When business leadership roles come open, the introverts among us usually get overlooked in the hiring process. Long-standing assumptions send most HR departments scurrying to hire someone who will be charismatic, assertive, and outspoken. This is why, across industries, introverts are woefully under-represented in leadership. But does this mean that being introverted disqualifies you for leadership?
No. Just ask Warren Buffet, Ghandi, Mark Zuckerberg, Eleanor Roosevelt, Larry Page, Rosa Parks, Abraham Lincoln. Introverts all.
In fact, if you are an introvert, you may be just the person your company needs.
Definition vs myths
As an introvert, you may need to dismantle the myths surrounding the extrovert/introvert question before people can recognize your leadership potential. This may need to begin in your own mindset. If you’ve believed your introverted personality is a glass ceiling barring your way into senior leadership, it’s time to recognize your true strengths.
First off, contrary to popular perception, introversion does not equate to either shyness or sadness. Shyness involves fearing others’ judgment; introverts, by contrast, may be quite confident and somewhat immune to social judgment. And just as a boisterous exterior may hide a secret inner sorrow, a quiet exterior does not mean a person’s heart is heavy. The idea of the “sad, shy introvert” as a definition is simply false.
Second, extroversion and introversion are not, in themselves, skill sets. They are ways of managing personal energy. As Carl Jung defined them, extroverts derive energy from social interaction, while introverts gain energy from solitude.
As an introvert myself, I can say my own experience bears this out. After giving a keynote speech or leading a one- or two-day strategic planning session for a CEO coaching client and their leadership team, I know that to recharge I need some alone time. That can be working out while listening to music, watching a movie, or reading a book. The key point is I need a break from social interactions.
I like the way Simon Sinek made this concept visual. He said introverts begin the day with five coins and use them up in daily social encounters, leaving them broke at day’s end. Extroverts wake up with no coins and must gather them from social interactions, hoping to end the day feeling rich.
These contrasting patterns of energy flow, as you may have noticed, don’t say anything about whether either of these two types of people lead others well.
Strong business leaders are those (extroverts or introverts) who lean into their natural skill sets and their developed abilities to thrive at the workplace helm. For Amanda Kwok, an introvert and founder of the Toronto coaching firm, Quiet Leader Co., thriving as a leader began when she finally “stopped trying not to be an introvert.”
2 Skills that Make Introverts Strong Leaders
Kwok highlights two key skills which empower introverts as leaders:
- observant, careful listening, and
- methodical thinking before speaking and acting
Introverts listen to understand. They are masters at observing body language and other subtle cues. They pick up on what’s not being said. They catch a shift in conversational dynamics. When they notice someone isn’t given a chance to speak, they make space for them to open up. They easily adopt a coaching leadership style, empowering rather than micromanaging others.
While typical meeting environments favor those who interrupt and interject quickly, introverts require time to reflect on the information they are gathering. They welcome the chance to ask thought-provoking questions and then mull over and organize what they’ve heard to formulate well-considered, creative solutions.
Perhaps as an outgrowth of these two skills, introverts tend to be stable and resilient. They are less likely to burn out and quit than their extroverted counterparts. They also don’t avoid dealing with difficult things like poor sales numbers or declining customer satisfaction. When adversity strikes, they stand steady, making wise, reasoned choices. They maintain productivity even while working remotely and communicate thoughtfully and carefully.
At this point, we might be tempted to say these traits shine a negative light on extroverted leaders by contrast. Is it wrong to be comfortable in the spotlight, to thrive in speaking to a large group, or to quickly jump in with a proposed solution?
No. Strong business leaders can be either extroverts or introverts. (Most of us are a little of both, in fact.)
Which type of leader is best for your company? The answer depends on the team being led.
Where Introverted Leaders Thrive
The Harvard Business Review, reporting on research done by Adam Grant and his team of investigators, indicated that “extroverts did better with teams that needed more direction and guidance. But introverts did better with proactive teams who actively voiced their opinions or ideas, and who needed less supervision.”
Further, the research showed, “Because introverted leaders have a tendency to listen more carefully and be more receptive to group ideas, their teams feel more valued and more motivated to work harder.”
From this research emerges a hiring principle which HR departments would do well to apply: If your team needs specific, direct management, hire an extrovert. That’s what I did when I hired my mentor Frank to help me turn around a loss-making family business. We needed quick decisions and someone who had experience in the industry, knew what to do, and used a very direct communication style
On the other hand, if you have a team of proactive, innovative thinkers who need room to run with their ideas, hire an introvert.
So, let’s say you’re the introvert who gets the nod for a leadership position. How can you leverage your strengths to do the job well?
How to Lean on Your Introvert Leadership Skills
Go one-on-one. Sitting down with one employee at a time increases that person’s sense of being valued and heard. They just might open up about something that’s been bothering them, or an idea they’ve been uncomfortable bringing up in a larger group. Meanwhile, you have a chance to build a better working relationship with this person as you become better acquainted.
Listen well. Lean into listening—to what people say in words and body language as well as what they don’t say. Take good notes to help you reflect, analyze, and act upon what you learn from them.
Play coach. With a coaching leadership style, you become more of a mentor than a micromanager. Your A-Players need latitude to implement their innovative ideas; as a coach you’ll be giving them room to run while coordinating their efforts with what you know is happening company- and industry-wide. Even an employee who wants to be told what to do may discover your coaching challenges them to adopt the kind of A-Player attitudes and behaviors that make them more valuable employees.
Communicate carefully. Let your team know that you communicate after thoughtful processing. Set a time when you’ll respond and meet that deadline to build their trust. Even teams accustomed to in-the-moment reactions from a previous boss will likely appreciate your reasoned approach and well-chosen words when they witness the outcomes you achieve.
Speak to one person—even in a large group. When the job absolutely requires you to speak to a crowd, take a page from the playbook of another introvert: Simon Sinek. He deals with large groups by looking at and speaking to one person at a time. Focused on that one person, he delivers an entire sentence before shifting his gaze to another person and giving them the next whole sentence.
Embrace your analytical side. As an introvert, you stand in the ranks of those most likely to develop winning solutions to complex problems. This is largely due to an innate talent for noticing nuances and drawing insightful conclusions from that data. So take in what HR says they’re concerned about and compare that to your industry’s employment landscape. Study sales numbers, profit margins, supplier trends, customer feedback—the complete picture of your company’s health. Use what you see there to formulate a course of action to increase your business’ performance, growth, and long-term success.
Insist on some solitude. Set aside times when you are un-interruptible. Allow yourself space to think, to reflect. Amanda Kwok encourages introvert leaders to create “restorative niches” in the day, such as taking walks. These help you step away from the mental clutter of a busy workplace and make room for the musings that generate creative solutions. When you re-engage, you’ll be bringing to your business all the fruit of that quiet cogitation.
When you recognize what helps you lead as an introvert, you’ll be ready to help others like yourself rise into leadership positions, too.
Ways to Build up Future Introverted Leaders
As you get to know your team, watch for others who possess A-Player qualities but are being overlooked due to introversion. Then find ways to set them up for success.
Here are a few tips for accomplishing that goal:
- Create space at work for silence. Maybe even provide noise-cancelling headphones or other materials to free introverts to concentrate while in the workplace.
- Give advance warning. Knowing how you don’t appreciate being expected to give an immediate answer, let your teammates know ahead of time when their input will be needed so they can start processing their thoughts in advance.
- Respect requests for remote work. While some positions cannot be filled by someone working from home, some can. And introverts are far more productive when working remotely than extroverts. Honor those requests whenever possible.
- Develop a company culture that values and recognizes employees’ overall contributions, not just how quickly they speak up or how outgoing they are.
- Establish protocols that allow time for deeper reflection when soliciting input and drafting documents.
Let your fellow introverts know that they are valuable team members because of who they are, not because they show potential for becoming extroverts.
Conclusion
Both extroverts and introverts can thrive as leaders when their personalities are aligned with the needs of the teams they lead. If you are an introvert, you are a good fit to coach a strong, innovative team. Through your listening skills and methodical mental habits, you will provide considered, well thought-out guidance to the business.
If you would like help seeing how your own leadership style can be applied to grow your business, book a free business growth assessment today – I’m all about helping leaders succeed.
