in Switzerland in the 1920s according to Jung an extravert seeks

intensive contact with the outside world an introvert instead turns the psychic

energy inwards. Jung believed that no one is a hundred percent extravert or a

hundred percent introvert instead we carry both traits

however most minds tend to lean either to one side or the other.

If both characteristics are equally present we can speak of someone who has

an ambivert personality. In the 1960s the psychologist Hans Eysenck added to Carl

Jung's ideas.He argued that the main difference between introverts and

extraverts lies in the way they gain and recharge their mental energy. By Nature,

introverted people have a higher level of brain activity and therefore feel a

greater need to shield themselves from external stimuli. By withdrawing

themselves they gain mental energy. The neuronal activity of extraverts is lower.

They overcome this lack by exposing themselves to external stimulation this

charges their inner batteries. To illustrate the difference let's compare

two imaginary children: Jay is extraverted. He loves to be surrounded by

classmates. He enjoys being the center of attention and loves to talk to his

buddies about all kinds of stuff. He organizes football games with

strangers and right after is open to playing ping-pong with someone else.

By seeking social stimuli he gains mental energy. Ann is introverted. As others play

around in the park, she often enjoys sitting alone watching. At home, she

plants herbs in the garden, all by herself. She slowly becomes a real expert

in this field but that's her secret.

To recharge her batteries Ann needs peace and quiet time.

Introverts are not necessarily shy, even if it appears they like to

walk away from small talk. Ann in fact is not shy at all. She is not afraid to talk to anyone,

not even seniors. When too many people are around and the conversations

become superficial or confusing she gets super tired. Her strategy is to fade out

and go inside herself to recharge through silence. Jay loves to have many

people around him, to jump from one conversation to the next stimulates him.

Some experts claim that extraverts and introverts use different brain areas to

form their thoughts. An extravert tends to use short term memory and therefore

is able to come to fast associations Jay therefore talks fast and a lot.

He appears smart because his brain always offers an answer quickly.

However he often speaks before he thinks and later changes his mind.

Someone like Ann works with her brain to carefully retrieve information from her

long-term memory. Her thoughts are more complex and hence need more time to

develop. She therefore thinks first and then speaks. If the two were asked for

directions by a tourist Ann would spend time thinking about the best answer

while Jay would have already come up with different kinds of options.

Good teachers and clever business leaders know about the different nature of

introverts and extraverts and try to develop their strengths. When raising

questions they ask everyone to think for a minute in silence before answering.

Extraverts then learn to formalize their thoughts before they speak and

introverts get more talking time to practice public speaking.

At brainstorming they use a formal process or a talking stick to make sure an Ann

also gets to participate.

Group projects can be formalized to support both temperaments. In one project

extraverts and introverts work together. Jay then learns from Ann how to think

ideas over to develop more complex thoughts. Ann in return benefits from

Jay's fast association skills and learns to think and speak more flexibly. In the

next project the same temperaments work together. Then they see their own traits

in the opposite person. If confronted with problems in teams of the same

character introverts need to speak up and extraverts are forced to think deep

to proceed. The educator Rudolf Steiner was a proponent of this method for his

Waldorf schools. Psychologist Jerome Kagan's research on temperament in

Toddlers showed that many character traits we are born with make it into

adulthood. He confronted 500 babies with different stimuli like loud sounds and

bad smells. Around 20% of the babies cried or got nervous,

40% stayed relaxed and the other 40% were somewhere in between. A second test

years later showed, that babies who didn't react strongly turned out to be

more extraverted. What about yourself? Do you consider yourself more introverted

or extraverted? Or do you think this classification is flawed and there is no

such thing? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

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