Success Skills for Introverts

Many organizations that place emphasis on teamwork tend to value people who promote themselves and think on their feet. Meanwhile, quiet types like programmers and other techies, who sit alone and become absorbed in their work, are often overlooked or misunderstood. But introverts can be highly effective influencers when they forego an extrovert?s in-your-face techniques and use their natural strengths to make a difference.

In this video workshop based on her book Quiet Influence: The Introvert's Guide to Making a Difference (Berrett-Koehler), Jennifer Kahnweiler identifies specific workplace challenges for introverts?including "people exhaustion"?and helps you investigate strengths and weaknesses in the context of a real-life work scenario. The bulk of this video shows how introverts can succeed at work by cultivating six key strengths:

- Taking Quiet Time to unleash creativity and sustain energy
- Preparation to prove the value of your proposal and involve others
- Engaged Listening to gain increased understanding of situations
- Focused Conversations to solve problems and work through conflict
- Writing to advocate a position, and motivate others
- Thoughtful Use of Social Media to grow relationships and move people to action

Several exercises will help you connect with these concepts. Introversion didn?t derail Tim Cook or Warren Buffett. It doesn?t have to impede your livelihood, either. This video was produced in partnership with Berrett-Koehler Publishers.