Recent Read: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking

Ann chose to represent introverts in the public art project One & Other, where members of the public occupied a normally vacant plinth in Trafalgar Square in London. See her entire hour here.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

I first heard of Susan Cain when I read some of the articles she published leading up to the release of this book. I then listened/read every interview with her I could find. She was everywhere--Time Magazine, NY Times, NPR, and local papers everywhere. The book debuted at #4 on the NYTimes bestseller list.

Every time I read something of hers, like an article in the Toronto Globe & Mail entitled, "Giving Introverts Permission to Be Themselves," I found myself saying, "Yes!" and "Thank you!" I answered yes on almost every question of her introvert quiz, and was determined to be a "strong introvert."

I waited months to get the book from the library, and then only got halfway through before I had to return it so it could go to the next person. I waited for it to come out on paperback and reread the whole thing, pencil in hand to mark it up.

It feels like an exaggeration, but my instant reaction to it is that it's been life-changing. Thank you, Susan Cain. It's both validation and understanding of my personality and who I am.

Cain starts with a little history, explaining how our society transitioned from a Culture of Character to a Culture of Personality, where extroversion came to rule and become the ideal. Often citing examples of significant people in history who were introverts, she discusses introversion (and extroversion) in business, culture, child-rearing, teaching, and relationships. She delves into the science and psychology of it as well. It was fascinating, useful, illuminating.

"Introversion--along with its cousins sensitivity, seriousness, and shyness--is now a second-class personality trait, somewhere between a disappointment and a pathology. Introverts living under the Extrovert Ideal are like women in a man's world, discounted because of a trait that goes to the core of who they are. Extroversion is an enormously appealing personality style, but we've turned it into an oppressive standard to which most of us feel we must conform." 

-Susan Cain, Quiet

Also, her website is a great resource for introverts.