No Reason Needed: UNPLUGGED. A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN INTROVERT.

THESE DAYS, GETTING GROUNDED OR SENT TO "TIME OUT" WOULD BE CONSIDERED A LUXURY. YOU SEE, I'M YOUR QUINTESSENTIAL SOUL SEARCHING, SELF REFLECTING, INTROVERT. I SAY THIS WITH COMPLETE ACCEPTANCE AND APPRECIATION, I JUST WISH I COULD HAVE HAD THIS REALIZATION EARLIER ON IN MY LIFE.
IT WASN'T UNTIL ABOUT A YEAR AGO THAT I REALLY LEARNED WHAT BEING AN "INTROVERT" REALLY MEANS.
MOST PEOPLE WOULD CATEGORIZE THIS TRAIT AS BEING "SHY", BUT THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY ALWAYS THE CASE. IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH YOUR NATURAL RESPONSE TO SOCIAL STIMULATION. PUT SIMPLY, DO YOU RECEIVE ENERGY BY BEING AROUND OTHERS, OR ARE YOU LEFT FEELING DRAINED AND IN NEED OF YOUR ALONE TIME IN ORDER TO FEEL RECHARGED ? FOR EXAMPLE: AFTER WATCHING WAY TOO MANY CHICK FLICKS ( ALL OF WHICH SEEM TO TAKE PLACE IN MANHATTAN) THE IDEA OF LIVING IN A BIG CITY USED TO SEEM LIKE A DREM! THE REALITY IS, WHENEVER I SPEND LONGER THAN 3 DAYS IN ONE I'M LEFT FEELING DISTRACTED AND OVERWHELMED. THE NEED TO BE "ON" THE SECOND I STEP OUTSIDE MY HOTEL SUDDENLY MAKES ME ALL TOO AWARE THAT UNTIL I GO BACK INSIDE, I'M GOING TO BE SURROUNDED BY ENDLESS SEAS OF PEOPLE . ALSO, THE WHOLE BIG CITY TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM JUST DOESN'T DO IT FOR ME. I LOVE DRIVING! IT'S MY ALONE TIME TO SIP ON COFFEE AND GET LOST IN MY THOUGHTS, OR FULLY ENJOY WHATEVER MUSIC I'M LISTENING TOO. IV'E BEEN VERY FORTUNATE TO TRAVEL MANY PLACES IN MY LIFE, BUT THE COMMON THREAD OF HAPPINESS ALWAYS STARTS AND ENDS WITH ME LYING ON THE BEACH WITH MY CLOSEST FAMILY OR FRIENDS, IN SOME REMOTE AREA OF THE WORLD.

I FEEL LIKE I'M MY BEST SELF WHEN I'M IN A CALM, MORE LOW KEY ENVIRONMENT. I THRIVE IN ONE ON ONE INTERACTIONS, OR SMALLER GROUP GATHERINGS. FOR YEARS I FORCED MYSELF TO MAKE PLANS EVERY WEEKEND, OR TO ATTEND EVERY PARTY I WAS INVITED TO, ALL BECAUSE I HAD FOMO (FEAR OF MISSING OUT) . I WANTED TO MAKE SURE I WAS PRESENT FOR EVERY OUNCE OF FUN THERE WAS TO BE HAD. BUT THE TRUTH IS, FOR ME, OFTEN THE FUN WAS RIGHT AT HOME WHERE I HAD LEFT IT. I REALIZE I'M PAINTING MYSELF TO BE EITHER A DOWNER OR ANTI-SOCIAL, BUT THAT'S REALLY NOT THE CASE. I'M JUST A LOT MORE CLEAR THESE DAYS ON THE TYPE OF SOCIAL INTERACTIONS THAT TRULY MAKE ME FEEL HAPPY AND CONNECTED WITH THOSE WHOM I'M CLOSEST TOO. IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT NONE OF US ARE ENTIRELY ONE WAY OR ANOTHER 100% OF THE TIME. BUT HAVING SOME ALONE TIME TO SELF REFLECT IS GOOD PRACTICE FOR EVEN THE MOST OUTGOING OF EXTRAVERTS. SO TRY IT OUT! IN A SPACE FREE FROM OUTSIDE PRESSURE AND DISTRACTIONS, HANG OUT WITH YOURSELF FOR AN AFTERNOON. TAKE TIME TO MEDITATE , FOCUS, RELAX AND REBOOT. LEARNING HOW TO BE HAPPY DURING YOUR ALONE TIME CAN HELP YOU EXPERIENCE INSIGHT, APPRECIATION AND CONTRAST. WHEN YOU'RE BACK IN A SOCIAL SETTING YOU'LL CHERISH YOUR TIME SPENT WITH OTHERS THAT MUCH MORE AND GET CONNECTED ON A DEEPER LEVEL WITH WHOEVER YOU'RE CHOOSING TO SPEND YOUR TIME WITH.

HERE ARE A COUPLE RESOURCES I'VE FOUND THAT PRETTY MUCH SUM UP EXACTLY WHAT IT DOES/ DOES NOT MEAN TO BE A MEMBER OF THE INTROVERT CLUB! THESE ARE MUST READS!!
PORTRAIT OF AN ISFP.
1O MYTHS ABOUT INTROVERTS:
AND IV'E SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST! THIS IS SINGLE HANDILY THE MOST ACCURATE BUZZFEED IV'E EVER READ IN MY LIFE! 18 TRUTHS ABOUT EVERY SECRET INTROVERT ...