What is an Introverted Personality?

If you’re here reading this, you must have learned something about yourself and what might be your personality type and so you might’ve searched something like “what is introverted personality?”   Well to give you a really short and direct answer, an introverted personality is that our energy and expression are focused internally or in our mind in comparison to an extrovert whose energy source is directed and expressed with their surroundings.

Read on to learn more about introvert personality characteristics. Learning and having a better understanding of yourself will help you accept who and why thy way you are.  Let’s face it, as an introvert, there’s something within you yearning to learn more.

So here I list some typical introvert characteristics that might be common to you.

Introverted Personality Characteristics

Having an introverted personality, many assume from the first impression that you’re a shy and quiet person or worse, stuck-up and egotistical. Nothing can be farther from the truth! What can be seen as being shy only means reserving oneself and preparing for a more meaningful conversation or connection.

An introverted personality requires some time alone to build up enough energy to get into a social situation. Oh and we don’t always appreciate meaningless banter, it can feel fake and disingenuous.

Sometimes introverts can be thought to disliking others which is untrue. We may say things like “I hate people”, but that’s because we’re depleted of our social energy and not literal. Introverts are very much thoughtful and considerate of others.

So listed here are a few characteristics of an introverted personality.

1. You Enjoy Time of Solitude

There’s something about being your own best company. After a day at work or school, we look forward to the time we can just turn off everything around us to rest. It’s hardly ever an issue being alone most of the day and is actually preferred.

Doing something that many people call being a homebody, although that can have a negative connotation, it’s not a bother because it’s the time where you can feel like yourself. It’s time you take to do tasks you enjoy around the house, working on hobbies or just plain relaxing.

Whatever it is you decide to do, it’s a tremendous feeling of freedom and energy when it’s only you.

On the other hand, when you’re with a group of others, your energy drains away and that’ll lead to what seems like work to pretend to be normal. You normally can carry the feeling of being fake for a while but you’ll need to replenish that energy with more alone time.

2. Often Feel Like a Loner around Others

In a group setting among friends or co-workers, you may feel like you really aren’t connected with them. While there’s a lot of banter and mingling going on,  you most likely prefer to sit back to listen and watch, hence feeling like a loner. But it’s due to you internalizing what’s happening around you, which isn’t bad, just natural to you.

And if they try to get you to engage with the group, you might feel awkward, so you keep any engagement short. Being overly wordy and expressive attracts eyes and it’s not something we desire.  However, you do well an more comfortable with a one on one or smaller group chat.

Oh, and it’s not that you aren’t enjoying yourself, observing with an occasional chiming in is satisfying enough than being fully involved in the discussion.

3.  Long talks Drain You

There’s something about spending time chatting and at some point, you feel depleted and have a need to get out.  This is a normal introverted personality attribute and the cure is to re-energize by finding a small break in the conversation.

A small break may not be enough or even possible. This can lead to a situation as an introvert where you totally shut down from the conversation feeling socially exhausted possibly causing a bit of awkward silence.

Of course, it’s not something you can hide so concerned parties will ask if everything is all right.  So you can either tell the truth that you’ve run out of energy to keep conversing or tell them everything is just fine.

4. Not Interested in Meaningless Small Talk

Unless you run into a truly good friend you tend to dodge close run-ins with acquaintances, co-workers, or even neighbors not because you dislike them but for the simple fact, you dislike small talk.

Anything beyond a “Hello” and small talk ensues, it’s more than likely not because of you. It’s hard to say why the disinterest in small talk encounters, it could be because it just seems meaningless to introverts to just to have one.

And so we do our best to avoid interactions by waiting for someone we know to pass by, or we walk away quickly before we get noticed. Sometimes if there’s no way of going without being noticed, you give them an excuse to get out of there quickly say something like “Hi. How are you? Good? I’m sorry I’m in a hurry for an appointment. Bye.”

5. You Prefer To Communicate With Writing over Talking

As an introvert, you’re more comfortable having to discuss a subject through writing an email or a text message over talking about it.  The ability to write gives the time to come up with the best message possible.

When it comes to talking, introverts can stumble with words if they’re put on the spot that’s because they tend to think about the words used as it’s coming out. This especially happens when in a larger group such as a business meeting.

In that setting, there’s so much going on in the mind of an introvert, the feeling of being judged or saying the right thing can pose an image of lack of confidence to the group.

That’s why introverts prefer writing out their message or idea. It gives them time to be extra thoughtful about the message they want to convey without the worry of being judged.

Therefore, writing as an introvert comes through as confident and knowledgeable, drawing some to the idea of writing as a career choice.

6. You Have a Small Circle of Close Friends

Going out to meet new people is not typical for introverts.  When you do happen to have plans to go out and socialize, it’s with friends that you trust and know you, but hardly to meet people to make new friends.

Being introduced to new people through mutual friends and becoming acquaintances is fine but you don’t need new close friends. Introverts are more guarded when letting people into their lives. It takes a lot more time to build a certain amount of trust and comfort with new people.

Some will be friendly and try to get to know you better by asking about yourself, but introverts loathe talking about themselves especially around unfamiliar people.

7. You Pay Attention to Details

Introverted individuals have a unique ability to pay attention to details that others might miss. They tend to be highly attuned to their surroundings and can pick up on subtle changes in the environment or people’s moods.

This sensitivity can be particularly useful in creative fields, where introverts can use their attention to detail to create works of art that are rich in texture and color.

In the workplace, introverts may take longer to complete tasks, but they often produce work that is of a higher quality than their peers. This is because they are not afraid to take their time and ensure that everything is perfect, even if it means going against the norm. However, this perfectionism can sometimes cause friction with others, especially in leadership positions where introverts may expect their team to share their attention to detail.

Overall, introverts have a unique set of skills that can be valuable in a variety of settings, particularly those that require a keen eye for detail.

Just the tip of the Iceberg

These common traits listed of an introverted personality are only a touch of what is known and not everyone is actually one hundred percent introvert. Most people are actually a combo of introvert and extrovert, but the greater percentage of the two mainly describes your personality type.

To be more exact about personality types, there are actually sixteen and you can home in on your exact personality by doing a quick search for a free personality test or click here to take you to my favorite and reputable site.  Learning more about yourself and personality will aid in strengthening your confidence, and career advancement through your own natural ability.