Q: Which was the best party in town celebrating New Years?
A: The Cancelled one!
Greetings to all you quiet people with the loudest minds! We hope that the holiday season has been kind to you and wish you a very peaceful World Introvert Day!
World Introvert Day is an initiative inspired by the blog post, “Here’s Why We Need a World Introvert Day” by German psychologist and author Felicitas Heyne, on her site “iPersonic”. The date January 2, was picked in light of the fact that it denotes the end of the exuberance of the holiday season allowing a breather for those thriving in the quieter times.
First celebrated in 2011, this is a day to remember and celebrate the quiet ones who, in their own silent ways, move and reshape world. It is also a day to encourage and embrace their deep reclusive tendencies that are painted black under the generalization of terms like ‘shy’, ‘awkward’ or downright ‘antisocial’.
Heyne acknowledged the widespread impact of this movement which was evident worldwide and particularly in India — a culture that since ancient times, has given great importance to deep, reflective thought, mindfulness, meditation, and the inner workings of the mind. Indian Twitter users flooded social media, with relatable memes and posts tagged with #WorldIntrovertDay that highlighted the introvert experience in a humorous and insightful way. Heyne’s free e-book: “Happily introverted ever after” offers the introverts tips and tricks to make their way in our predominantly extroverted world.
As champion of the introverts, author Susan Cain speaks about the power of introversion in workplace, in her book ‘Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking’, where she expresses a general appeal to our educational systems to encourage an environment that notices and nurtures the quiet ones as equally on par with the stronger voices.
Introverts in healthcare have the exhausting task of navigating an interaction-heavy job with their highly rationed energy reserves. Their focus, insight and restrained but deeply humane care often remains underappreciated.
Author Jacqueline Baxter advocates the 4 Ps to overcome challenges faced by the introverts so they can fare better in in public scenarios:
(Jacqueline Baxter, Why so few Medical leaders are introverts and what this means for healthcare.)
PREPARE for heavy situations such as meetings
PRESENCE by showing you are interested and aware through making eye contact or asking a question
PUSH yourself out of your comfort zone
PRACTICE new behaviors such as telling stories, public speaking.
So, here’s wishing all the readers of The Checkup, (quiet or not), a very happy and fulfilling World Introvert Day!
