Tackling Extraversion Bias
to unlock the potential of Introverts
The bias towards Extraversion leaves up to 50% of the talent in a business exhausted by pretending, in order to fit in, or frustrated that their natural qualities are undervalued.
The irrefutable neurodiversity that underlies Introversion and Extraversion is still widely misunderstood. And the existence of scientific evidence of the neurological basis for this diversity is often denied.
Little wonder, then, that the world of work and business practices are routinely biased towards Extraversion. In this heartfelt talk, Joanna identifies some of the most obvious business practices that are biased, which many Introverts will instantly recognise. She outlines the negative consequences of these practices which include the impact on productivity, well-being and diversity. For businesses that are ready to level the playing field in order to honour this aspect of diversity for true inclusion, she outlines her 3-step process to reduce and ultimately eliminate this bias and its negative consequences.
She urges organisations to take positive action and encourages introverts to own their strengths and step into their power.
Episode 342 – How comfortable are you with saying I do not know? I have been thinking about how easily we can confuse certainty with confidence, particularly when we are surrounded by people performing absolute certainty from decidedly shifting sands. For we introverts, there is another layer because we often want to research, check and be sure before we contribute. But what if the braver response is not having all the answers, but knowing ourselves well enough to respond thoughtfully when we do not? I explore what happens when we stop chasing false certainty and start becoming braver with what we actually can control and influence.
Episode 341 – Have you ever found yourself accepting one of those guilty little candies someone else was dishing out, simply because you needed something they did not understand? I have, and it took me a fair bit of self awareness to recognise that protecting my energy was not something I needed to apologise for. In this episode, I explore the difference between guilt and shame, the danger of measuring ourselves against somebody else’s values, and why some things are worth guarding fiercely. If you have ever wondered whether you are asking too much by honouring what you need, this one may give you something to chew over.
Episode 340 – What if some of the strengths you are most praised for are actually strengths you have outgrown? In this episode, I explore my own pinball years and what happened when flexibility, agreeableness and reliability became useful to other people, but not always to me. I share why a strength is more than something we are good at, and why reflection and discernment matter when we are deciding what comes next. If you have ever wondered whether the version of you people value is still the version you want to be, this episode may give you something to chew over.
(dropping) Pebbles in the Pond
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