"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. They prefer to devote their social energies to close friends, colleagues, and family. They listen more than they talk, think more than they speak, and often feel as if they express themselves better in writing than in conversation. They tend to dislike conflict. Many have a horror of small talk, but enjoy deep discussions" - Susan Cain
Often times, people associate introverts with just being extremely shy. However, I disagree. It is possible for an introvert to be shy, but I think that extroverts can be shy, too. What introverts and extroverts are really about concerns their social energies. Extroverts tend to enjoy the constant stimulation of being in a social setting, while introverts prefer to have time to themselves. For example, after I have a long day of work or school, I would rather not go out and socialize right away. I like to have an hour or so of downtime to build my energy level back up.
As an introvert, there are even days when I don't want to do anything at all so I have to make up excuses not to go out, but what I would rather do is say, "It's not that I don't want to spend time with you, It's that I need to take care of myself." It's just part of being an introvert, and I wish more people understood what that meant.
Introverts should be taken into consideration in not only everyday life, but also in school and in the workplace. By this I mean, society seems to almost want to push extroversion onto people. Society has changed school and the workplace to better stimulate the extrovert with an exceeding amount of group work and not a lot of privacy. Individual work is needed not only for the introvert, but also the extrovert. Everybody needs some solitude to get their creative side flowing because the best way to come up with new ideas is to be alone and contemplate. Introverts need their place to grow and develop themselves, they should not have to pushed into what society deems to be better.
More on introverts by Susan Cain, Co-founder of Quiet Revolution: http://www.quietrev.com/ted-talk/
