Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
By Susan Cain
Society generally views Harvard Business School as the school where students are educated to become the next leaders of the world by pushing students to socialize and speak with conviction. However, Cain’s visit to the school reveals the flaws of extraverted leadership, exposed during the Subarctic Survival Situation, when one group failed because the vocal students did not consider the ideas of the quiet, but most experienced, student. She then backs up this instance with a study from UC Berkeley that found the most famous, confident prognosticators (considered to be natural leaders) to make the worst predictions. And in the U.S Army, this phenomenon is also a “powerful artifact” in the military, known as “the Bus to Abilene,” in which one soldier makes a suggestion and the rest follow just because he/she was the most vocal. Unfortunately, society clearly correlates confident public speaking skills to strong leadership, clearly shown in the process companies use to vet ideas. Employees are expected to present their ideas and then asked questions on the spot. The few people who survived such questioning were found to be “the best presenters” (53), but they did not necessarily have the best ideas.
By exposing the holes in society’s current expectations for great leaders, Cain creates spaces for introversion to shine through with qualities distinct to introverts. From numerous studies, our high-sensitivity and short SERT genes correspond to “higher performance on a wide range of cognitive tasks” (113). Drawing from the incredible acts and achievements of Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Steve Wozniak, Craig Newmark, Al Gore, introversion is undoubtedly not a lesser personality than extraversion. However, in all her praise for introverts, it is important to note that Cain never comes off as condescending or critical of extraverts. She acknowledges that we have “selfish streaks like everyone else” (141). Her humbleness is a significant part of her argument for a balanced society that accepts and amplifies the strengths of introverts and extraverts to make up for each of our shortcomings.
Quiet:
The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, by Susan Cain,
breaks down the social stigma of introversion with the humble voice of an
introvert, being one herself, and the support of scientific research and experiences
of countless other well-known leaders, but not well-known introverts.
As an introvert myself, I personally
identify with Cain’s descriptions of the behavior of introverts and
highly-sensitive individuals. She matter-of-factly
recounts her anxiety from “the crucible of Harvard Law School” and her days as
a Wall Street lawyer negotiating with “disgruntled investment bankers,” but
beyond her credibility from personal experience, Cain’s ethos stems from research. In each of her chapters, inductive reasoning
is her method of argument, as she refutes popular perspectives by citing
multiple instances from the past and present.
Society generally views Harvard Business School as the school where students are educated to become the next leaders of the world by pushing students to socialize and speak with conviction. However, Cain’s visit to the school reveals the flaws of extraverted leadership, exposed during the Subarctic Survival Situation, when one group failed because the vocal students did not consider the ideas of the quiet, but most experienced, student. She then backs up this instance with a study from UC Berkeley that found the most famous, confident prognosticators (considered to be natural leaders) to make the worst predictions. And in the U.S Army, this phenomenon is also a “powerful artifact” in the military, known as “the Bus to Abilene,” in which one soldier makes a suggestion and the rest follow just because he/she was the most vocal. Unfortunately, society clearly correlates confident public speaking skills to strong leadership, clearly shown in the process companies use to vet ideas. Employees are expected to present their ideas and then asked questions on the spot. The few people who survived such questioning were found to be “the best presenters” (53), but they did not necessarily have the best ideas.
By exposing the holes in society’s current expectations for great leaders, Cain creates spaces for introversion to shine through with qualities distinct to introverts. From numerous studies, our high-sensitivity and short SERT genes correspond to “higher performance on a wide range of cognitive tasks” (113). Drawing from the incredible acts and achievements of Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Steve Wozniak, Craig Newmark, Al Gore, introversion is undoubtedly not a lesser personality than extraversion. However, in all her praise for introverts, it is important to note that Cain never comes off as condescending or critical of extraverts. She acknowledges that we have “selfish streaks like everyone else” (141). Her humbleness is a significant part of her argument for a balanced society that accepts and amplifies the strengths of introverts and extraverts to make up for each of our shortcomings.
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