Circus showman P.T. Barnum is credited with saying that negative press is better than no press.
And many extroverts have taken this to mean that the more outlandish the behavior, the better for publicity.
Attention has become the new currency in contemporary society.
The more attention you receive, the more money you make.
Consequently, the clicks and likes on Facebook and Instagram lead to companies using extroverted influencers to sell their products.
Not a bad business model for a medium that has been around for less than 20 years.
Or is it?
Scammers began creating websites that sold fake followers to would-be influencers to appear more successful to followers. Also, there was a lack of transparency about which content was based on facts and statistics and which was purely advertisement supported.
These manipulative acts led to the erosion of trust on these platforms to get people to know, like, and trust influencers.
All along, introverts watched as the parade passed by, even as they made the parade possible.
Often, introverts create platforms that extroverts thrive on.
Reportedly, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Spotify’s Daniel Ek are introverts.
How ironic that people who desire fewer social contacts would build the largest media platforms the world has ever known.
One of the extraordinary advantages of being an introvert is to become a puppet master by creating viable entities that transform the world.
The bigger question is, why don’t introverts realize the advantages of becoming dominant or at least wielding greater power and control?
A few thoughts come to mind, including:
- Introverts don’t feel safe in a loud environment.
- Extroverts are better marketers.
- Society does not value intellectualism as much as entertainment.
- Introversion is often viewed as a social illness.
- Innovative introverts are taken for granted.
Noticeably, all these questions stem from an extroverted worldview.
Introverts must first disengage their value system from an extroverted worldview to one where solitude, intellectualism, and strategy are encouraged.
By doing this, they can see the extraordinary advantages that introversion holds.
These advantages are:
Mystery is attractive.
Life is truly a marathon versus a sprint. Introverts are positioned to play the long game by staying under the radar and not living out loud. In years to come, mature extroverted adults who opted to live out loud in their youth will pay the consequences.
It has been said that the internet is forever. Whether people voluntarily document their lives, the internet does it for them. A digital footprint is a permanent record of one’s actions online.
Because introverts are thoughtful and sensitive to image management, they will continue to have access to the best opportunities quietly.
Intellectualism is eternal.
Although the behavior of many individuals has regressed to the Dark Ages, intellect and scholarship will always be revered in Western culture and throughout the world.
Based on the academic strength of introverts, they will consistently be sought-after to solve problems in an increasingly complex world.
Intellectualism is classic and will never go out of style.
Small social circles create strong bonds.
A global economy and the internet have made the development of close ties extremely difficult. This emotional and physical disconnection will continue to feed insecurities and make extroverts feel alone. And aloneness is depressing for extroverts.
Contrarily, introverts will have friends they met in elementary school well into advanced ages. Their pool of friends will be deep versus wide.
The selectivity of introverts’ hypersensitivity ensures that there is a vetting process for entering their inner circle. For connections to be long-lasting, there must be an initiation process and a trial by fire.
Introverts ensure that interlopers do not enter their space haphazardly.
Anonymity is powerful.
During crisis times, people target successful people. Individuals who showcase an affluent and luxurious lifestyle and publicize their whereabouts will continue to be victimized. Also, attaching one’s actual name to public profiles that allow strangers access to their thoughts will continue to cause pain and suffering.
Because introverts tend to interact with like-minded people who share their ambitions, goals, and values, a certain level of anonymity will decrease the stress and animosity experienced by extroverts.
Content developers can become financially independent.
Solitude, intellectualism, and strategy are tools for developing problem-solving intellectual property.
Introverts who create blogs, podcasts, and videos can become the vanguard for creating transformational content that pays well.
As time passes, people will look for answers to real-world problems, which introverts are poised to deliver.
P.T. Barnum’s dictum does not apply to today’s narrow-minded society. Negative press can destroy you in unimaginable ways.
Strategic and stealthy introverts know that the best way to maneuver in a desperate society is quietly and under cover of darkness.
That’s an extraordinary advantage that introverts have that can be leveraged.
Let extroverts keep talking and looking for public approval in a chaotic world as introverts build a new world of quiet power and enlightenment.
—Jane Woodard
References
Brenner, M. (2021, June 8). The rise and fall of the social media influencer. Marketing Insider Group. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3Rk5PpS.
Vaynerchuk, G. (n.d.). The age of the introvert entrepreneur. Inc. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3SbOrVp.