behind, she reduced her financial expenditures by no longer having to pay for private school, travel to and from work, and dine out with coworkers, as was the daily expectation.
Working remotely to keep safe from COVID-19 and many other illnesses easily spread may be more difficult for extroverts who crave interaction, but it has opened a door of opportunity and introverts thought they would never experience. The solitude has given all a chance to dive into self-reflection and mindfulness, consider core values, re-examine lifestyles and pursue areas of interest previously ignored.
The heartbreak of losing friends and family members to COVID-19 cannot be denied. It is more real for the ones whose lives it has changed forever, but as with all negative experiences and outcomes, the positives, minor as they may seem at first, will still exist.
The freedom of working remote evens the playing field between extroverts and introverts by allowing individuals to plan their own days and time necessary calls when they feel ready and prepared for the exchange.