Earlier today I read a very interesting article written by @Princessbusayo where she mentioned some of the challenges she face as an introvert and being an introvert myself, the article is titled "worries of an anxious introvert"(note the bolded word "anxious". We will discuss that later) prompted me to shed more light about the term "introversion". Thanks for giving me an idea on what to write today Ma.🤗

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Introversion is a very misunderstood, displaced and misconstrued word. When I ask people, "who is an introvert?", The common words I hear in their response are "shy","passive"..and even "meek". Words that should be more likened to introverts are "thoughtful", "inwardly directed", and "reserved".

Introversion as a personality type can be classified into four namely:

• Thinking introverts

• Social introverts

• Anxious introverts

• Inhibited introverts

The behaviours that are often believed to be associated with introverts like shyness, anxiousness and passiveness have more to do with the Anxious and Inhibited introverted personality types therefore not all introverts are shy. @Princessbusayo falls under the Anxious introverted personality type cos she stated that she's more of a shy person and gets anxious about social gatherings and the word "anxious" also appeared in her title. Perhaps the anxious and Inhibited introverted types are more common than other introverted types hence the generalization about all introverts. I am more of a thinking introvert because of my chronic daydreaming habits. I prefer to get lost in my thoughts and imagination whether creative or fantasy than socialize. I am not shy, I don't get my girdle twisted in social events, they don't just matter much to me....much.

So what are those traits that are common to all introverts?

If you have these traits there are chances you might be an introvert:

Heightened degree of self-awereness: This is one of the strengths of introverts. Due to the fact that they prefer being lost in their own thoughts, they spend more time alone and tend to connect with every aspect of their being. Introverts don't have any trouble knowing their strength and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, their motivations and so on.

They take more time to recharge their batteries:

Do you burn out easily? Do you get tired easily after few interactions? Well...it doesn't really mean you're lazy or something, you might just be an Introverts. We need alot of rest due to the way we functions. Our hyper-sensitivity to our surroundings make us pay attention to every single detail and that can easily tire our brains out, hence we need to recharge.

They have very few friends:

They don't keep much friends because they don't see the need to do so. You'll have to prove yourself better than their solitary retreat for you to earn their friendship tag. And yeah...we keep only the real ones🤗.

They enjoy being alone:

Alone time is fun. Some people think that we're boring or bored for wanting to be alone most of the time but those who really know us know better. There's strength and wisdom in being alone plus the spiritual solitude that often cones with it.

So..I could go on and on but lemme stop here.

Another thing that pisses me off these days is that people who don't even know jack about introversion claim to be introverts. Yeah we are cool set of individuals but you've got to act more like us for you to be one of us...and you can't just "act" like an introvert for you to be one else you'd be faking. It's not a facade you put on and off, it's simply the way you're born. We also have our weaknesses, infact many weaknesses. I myself sometimes envy extroverts in their way of going smoothly with the flow. If you're an extrovert, remain that way. If you're an introvert remain that way.

What's with shyness?

I know quite a number of extroverts who are also shy, so shyness has nothing to do with introversion when looking at it from a general perspective. Introversion is a personality, shyness is an emotion...and we all have emotions!

Shyness as an emotion commonly springs from other emotions like fear, doubt or insecurities. Therefore linking shyness with Introverts is like saying all introverts are insecure which sounds "introvertophobic" to me.😌

Closing thoughts:

This piece is an attempt to correct the false beliefs some of us hold about Introverts. I am not sure I did it to perfection so I suggest you read more about who introverts really are and get to know the truth about them. Some people even think that introverts are arrogant, rude and proud due to their reserved nature which of course isn't true. There are rude people from among introverts and extroverts.

Thanks for reading.

We can vex oo so don't try us. You all better ditch that mentality that we are all meek. @Princessbusayo come and tell them let them hear very well. I use to tear pipu clothes in our primary school.😌

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Yours Layly,

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