"Why are you so quiet?"
Many, many times. By family members, friends, neighbours, coworkers, strangers, and on and on. It's actually a very annoying question but one that doesn't seem to go away. So I roll my eyes and sigh.
I am an introvert, you see, so it's not unusual for me to say very little when I'm with a group of people, particularly if that group of people is not very familiar to me. When I first get together with individuals I don't know that well, I like to listen and observe. This allows me the opportunity to familiarize myself with the crowd.
Other times I'm not particularly interested in participating in a conversation that I can't relate to. Or a conversation that is so contrary to what I stand for that it would lead to a pretty heavy argument if I inserted my opposing opinion. Don't get me wrong, there are times when I will absolutely add my two cents in and defend what I believe should be defended. But first I will determine if this is a worthwhile battle. This is how listening and observing, first, comes in handy.
And, of course, there are times when you just can't get a word in. Because sometimes a group is dominated by the loudmouth who likes to listen to his/her own voice, interrupts everybody, rambles on and on, and completely monopolizes the conversation. This is the type of person that can lead to this exchange:
Are any of you introverts like me? And if so, have you ever been asked about being quiet?
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