Education 2.0 & 3.0

Check out the challenges faced by Introvert presenters and how to overcome the fear of public speaking by keeping in mind these tips.

Introverts recharge by spending time alone. They lose energy from interacting with other people for long periods of time, particularly in stimulating, crowded environments.

Extroverts, conversely, lose energy from spending time alone. They recharge by interacting with other people in highly social environments.

This personality dimension has nothing to do with shyness. According to author Susan Cain, presiding commander in chief of the introverts, shyness is a fear of negative judgment, while introversion is a preference for quiet, minimally stimulating environments. In other words, a lack of interest in socializing (introversion) is clearly different than fearing it (shyness).

You’ve probably heard conventional advice about networking: Practice your elevator pitch, try approaching people standing alone (they’ll be happy someone is talking to them), memorize icebreaker questions (“How did you hear about this group?” “What’s the most difficult part of your job?”)

Those are fine pieces of advice for certain kinds of events and certain kinds of people (ahem, extroverts). But what if the thought of going to such an event in the first place fills you with anxiety?

Then you might just be an introvert.