Quietly happy: 15 quotes for introverts

I find that people tend to forget that introverts have as much value as extroverts purportedly do. That’s why when Susan Cain’s book Quiet came out, it was such a poignant moment in introvert history.

Well, for me anyway. I never really considered that introverts were really thought of in such a gloomy way. In many ways I can’t really grasp why people even mind if someone is a little less talkative. Perhaps there is too high a premium on being a chatterbox, and too low acceptance of people’s silence. There is just as much value in saying little as saying a lot. It’s just a more efficient way of expression.

Introverts just have a different way of dealing with and experiencing the world. I think it’s important for reminders about the goodness of the introvert’s personality to appear constantly, so we don’t all forget and lapse into an unfair judgment and criticism of an introverted personality.

Don’t think of introversion as something that needs to be cured. Susan Cain
Remember that introverts react not only to new people, but also to new places and events. So don’t mistake a child’s caution in new situations for an inability to relate to others. He’s recoiling from novelty or overstimulation, not from human contact. Introverts are just as likely as the next kid to seek others’ company, though often in smaller doses. Susan Cain
In an extroverted society, the difference between an introvert and an extrovert is that an introvert is often unconsciously deemed guilty until proven innocent. Criss Jami
Extroverts want us to have fun, because they assume we want what they want. And sometimes we do. But ‘fun’ itself is a ‘bright’ word, the kind of word that comes with flashing lights and an exclamation point! One of Merriam-Webster’s definitions of ‘fun’ is ‘violent or excited activity or argument.’ The very word makes me want to sit in a dimly lit room with lots of pillows—by myself. Laurie A. Helgoe
I have to be alone very often. I’d be perfectly happy if I spent Saturday night until Monday morning alone in my apartment. That’s how I refuel. Audrey Hepburn
Quiet people have the loudest minds. Stephen Hawking
I am a minimalist. I like saying the most with the least. Bob Newhart
Our culture made a virtue of living only as extroverts. We discouraged the inner journey, the quest for a center. So we lost our center and have to find it again. Anais Nin
Your solitude will be a support and a home for you, even in the midst of very unfamiliar circumstances, and from it you will find all your paths. Rainer Maria Rilke
The secret to life is to put yourself in the right lighting. For some it’s a Broadway spotlight, for others, a lamplit desk. Susan Cain
Knowledge speaks but wisdom listens. Jimi Hendrix
The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases. Carl Jung
All this talking, this rather liquid confessing, was something I didn’t think I could ever bring myself to do. It seemed foolhardy to me, like an uncooked egg deciding to to come out of its shell: there would be a risk of spreading out too far, turning into a formless puddle. Margaret Atwood
Writing is something you do alone. It’s a profession for introverts who want to tell you a story but don’t want to make eye contact while doing it. John Green
Introverts, in contrast, may have strong social skills and enjoy parties and business meetings, but after a while wish they were home in their pajamas. They prefer to devote their social energies to close friends, colleagues, and family. They listen more than they talk, think before they speak, and often feel as if they express themselves better in writing than in conversation. They tend to dislike conflict. Many have a horror of small talk, but enjoy deep discussions. Susan Cain

This article originally appeared on Transcopic Site.

Image Credit: Rona Keller

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