It's Hard For Introverts To Get Out Of Their Heads, But When They Do, The World Is Theirs

I didn’t know the meaning of introversion until a few years ago. I didn’t know it was a thing. I just assumed that I was a shy person who preferred keeping to himself rather than being the social butterfly everyone else around me seemed to be.

I thought people were either shy or outgoing, as if the world were simply black and white. While being introverted does mean being shy and egocentric, I didn’t realize that it was an array of sorts.

I simply assumed that some people were shy and others outgoing; I never stopped to think that there were different degrees of introversion and, more importantly, that you could move up and down the scale if you wished.

While your natural state may be more introverted or more egocentric, you can and should do your best to find a balance. Unfortunately, it’s much harder for introverts to move towards the median than it is for extroverts. However, if you’re an introvert and you hope to achieve great things in your life, then you’re going to have to break out of your shell.

The first thing to realize is that no matter how great you are, unless other people know, it doesn’t make much of a difference.

I can’t say that I understand the point to life. Hell, I’m not exactly sure there is a point. However, the one thing that I am certain of is that we are born social creatures. We need to interact with others not only to be happy, but to matter. Or rather, to feel that we matter.

Once you die, there is only one way for you to live on, and that’s by living on in the minds of others. What you do, what you create, the lives you touch and affect in some way or another are the only ways to nearly become immortal.

Of course, in the end, the universe itself will tear apart, but until then, it would be nice to matter. Living for others is something that introverts have a difficult time accepting, yet it is the only way to live a life of value.

There is little in the world that can be accomplished while flying solo. You almost always need a partner in crime – if not several. If living a life of complete solitude isn’t an option – which it really isn’t – then, as an introvert, you have to learn to go out and meet people. You have to network. Make friends. Maybe even make a few enemies just to spice things up a bit.

To be successful, you have no choice but to live harmoniously with others. Success itself depends more on other people than it does on you yourself.

Think of anything that you could possibly ever want to accomplish that you believe would make you successful and try to find a single accomplishment that doesn’t involve a whole bunch of other people in some way or another. You can’t. It isn’t possible.

Living in your own head is great, but only if you experience the world as well. Living entirely inside yourself prevents you from actually living. There is a beautiful world outside of your thoughts waiting to be explored, to be inhaled and tasted.

As an introvert you may find little appeal in such ventures, but that’s most likely because you haven’t ever bothered to give them a try.

Besides, going out and exploring what the world has to offer doesn’t mean that you have to give up your introverted tendencies. In fact, you’ll be better off holding on to them tight. The more you experience, the more you have to ponder over and the happier you will be. You just need to jump and risk falling.

The reality is that your personal problems aren’t problems worth devoting your life to solving. We live in a physical world for a reason; you can pretend that we don’t, but we do. There are very few problems that you can solve without ever leaving the confines of your mind. None of which are actually worth solving.

Because you’re an introvert, you have to one-up everybody else. You can think more efficiently and make connections that the extroverted can’t even imagine. You see the world in a different light, but for any of that to actually matter, you have to go out and see the world.

You have to find problems that need to be solved on the largest of scales and then solve them – extroverts aren’t problem solvers. But you are. One of the most difficult things for introverts to do is to find the one thing we’re all searching for: somebody to love.

Finding the right person requires meeting the right person. Meeting the right person, more often than not, requires an effort to meet that person – something introverts don’t especially excel in.

If you want to depend on "destiny," then be my guest, but you’ll most likely be disappointed. Introverts are often miserable creatures because they can’t find that one person who means the world to them. Other than themselves of course.

It’s, likewise, extremely difficult for introverts to let go of past loves once the relationship fails.

Because it’s so difficult for introverts to find someone to love, it makes letting go of that someone nearly impossible. We spend an incredible amount of time in our heads as it is.

Love being consuming makes distracting yourself an incredible challenge. I wish I knew a remedy for this, but unfortunately I have none. I’m assuming it gets better once you find someone else to love in that person's place.

Photo Courtesy: Flickr

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