CasseyLim: January 2009

After reading an article "Caring for your Introvert",
I just found out I am an Introvert (0_O)!!

I always thought, an introvert would be someone who,
Loves to be alone, Quiet, Anti-social/unfriendly/shy,
who will be caught dead to go on stage or give a presentation.

But I was wrong...
They can be great at socializing or even
give a fabulous presentation in-front of thousands.

The only difference is,
Most of the time, they need to be alone and not socializing.

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Are you Interested to learn more about me?
Great! Grab a cup of coco and read on...

So I know... I was an Introvert in school.
Everyone always commented I was the quiet girl in the class.

During our junior camps,
I often get annoyed by the boys in my camp groups,
who are always fooling around.
Nothing gets done and I get annoyed by the amount of noise they make.
Sometimes I would step forward and shout at them
"Hey guys stop being annoying n focus here!"
Or I would give them one of my deadly glance! hahaha
I was surprised that they listened to me.
(I know it seems weird... very weird...)

When I moved on to my senior year,
I was voted by my seniors to be one of the camp leaders in school.
I was not the only one surprised, my teacher in-charge was too.
She even asked if I wanted to do it,
Seems like I was the weakest link hahaha... *lame talk*
I would think she was more concerned about my health,
as I have asthma since young.

Unexpectedly in school,
I get good comments and grades on my project presentations,
although I was quiet.

Often I would think about why and how I was able to accomplish
many of the task, like my grades or being likable to my teachers
and my school mates or even to having good connections with my seniors.
I was not even talking most of the time...

After high school/secondary school (for Singapore),
I realized the importance of networking.
So I try being more sociable,
making new friends and being able to talk to strangers.

Was the change beneficial?
I would say yes!
It might be the best decision I made for myself.

I had more friends, more people to help me when I encounter problems.
My high school friends notice the changes and find me more approachable.
I look more confident and the presentations I give are more impressive!

So after the big change in me,
I thought I was finally out of the Introvert circle.
Since I am able to socialize, I am "normal".

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Back to now....

After reading the article,
I realized I am still an introvert. (- n -)

Is being an Introvert a good thing or a bad thing,
I have not figured out,
as I had always envy the energy extroverts have in socializing.

From this article, I understand myself more.
I think self discovery is important.
Only when you can see a problem,
you can make necessary changes that will further improve yourself.

Now I know why I am often misunderstood by people,
why I love to spend time alone,
why I often feel exhausted after talking for an hour,
why I do not like long talks on the phone,
why I have such a low tolerance for noise,
why I often snap at my love ones when they talk too much,
or ask too many questions.

I feel bad and I know telling someone to stop talking, can be hurtful
and I will try to control and change.

I try to open up my feelings so my love ones understand me more,
I try to spend time hanging out with my friends and family,
(mmm... but I have to be feeling good and energized)
I try to block out noises and gossips with happy thoughts.
I take breaks "toilet breaks" during events. hahaha...
The next time if you see me in the restroom...
Say hi, throw in a Little information about yourself,
and I promise I wont bite. (Just kidding... ok I will be nice)

So I am an Introvert!
There... I said it.
This is quite a personal post.
I wonder if you guys will be able to read it without stereotyping me.

Do take a minute to read the article "Caring for your Introvert"
I am pretty sure there is someone
you care for who is an Introvert like me.