Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking

Quiet:  The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain                      Audio Book: 10 hrs. 30 min.    Paperback Book:  368 pages               

I loved this book.   It is so expansive explaining all the ins and outs of the introverted personality.    People who choose quiet to loudness,  people who prefer being at home with a good book rather than out partying till all hours,  people who can go on sensory overload when forced into an environment of constant talkers, people who value solitude and find it refreshes and invigorates them rather than the contact barrage of work chatter, those who find quiet pursuits suit them better than boisterous in your face pursuits that are the lifeline of extroverts will find validation in this book.   Often introverts grow up being chastised for their quiet preferences.   In a world where students are condemned for their lack of participation even though their papers and tests show remarkable insight, perserverance and profound research skills.   In a world where the quiet children prefer smaller gatherings to classrooms full of loud intimidating beratings from their extrovert fellow students.    Oft times the quiet, innocuous student studying in the Library is pounced upon by the far more gregarious jocks or popular crowd waiting outside to make their lives hell and this continues throughout their life even into college auditoriums where participation can count up to 1/3 and more of their final grade through the workplace where the quiet staff are generally passed over for the brash, pushier employees whose often arrogant behavior is seen as self-confidence while the quieter co-workers are misread often as lacking self-confidence, weak, pushovers and doormats.   Loud and abrasive does not equal intelligent.   Oftentimes the loud behave so to deflect anyone looking too close at them and pointing fingers at the meeker personalities in the room, who overwhelmed at being under scrutiny when they have always been exemplary in their behavior do not fight back nor stand up for themselves feeling hurt at not being understood thereby their silence showing at not defending themselves nor speaking the truth as they know it from quiet observation, yet, preferring to remain as invisible as possible so the bullies will leave them alone.    This book explains so much and lets the introvert know they are not misfits but more sensitive to their surroundings than others.   It tells how to tell as a baby if a child will grow up to be an introvert or an extrovert, it discusses how one-third or more of the population are introverts, discusses some of the most famous introverts – Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, Steve Wozniak, Michaealangelo,   Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Steven Spielberg, Mark Zuckerberg, Abraham Lincoln,  J. K. Rowling,  Warren Buffett, Mahatma Gandhi, Moses, Jonah,  Meryl Streep, Dr. Seuss,  Frederic Chopin, Barack Obama, etc., etc.    The author brings emphasis to the contributions throughout time of introverts and the affront from seemingly all sides against them to be more outgoing.    The author’s visit to research the topic at Harvard Business School was scoffed at.   She was told, “Good luck trying to find an introvert here, “  and she witnessed how all students in the classes she attended were virtually forced to speak out to show their ability to compete verbally as an upwardly  mobile business person, where the quiet were virtually ignored and down-graded by their professors for lack of participation.   Harvard students are taught to always speak up even if their premise is incorrect –they still get the better grade because in life the extroverts achieve and the introverts get pushed to the side.   A deeply enlightening book validating the introverted personality and shining a light on the behaviors of introverts in dealing with their environments and coping with the often harsh resistance they receive even in their own homes from parents, to teachers and schoolmates to co-workers and bosses in life.   Excellent book.    It should be a must read for everyone.    It delivers insights not often looked at.   Twenty thumbs up for this one!  Terrific book.