I am an introvert. Being around people exhausts me, and my energy is recharged in silence, not crowds. And yes, I have been taught to be ashamed of that. People hear that I spent a Saturday writing and are horrified that I didn't 'go out and do something'. People find out that I spent my birthday alone and bring me consoling cakes with tears in their eyes. And, worst of all, my line managers think that I am not 'considering the needs of the team' when I mention that I find open-plan offices and hot-desking an absolute nightmare.
Collaboration is the buzzword. Consideration is anathema.
Like most introverts, I like to pause and think. I like to take the time to organize my workload, not dive right in. I like to plan what I say in front of people, partly because saying things on the fly frequently does not come out right. But that sort of calm consideration is a Bad Thing in today's working culture. People often assume that it means you're not actually working. Or you're lazy. Or you aren't a 'team player'.
I have learned to set all that aside and accept that as an introvert, I do things differently. Actually, I have learned to do more than accept it: I celebrate it. As the quotation above says, a writer's job is ingoing. To write, you need a very rich internal life and the energy to maintain it. And at my heart, I'm a writer.
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