Contents
- 1. Time spent with others drains you and sometimes recharges you.
- 2. It happens that you chat incessantly, but it happens that you are silent
- 3. Some people will describe you as an introvert, others as an extrovert.
- 4. You love being the center of attention, but not for too long.
- 5. You both listen and speak in balance.
Chances are, you’ve at least once identified yourself as either an introvert or an extrovert. Perhaps this self-determination was inaccurate. The fact is that introversion-extroversion are not two points, but a whole scale, and most of them “are located” on it in the middle – such people are called ambiverts. How to understand that this is about you?
Ambiverts – who are they? The Oxford Dictionary defines them as people who combine the personality traits of both introverts and extroverts, and Travis Bradbury, the author of a number of books, including Emotional Intelligence 2.0, is sure that ambiverts have an advantage over the rest: they can quickly adapt to different people and situations. Here are a few signs that will help determine that you are an ambivert.
1. Time spent with others drains you and sometimes recharges you.
It happens that communication with others, especially strangers (for example, at a party or a professional conference), exhausts you, depriving you of the last physical and emotional strength, and you only dream of finally being in the silence of your home. And it happens that, being in exactly the same state – for example, tired after a busy working week, you get real pleasure from communicating with people and recharge.
Usually ambiverts need at least some time to be alone with themselves (a trait inherent in introverts), and only then are they ready to communicate with others – so much so that this communication energizes them, and does not tire them.
2. It happens that you chat incessantly, but it happens that you are silent
And this does not depend on the company or the topics that the conversation is about: it’s just that today you are actively talking to others, asking questions and willingly talking about yourself, and tomorrow you will want to shut up and listen. And that’s completely normal.
3. Some people will describe you as an introvert, others as an extrovert.
It may seem to some friends that you are sociable, full of energy, never get tired and never get bored with you, and to others that you are a pleasant, but rather reserved person who would do well to “open up” more often. Most likely, both are true – you can be both this and that, depending on how you feel at this particular moment and who surrounds you.
4. You love being the center of attention, but not for too long.
Standing in the center of the room and listening to friends or colleagues sing “Let them run clumsily …” or shower congratulations is something ambiverts usually do not like. However, sometimes they are not averse to telling a joke or a funny story that the whole company will laugh at, as well as to share their opinion on an important issue during the discussion (the main thing is that the “spotlight” of everyone’s attention should not be directed at them for too long).
5. You both listen and speak in balance.
According to psychologist Brian Little, ambiverts have both the ability to self-reflection inherent in introverts and the communication skills inherent in extroverts, so it is always pleasant to talk with them – they listen carefully, ask the “right” questions, and tell interesting stories.
If you have read the above and agreed, if not with all the points, but at least with part of them, you may be a real ambivert. And we can only congratulate you on this: you are a person who knows how not only to communicate with others, but also to build really strong ties with them, which helps you in all areas of life – both in work and in personal.
And you don’t do it to your own detriment.