Executives Who are Introverted and Thriving

As wallflowers of the world unite, most people really know that quiet smarts come from introverts and closet introverts have populated the highest corporate offices as 4 out of 10 of the top executives tend to be introverts. Many high-powered executives are running small, medium and large companies using the unique characteristics only introverts have. They take advantage and leverage their strengths and several know that many of their weaknesses are their strengths. That is what drives their motivation and moves them forward.

Jennifer Kahnweiler found that 40% of professionals say they would like to change their introverted tendencies , but do not know how or where to begin. The good news is that introversion can be managed.

Most people do not know that Brett is an introvert. At some point after being promoted into an executive position, Brett was misunderstood because of his quiet temperament. When asked about this by another colleague, he told them that he is more of an introvert than an extrovert. He has the leadership qualities to move his team forward in the projects and tasks they are assigned. As a quiet leader, Brett demonstrated his worth and contributions as he was promoted 2 years later to a higher position- president of the company.

You can have excellent leaders who are introverted and still know how to move an organization forward with his or her unique skills, talents, knowledge, abilities, interest and passion. These basics for the introverted leader are more powerful and influential to getting things done than most extroverts think. Underneath it all, I found that some extroverted leaders are beginning to look at and take a page from introverted quiet leaders and find that they are producing higher rates than extroverted leaders.

Remember that introverts prefer to be prepared before going into meetings and do not like to be put on the spot for any reason, prefer to think things through, tend to be very good listeners, and often do not reveal much of themselves to others. To understand what an introvert is thinking you have to ask them, as they rarely volunteer information unless you ask them.

There is no magic pill or formula to swallow to change introverts instantly into an extrovert. So make the best of being an introvert and go beyond surviving and thrive in whatever you do to move yourself forward in your professional and personal life.

What is your take on an Introvert Leader who is able to get more done than an extroverted leader?

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