How to Embrace Your Inner Introvert (Even Back at the Office)

September 7, 2021 - 7 min read

Shelly Madden

You know what’s great about working from home? A lot, actually. You can make a coffee without offering to make one for 12 other people. You can write a report in half the time it would normally take. And you can minimize the social interactions that make you want to crawl under your bed and never resurface.

Despite the upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the sharp push into remote work was a blessing in disguise for introverts. That’s because being an introvert in the office can be tough. Unless you’re someone who eagerly awaits invites to office potlucks or genuinely enjoys watercooler chats, a vibrant workplace is not for you. Open-plan offices and introverts don’t exactly go together like apple pie and ice cream. The ease with which your colleague can drop by your desk unannounced is a form of mild torture for the introverted employee.

Self-confessed introvert Ethan Hauser wrote in The New York Times that a simple phrase such as “Let’s brainstorm” can cause him to break out in a sweat. Indeed, having your colleagues in close physical proximity can often lead to more group projects and impromptu get-togethers, which would strike fear into the heart of any introvert.

That said, being an introvert in the office has its advantages. In fact, psychological expert Stephanie Sarkis wrote in Forbes that introverts can actually be the “most valuable employees” in an organization. Their set of skills is more subtle than an extrovert’s but no less powerful. Throughout school and college, we are encouraged to join social clubs and reap the rewards of an extroverted personality, but it appears our teachers might have missed an opportunity to extol the benefits of being an introvert.

The benefits of being an introvert

It’s no surprise that introverts have excelled at remote working over the past year. The pivot to a fully online workspace took the spotlight from extroverts — who may have commanded attention in a room full of people — and placed it on introverts. Over the past year and a half, extroverted employees have been unable to fully capitalize on their strengths while introverts have thrived in a quiet and distraction-free environment. Netflix’s former chief talent officer, Patty McCord, told Bloomberg that the pandemic made many companies recognize the value of certain employees they had overlooked before: “people who just quietly put their head down and delivered.”

Here are some introvert traits that make a valuable employee:

Good at listening: If an interviewer ever asks you a question about communication, they are looking for one thing: to find out if you are a good listener. Listening is key to effective communication, which is a highly desirable skill. As noted by Psychology Today, “the best orators are not necessarily the best communicators.” Sure, extroverts can talk the talk, but introverts excel at the most integral part of communication.
A great eye for detail: Try taking a five-minute walk with a friend and then doing the same walk on your own. On the second time around, you’ll probably notice a lot more about your surroundings. That’s what life is like for introverts. Because they tend to stay silent in social gatherings, they observe a lot more about the world around them. This means they have a better eye for detail, making them a great asset to the fields of editing and graphic design.
Strong written skills: Introverts often prefer to communicate their thoughts in writing. Rather than make up a speech on the spot, they take time to gather their thoughts and express it on a page. This can sometimes be a more successful method of communication — the extra time and consideration spent on a written text mean important facts and sentiments are rarely left out. Also, introverts get the opportunity to say what they really want to say rather than blurting out some garbled sentences to get out of an awkward situation quickly.

How to Embrace Your Inner Introvert (Even Back at the Office) 2 — *(Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash)*

4 steps for embracing your inner introvert

1. Focus on your strengths

As seen above, introverts possess a wide variety of skills. You may not have all of them, but it’s highly possible that you excel in different areas. Maybe you’re a self-starter who doesn’t need your supervisor to walk you through every task? Or maybe your preference for one-on-one chats over large presentations means you build a greater rapport with clients? Make a list of all the strengths you have as a result of being introverted. Link these to your role to remind yourself why you don’t need to be the office chatterbox to do your job well.

2. Accept your weaknesses

Though you should always strive to improve at work, sometimes you have to just accept there are some things you don’t do as well as others. And that’s OK. Why do you think your office is split into departments such as HR, sales, and IT? Each employee has unique talents — trying to be a Jack of all trades will ultimately lead to failure. Rather than chastising your inner introvert for not heading the social committee, praise yourself for the projects you thrive at under the radar.

3. Create a flexible schedule

It’s a common misconception that introverts are antisocial beings. Many want to forge close connections with their work colleagues — they just don’t want to also endure stilted small talk over wilting canapés. The key to managing your social commitments is to create a balanced schedule with enough downtime to balance out group activities. Susan Cain, author of "Quiet: The Power of Introverts," advises spacing out meetings over the week rather than a full day of energy-zapping Zooms. If you know you have a two-hour strategy meeting with your CEO, be sure to schedule in a free hour afterward to decompress. Add these recharge slots to your calendar to ensure you won’t be disturbed.

4. Learn how to say no

Just because you were invited to something doesn’t necessarily mean you’re obligated to go. Let’s say you’re feeling socially drained, and you get invited to an after-work event. You can just say no — and not feel bad about it. Try to stick to the mantra of “No is a complete sentence.” You don’t need an excuse to decline an invite. If you’re worried about missing a chance to connect with your colleagues, send an online message and try to make the next event.

As you prepare to return to the office, remember that being an introvert is an asset, not a hindrance. Just because you’re not the center of attention doesn’t mean you’re not a valued employee at your organization. Stop trying to fit into a world of social butterflies — carve out your own niche and embrace your inner introvert.

Shelly Madden

Shelly is a Senior Content Marketing Manager for Wrike. Based in Galway, Ireland, she manages freelancers, blog production, and strategic projects. A former full-time copywriter and editor, her writing experience spans multiple themes, from sci-tech news to tiny woodland creatures. Her passions include etymology, color-coded calendars, and the Eurovision Song Contest.

#Wellbeing at Work

Collaboration 7 min read

Mental Health at Work: 5 Essential Hacks for a Healthy Work-Life Balance

Whether you’re remote, hybrid, or in-office, here are some simple work-life balance tips to encourage a better headspace and higher levels of happiness at work.

Leadership 7 min read

Who Buys the Cake? Tackling Gender Inequality in the Workplace

The past 18 months of increased remote work have made us all question what we want from our office culture – from whether a commute is really necessary to whether the "increased productivity" it creates is actually just a facade. After all, as The Washington Post reports, up to 80% of US workers are as productive (if not more productive) when they work from home. This period has also made us question whether some aspects of ‘office culture’ can actually be quite detrimental to equality in the workplace. One of those aspects is the arbitrary division of certain tasks by gender that often go unrewarded. A recent article by Nieman Labs explained it is not your female colleagues’ job to buy you cake. Let us explain. In your office, who tends to organize the leaving cards, the birthday cakes, or even the Secret Santa? As the Harvard Business Review outlines, unfortunately, these tend to be carried out by women, and are what they call “non-promotable tasks.” Not only are women more likely to volunteer for these kinds of tasks, but they are also more likely to be asked to do them, and to say yes when asked. As this report details, taking these tasks on (and indeed, saying no to them) tends to have a negative impact on their career prospects, and ultimately, increase gender inequality in the workplace. And as one study published in the American Sociological Review found, although women are more likely to be described as "helpful" or "community-oriented" in their performance evaluations, this was not associated with receiving the highest performance rating (for men or women). The simple solution? These tasks need to be divided at a management level, or as Niemen Labs puts it, “managers buy the cakes.” So, why can gender roles in the workplace be so detrimental? This expectation at work is especially detrimental when you account for what sociologists refer to as “the second shift” of extra household duties that many working women must complete after work each day. As a recent article by Vox explains, although women may be more likely to want to work from home than men, they have a harder time doing so. Women (and especially mothers) working from home tend to report higher rates of stress, depression, and hours clocked. “In other words, women need more flexible work arrangements, because women have more to do.” Of course, not eradicating supposed gender roles at work can also have a negative impact on men. One of these destructive gender stereotypes is that men should prioritize work over family. As Thekla Morgenroth, a research fellow in Social and Organisational Psychology at the University of Exeter, told the BBC: “Men who do take parental leave can therefore face backlash and be seen as weak, lacking work commitment and so on, which can result in consequences at work such as being demoted or not taken seriously. Men are, of course, aware of these potential consequences, and this could definitely contribute to them deciding against taking parental leave even if it's offered.” How do we tackle that? Sarah Forbes, a researcher at Birmingham University Business School, suggests visible “fatherhood champions” at companies, both to inspire fathers to take leave and improve their knowledge of leave provisions. Calculating the cost of gender inequality in the workplace Unfortunately, the nature of discrimination tends to be cross-sectional, meaning that Black women don’t just have to contend with gender discrimination at work; they also may experience racial discrimination. For example, The Guardian reports that Black women in the US have to work 19 months to earn what white men earn in one year. In fact, Black women are only paid 63c to every dollar that non-Hispanic white men earn, equating to a potential loss of $946,000 over a lifetime. To combat this, the report iterates performing regular pay audits and creating a plan to address significant pay gaps for employees with similar roles and experience but who may differ only by race or gender. Building equality and inclusivity into workplace language There are other powerful ways we can target gender inequality in the workplace for a better division of what The Financial Times calls ‘office housework.’ One of these is the role of language and how gender-coded language can affect employees. According to the BBC, as we tend to associate particular language and behaviors with particular genders (‘agentic’ with male and ‘communal’ with female), using this language in job advertisements can put off great candidates from applying for particular roles. John Fiset, of Canada’s Saint Mary’s University, shares an example of the two from actual job posts: Communal: “We’ll support you with the tools and resources you need to reach new milestones as you help our customers reach theirs.” Agentic: “Tell us your story. Don’t go unnoticed. Explain why you’re a winning candidate.” It’s a simple adjustment to make but a powerful one. One so powerful that behavioral designer Kat Matfield created an online tool called Gender Decoder so you can check your job descriptions for subtle gender bias. What each person can do to tackle gender inequality in the workplace Each day, there are simple steps each of us can take to strive for better equality in the workplace. These include (but are not limited to): End imposter syndrome: Have direct conversations with employees about perceived inadequacies and what you can do about them, have empathy and share your own experiences. Take time to understand the biases that women (particularly women of color) may encounter and see what you can do to tackle these. Be an ally for female employees: Share your time generously with female colleagues and be available for impromptu support. Ensure you make an effort to share their wins and to be heard in meetings. Finally, make an effort to ensure office housework is evenly distributed and normalize saying “no” if not. As our workplaces evolve post-pandemic, it’s time to leave antiquated ideas of gender roles behind and promote equal pay, less burnout, and equal time with our children. It is the perfect opportunity to do what we can to tackle gender inequality in the workplace once and for all.

Productivity 7 min read

7 Ways Employers Can Support Working Parents, Including Childcare and Hybrid Working

Being a working parent has always come with challenges: time spent working in an office is time spent away from raising children. If you get called into a meeting, you might have to skip your child’s drama performance; if you have to work late, you might miss tucking your kid in before bed. As we ease out of the pandemic, now is the time to consider ways employers can support working parents better. As women began entering the workforce generations ago, children often became ‘latchkey’ kids from a fairly young age if one of their parents wasn’t able to take care of them before returning from work. In recent times, though, parents have relied heavily on daycare, grandparents and relatives, after-school programs or sports, or full-time nannies to take care of children while they work. Before the pandemic, most working parents were expected to be in an office full-time. This meant that many parents had to coordinate dropping kids to school, bringing them to doctor’s appointments, cheering them on at the soccer field, or watching them in the school play — all while making it to the office on time. For parents who needed to commute, kids might be dropped to daycare at the crack of dawn and not picked up until suppertime. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant increase in flexibility for many working parents, thanks in large part to the rise of hybrid working. Many working parents are now able to drop their kids to school or make it to performances or appointments because flexible remote working has become normalized. However, hybrid working isn’t a solution in itself. Workplaces and employers need to support working parents in a more holistic fashion, from offering childcare subsidies as an employee benefit to creating programs that help employees feel a stronger sense of belonging at work. What does the current childcare landscape look like for working parents? Before the pandemic caused a seismic shift in the way we work, finding, scheduling, organizing, and even affording suitable childcare was difficult for many working parents. If kids were sick or a childcare worker didn’t show, parents were left trying to pick up the pieces — and still make it to the office. With the pandemic-induced shift to remote working, previous childcare conundrums paled in comparison to working at home with no childcare at all. Many parents were expected to keep productivity up while somehow overseeing remote learning for multiple children and keeping them occupied throughout the day without so much as a playdate. Needless to say, that situation was untenable for many working parents, leading 40% of working parents to make changes to their jobs and 17% of women to leave work altogether. The attrition due to the pressures on working mothers in the COVID-19 era isn’t over, though, because according to a study on Women in the Workplace by McKinsey, “as many as two million women are considering leaving the workforce.” Why should bringing women back into the workforce matter for businesses? Getting women back into the workforce is key to a strong economic recovery in the aftermath of the pandemic, according to the U.S. Labor Secretary, Marty Walsh. “We need to make sure if we're going to have a strong recovery — a strong, equitable recovery — we need to get women back into the workforce,” Walsh explained. Walsh further commented that childcare remains a critical factor in ensuring that women can indeed return to the workforce and affect change in the greater economy. As offices reopen and working parents are making decisions about how they plan to return post-pandemic, many parents favor hybrid working to accommodate their needs in taking care of their children. In a study of 1,000 randomly selected working parents in the UK, “76% of all mothers and 73% of fathers surveyed wanted to work flexibly to spend more time with children.” Only 16% of those surveyed expressed an interest in working from the office full-time, due to the flexibility that the hybrid model provides for working parents. What can businesses do to help parents in the workplace? Workplaces have clear incentives to actively help working parents, in particular working mothers — both to create a diverse employee panel and to contribute to the overall economic recovery. As offices reopen and employers look to attract and retain highly skilled talent, here are some initiatives they can undertake to assist working parents. Offer hybrid working options: Hybrid working options give parents the flexibility to drop kids to school and daycare, pick them up, or take care of children who are sick. Hybrid working also eliminates commuting time for working parents on the days they work remotely, giving them additional time with their families. Wrike, as a Citrix company, has offered employees the option to avail of their choice of full-time office, full-time remote, or hybrid working scenarios. Create programs for employees that enhance their sense of belonging in the workplace: Working parents can often feel isolated as employees, struggling with responsibilities that they aren’t typically encouraged to share with others. Programs like a company parents group chat or coffee chat on Zoom can create a stronger attachment to the workplace, making it more likely that those employees will continue their employment at their company. Provide a childcare subsidy to employees: Just like healthcare has become an important item in a list of company benefits, childcare subsidies are likely to become increasingly enticing to potential and current employees who have children or are considering having children in the future. Offer on-site childcare options: Large companies sometimes have the ability to provide on-site childcare to their employees in an effort to lessen the burden on working parents who might otherwise not be able to see their children for many hours at a time. On-site childcare options mean that employees are able to see their children during their lunch breaks and commute with them rather than only see them when they pick them up from daycare. Help employees access employee assistance programs: Company employee assistance programs (EAPs) are often designed to help employees with tricky issues such as finding childcare or a realtor. However, some EAPs aren’t exactly user-friendly, and busy working parents might find them difficult to access. Helping employees access the help in EAPs can increase the rate at which they’re utilized. Encourage all employees to maximize work-life balance: Some benefits may carry a stigma that keeps working parents from taking advantage of them. For instance, encouraging all employees (not just parents) to use all of their vacation days will de-stigmatize that practice and help working parents spend more time with their families. Likewise, encouraging all employees to avail of flexible scheduling or hybrid working will reassure working parents that this benefit isn’t frowned upon. Create a parent support forum: Providing opportunities for parents to support each other is a free way of assisting working parents. Employers can create a forum where parents can share babysitter or daycare recommendations (if many employees are in the same geographic area) or offer hand-me-downs to fellow team members when their children outgrow them. Employers can and should support working parents as the global workforce eases slowly out of the pandemic into what will be the new normal. Elements that were incorporated into daily work during the pandemic, like remote and hybrid working options as well as robust employee assistance programs, can continue to help ease the burden on working moms and dads in the future. These kinds of improvements to the workplace will help increase the likelihood that parents will be able to continue to thrive in their employment as well as at home.

For Teams

For industries

Use cases

Explore Wrike

Features

Platform

Go deeper

Upskill and Connect

How to Embrace Your Inner Introvert (Even Back at the Office)

The benefits of being an introvert