Okay, this title may be a bit hyperbolic. I wouldn’t say realizing I’m an introvert changed my life so drastically that my world shifted on its axis. But once I realized that I have many of the introvert tendencies, when I looked back at some key moments in my life, I finally understood why they happened.
My Shyness in School
I was one of those kids in elementary, middle, high school, and even college. You know who I’m talking about. The quiet and shy students who don’t talk very much. I can’t even count the number of times my report cards would say, “Jessica does very well in class but I wish she would speak up more.” Luckily, my parents never pushed me to be more outgoing and I just let those comments roll off my back. Now I know that the reason I didn’t speak up was because I had nothing to say. Introverts tend to be quiet individuals but they can do and converse and point things out when necessary. If only introversion had been understood back then the way it is now.
My Struggle with Working Retail
For almost three years, I worked in the retail industry (something I think every person should be forced to do so they understand what a grueling and thankless job it is). I spent six months at a clothing store and two and a half years at a bookstore. I found both jobs draining and tiresome. Despite how much I loved books and my coworkers at the bookstore, I remember coming home after an eight hour shift and feeling like my brain had turned to mush. I was exhausted and I most definitely did not want to talk to anyone and I couldn’t understand why. Now I know. Introverts hate small talk and guess what my days were filled with? Tons and tons of small talk. By the time my shift ended, my whole mental battery had drained and I just wanted some peace and quiet to recover.
My Struggles with Dating
Introverts tend to take their time getting to know other people. They don’t open up right away or easily. This makes dating today difficult since most guys (not all, of course) seem to want to fast-track relationships. I’m not sleeping with a guy I don’t know and when I make that clear, I find that a lot of men lose interest and decide to move on to another woman who has no problem getting physical quickly.
Being an introvert can be hard at times but now that I know other introverts struggle with these issues too, I feel a lot less like a freak.