Who exactly is this Susan Cain? And why should every introvert care?
There’s only a few times in your life that you come across something that stops you dead in your tracks.
Like the first time you learned your parents name wasn’t actually mum and dad?
Or the time you found out Santa Claus wasn’t real?!
There’s just some things that stick with you and completely change the way you think forever! Today this blog post will be just that. Susan Cain, [without sounding too obsessed] is the mother of all introverts! The reason you need to know about her is because she is at the forefront of the Quiet Revolution. She is championing the way for us introverts to have a voice and to feel more accepted in this crazy, loud and chaotic extroverted world! She helped open up new ways of thinking and acceptance of our introversion. She made us realise that we’re not weird and that we had great hidden talents that the world needed to see!
So if you care about your own personal development and you identify with many of the blog posts here at http://www.quietlyambitious.co.uk then you need to read on and find out about this amazing woman and her work!
Who is Susan Cain?
She’s a mother of 2, wife and American writer best known for her publication; Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking
Takeaway messages
After reading the book she taught us 3 main things.
- It was OK to be introverted
- It was OK to spend time alone
- It was OK to be quiet
She also highlighted that we all have this hidden ability of deep and intellectual thought. I never felt ‘cool’ talking about deep topics and would often try and appear slightly dim for the acceptance of others. I never looked at my introversion as a power or even something positive. I saw it as a hindrance and I battled with myself for a long time. I mistakenly thought that I needed to be ‘set free’ from my introversion and that being extroverted was the only way. But when I tell you this book literally gave me the confidence to be comfortable in my own skin…I’m not joking. As soon as I read the last page of the last chapter I closed that book with a new perspective on life. I simply couldn’t unlearn what I just read. It stuck with me, so much so that shortly after I came up with the name “Quietly Ambitious” and this blog was born!
Shyness is the fear of social disapproval or humiliation, while introversion is a preference for environments that are not overstimulating. Shyness is inherently painful; introversion is not – Susan Cain
So thank you Susan for teaching us that it’s OK to be introverted and that it’s OK for us to decline the Christmas party invite because we’d rather stay home and write.
Most of all, thank you for reminding us that WE ARE NORMAL.
I urge all of my followers to check out her work. If you’re not much of a reader then her TED talk is a great place to start.
Have a read/watch and let me know what you think!
Have you read any books recently that have changed your life? If so, which one?
More resources on Susan Cain
Susan Cain TED Talk https://www.ted.com/talks/susan_cain_the_power_of_introverts
Book: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking
Susan’s Twitter
Quietly Ambitious 
Thanks. I’ve heard her name mentioned a few times on podcasts. I’ll have to take a closer look at her.
Yes her book was life changing for me! Definitely worth the read