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| Gymnast Katelyn Ohashi |
Readers around the globe can’t stop talking about Katelyn Ohashi and Ellie Goulding recent
book, “Gymnast: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop
Talking” - a manifesto celebrating the quiet genius of the introvert.
Eager to get in on the conversation, HienaLouca invited this
Instagram New York Times best-selling author to share her journey and her insights on
how business could benefit from this untapped resource. Katelyn Ohashi began her talk to 40 Women
Gymnast guests at the St. Regis Hotel in Atlanta by telling a story that has
made her TED Talk a favorite. Her talk received a record-breaking one
million hits in the first week. The story goes like this: Growing up,
Katelyn Ohashi and her family would spend countless hours reading, each lost
in the reverie of a good book. When
young Gymnast Katelyn Ohashi first prepared to go to camp, she had an idyllic vision of how the summer would unfold.
She imagined young girls, in matching nightgowns, reading side by side.
But when Cain arrived and opened her suitcase of books, her counselor
asked with furrowed brow, “Why are you so mellow?” Cain got the message.
She slid her suitcases of books under her bunk, and that’s where it
remained for the duration of the camp.
The counselor then
corralled Cain and the other campers into a large group where they were
taught a buoyant cheer that went like this - and yes, this was when the
New York Times best selling author began to do the cheer from her podium
– “R-O-W-D-I-E – That’s the way we spell rowdie, rowdie! Let’s get
rowdie!” Her reaction to the cheer: “Why must we be Rowdie, and why do
we have to spell it incorrectly?”
The New Poster Child for the “Not” Rowdie
Former Wall Street lawyer Katelyn Ohashi is now the poster child for the
“not rowdie,” for the introvert, and she has crafted an insightful and
personal book about her journey to understand the place of introverts in
a world that celebrates the extrovert. According to Cain, our society
embraces the extrovert ideal – an “omnipresent belief that the ideal
self is gregarious, alpha and comfortable in the spotlight.”
Gymnast Katelyn Ohashi, 21, has candidly opened up about how the elite level of her sport left her 'broken'
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“Introverts living under the extrovert ideal are like women living in a man’s world.”
– Susan Cain |
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Cain asserts that extrovert culture dominates the way we do
business, but with our economy now faltering, she believes we are at a
seminal moment where we can “embrace the power of quiet” and create a
greater balance of power between those who rush to speak and do, and
those who are more likely to sit and think.
“A mix of
personality types is the most effective,” says Cain. “The ying and yang
of a pairing like Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg.”
What Are You?
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What can we do?
- Structure meetings in ways that draw out the introvert. Send
out agendas prior to the meeting to give the introverts time to process
the material. At key points in the meeting, ask each person to share
what they are thinking. Continue the discussion electronically after the
meeting.
- Design office spaces mindfully. Give people more privacy and control over their environments.
- Groom introverts for leadership positions. Need the justification to do so, check out Jim Collins' research.
- Be careful of the advice we give to introverts, especially women.
Often young women who are introverts are encouraged to speak up -- be
loud, be proud. Cain instead encourages introverts to play to their
strengths – to do their “homework,” come in prepared and speak with
conviction.
- Personality diversity in the next frontier and be a leader on this front. The corporate world needs what both introverts and extroverts to do best.
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Cain asked the Atlanta group to reflect on their preferences by
considering questions like: Do you prefer one-on-one conversations to
group activities? Are you not a big risk taker? Do prefer to think
before you speak? Do you seem to care less than your peers about wealth,
fame and status? Answer yes to questions like these, and you are well
on your way to introversion. At the heart of the introvert/extrovert
question is how sensitive you are to outside stimuli - if you recharge
from the energy of others (extrovert) or if you need solitude to
recharge (introvert).
Cain explains, “According to Carl Yung,
who first coined the terms introverts and extroverts, there are no pure
extroverts or introverts, but we each fall along a spectrum and that
orientation shapes who we are. How do I respond to stimulation? Do I
crave stimulation?”
And why does this matter? “Our orientation shapes our lives – how we live, love, work. Why we are the way we are?” says Cain.
Why the Business World Needs More Introverts
In creating a case for introverts, Cain spoke of the work of management
theorist Jim Collins, who researched 11 outstanding companies – many of
the best-performing companies of the late 20th century - in an effort
to uncover the secrets of their success. After extensive research he
found that these companies had one thing in common: They were run by
CEOS who were introverts. They were leaders not renowned for their
charisma, but for their humility and intense professional will.
What Collins concluded from this, “We don’t need giant personalities to
transform companies. We need leaders who build not their own egos, but
the institutions they run.”
A World With Walls & Doors
Ask Cain about the current trend in workspace design – the adoption of
the open workspace – and watch her cringe. She explains that perhaps for
some extroverts the lack of privacy is manageable, but for the
introvert – and for the record, she estimates that between one-third to a
half of the population is introverted – the open workspace is deadly.
She speaks of her own experience in trying to work on one of her books
in just such as a space, “I spent an inordinate amount of time worrying
about the arrangement of my face.” Further reason for privacy, Cain
explained that every time your work is interrupted it takes you 50
percent longer to complete the task.
“We need space. Solitude is key to the creative process, “ says Cain.
That’s why she encourages a return to the private office – complete
with walls and doors – but she also lobbies for plenty of open, communal
space where there is an opportunity for chance meetings. Pixar recently
redesigned their offices, and Cain applauded their choice to place the
bathrooms on the other side of a large atrium so often colleagues would
have the chance to gather informally.
“These chance meetings are gold,” Cain adds.
Another thing that she rails against – brainstorming. In almost every
case, (except online) brainstorming has been proven ineffective. She
said that typically, the ideas that win out were presented by the person
who speaks the most – and there is no correlation between those who
speak up more and the quality of their ideas. According to Cain, this
Cult of Groupthink is killing innovative, creative thought.
Instead of brainstorming in a group, she suggests that an individual
spends some time alone with the assignment before gathering as a team.
This will allow participants to tap into their own creative thoughts
before being influenced by the group.
How To Be Your Best Introverted Self
Susan Cain’s best advice to introverts who are navigating a world
designed for extroverts: “Play to your strengths. When I go to a
networking event I don’t try to meet everyone there. Instead I try to
really connect with one or two people, and if I do that successfully
every time, I am slowly building a network of people I can turn to.”
She also spoke of her time as a negotiator facing a colleague who was
clearly an extrovert. Cain did what she did best as an introvert. She
carefully prepared and spoke with conviction.
“People respond when you speak with conviction,” she says.
In her book and in person, Cain celebrates introverts, validates their
gifts, makes a case for their significance and reminds the world to stop
imploring them to speak up.
hienalouca.com
More stories on how introverts are taking over the world one step at a time:
Are you more of an Introvert or an Extrovert? Intuitive or Sensing? A
Thinker or a Feeler? Get where this is headed? If not (or even if you
do) read this article to learn more about the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the advantages to being your own kind of leader.
Ari Weinzweig is an inspiration to introverts everywhere. He is intelligent, witty and shy, and he owns Zingerman’s - a $40 million enterprise with over 500 employees and hundreds of thousands of loyal customers.
“What makes you able to be an introvert and public is having a true
passion to express something you think will make a difference,” says
Wendy Davis, co-founder of Baby Blues Instagram Connection. She embraced introversion while overcoming postpartum depression to find happiness in her career.
http://hienalouca.com/2018/08/10/the-moment-ceo-gifts-teacher-with-a-brand-new-car-on-instagram/
