Tyler Folkedahl

Honors 391
Emily Hill
9/3/14

Ive been having pretty mixed reactions to this book thus far. Part of the reason for that
is, being a person who does possess many of the traits linked to extroverted individuals, Ive
already noticed a handful of negative traits being assigned to this personality type, such as being
more likely to commit adultery, as she explains on page 3 of the introduction. I understand that
this is a persuasive text in favor of introverts, which would lead to the primary audience of this
book being people who identify as introverts, but it still bothers me.
One other thing that I found interesting is that when I took the quiz in the introduction,
my answers came out even. This probably had something to do with my ever present
subconscious desire to defy the norm, but its comforting to me to know that I am able to
possess, and more so make use of, the different traits and attributes assigned to both different
personality types.
Another segment of the book that I found to be really interesting was the section where
shes describing her experience at the Unleash the Power Within seminar. Two different
scenarios came to my mind, the first of them being my experience being educated as a theatre
major. There is a tremendous emphasis placed on energy, readiness, and ability to throw yourself
out there completely in the theatre world. This is something that Susan Cain also wrote briefly on
earlier in the book, in that these qualities are often associated with extroverts. However, I am one
of the types of people that strongly prefers to be fully prepared before showcasing work, and I

generally will only dive head-on into decisions without prior thought if I think that the stakes are
low enough. Reading this segment was a time when I sympathized with Susan, because I know
that many times I have been uncomfortable sharing and putting myself out there. Dont get me
wrong, I love theatre games and being wild and crazy and all that other jazz that us extroverted
types jimmy to, but if its something that Ive been working on, especially something theatrical
that I want to take pride in, I will guard it with my life until I feel like its something ready to be
presented. Sometimes this even means that I will purposefully do worse, just to know that when
its viewed poorly, it was a choice by me, not a failure.
Another thing that I was reminded of during this segment was my experiences as a
member of the service organization Students Today, Leaders Forever (STLF). In STLF, a group
of 40 or so kids get on a bus, travel across the country, participate in service activities, and spend
countless hours bonding with each other. I love STLF, I feel like it has been one of the most
valuable experiences of my life. Thinking back on it with the lens of introvert versus extrovert
behaviors, though, I cant help but think of my friend Erika. Erika is rather timid, not particularly
shy, but definitely a self-identifying introvert. Despite this, she always seemed to be having just
as much fun throwing herself into the high-energy exercises and games we would play. It makes
me wonder if that was just a part of her personality that was at odds with the rest of her introvert
qualities, or was she faking extroversion? I know that Erika has always had a lot of pressure to
be a leader, and has always stepped up to the challenge, but was it at the expense of her own
comfort?
Anyways, Im getting rambly and its near the end of the second page so Ill wrap this up.
Hopefully this wasnt supposed to be a formally formatted paper. Anyways, Ill probably end up
talking more about Erika now that Im thinking about it. Thus far, its a pretty interesting book.