Extrovert Culture

So I wanted to talk a little bit on the subject of introverts. There's a misconception about introverts. This is the association between introverts and maladjustment, social awkwardness, issues, and social ineptitude.

Sure, some introverts are socially inept. I was a socially inept introvert. But at the heart of the matter, introversion isn't about maladjustment. For some people, and this was also the case for me, though my extreme introversion led to me being socially inept, introversion is simply about being comfortable with one's self. It's about independence.

Introverts don't need people around all the time. They don't need that constant emotional support. We feel comfortable doing things like going to the restroom alone.

Sometimes, extreme introverts forget how to effectively communicate with other people. But most of the time, introverts are alone because they choose to be. Not because they want the company of other people but are too socially awkward to make friends.

I was a little bit of both though. Honestly, I didn't care all that much for friends. But I thought if I didn't have any friends, that would make me a loser, because that's what extrovert culture tells you. Extrovert culture places worth on people, based on the number of friends they have and how outgoing they are.

So I made some friends, back when I was in school, so that I wasn't a "loser" with no friends. That was really the only reason. The is, there is a seed of extroversion in me. I'm kind of like the full package, I have the seed of extroversion that really likes people, but the introverted core that is comfortable with myself. When I think about it like that, I'm pretty freaking awesome!

But the seed of extroversion blossomed when I was at Innercept, and I became more outgoing. I like other people. I like networking. I just don't want people around all the time. Because it gets tiring, after awhile. The reason is because there are subtle things you have to do differently when you are around other people that you don't have to worry about when you are alone. You don't have to worry about being friendly.

I understand social maladjustment. We had exchange students from Japan stay at our house one time. One of them told us that some families in Japan, or maybe just their family, was dysfunctional. When someone came downstairs, they would stomp their feet and make a lot of noise, so that if someone was downstairs, they would run and hide behind the curtains, and avoid having to face each other.

This sounds really odd. But strangely enough, I understand this. If you are around each other, and you are both awkward and distant and not real social, it makes things really awkward. Like, there might be pressure to make conversation. But the thing that strikes me as the most awkward thing is, what if the two of you accidentally make eye contact. That's the worst! Eye contact! What do you do? Do you stare them down? Look away quickly? God, it's just so much easier when you don't have to deal with that type of awkwardness. Which would explain why someone would need to hide behind the curtains.

I wish I hadn't been so awkward socially in high school, though. Otherwise, high school may have actually been fun! What a concept! And, I don't have a lot of real strong social connections from high school. If I had started building social connections from a young age, just think of how popular I would be now! Wow! All the real friends I would have! Instead of all these silly Facebook friends, many of which I have never even talked to before in real life (or via the internet for that matter).

Also, when you are around people more, you learn more things about popular culture. Sure, you learn things watching TV, but that's not really enough to learn what people's common attitudes toward things are. That's why I love this page on the internet called Urban dictionary. There are a lot of things that regular dictionaries won't tell you about things. With Urban Dictionary you can learn things like slang and what people's attitudes toward certain things are.

For example, it was just last year I learned what a juggalo was. Sure I had heard of the band ICP, and I knew a lot of people didn't like them, but I had never heard the term juggalo. I was actually on the website Plenty of Fish, looking at someone's profile who said they weren't interested in people who were juggalos. So, I looked it up on Urban Dictionary, to make sure I wasn't a juggalo. Which I wasn't. They said pretty negative things about juggalos on Urban Dictionary. Next thing you know, I was messaged by a juggalo on POF! So I got to talk to and befriend a juggalo. And that's the story of me and juggalos. The end.

So, all in all, it's probably better to be an extrovert than an introvert. The reason it's better, is because you are better at building connections with people, and with more connections, it's easier to succeed in life. Like what they say about having friends in the right places.

All in all, I like being a social person better than an antisocial person. It's just really hard though because of the awkwardness. But I think that introverts are often misunderstood. These are people who feel whole as people by themselves. They don't need people around to ward off loneliness. You can be your own best friend, which sounds loserish to some, but really that's the best best friend to have. Yourself.

And that's why I think introverts are misunderstood. The end.