Ok friends indulge me. In today’s post I am an opportunist and dramatic – both out of character for an introvert! : ) What is with the craze around Frozen and Elsa – the princess with a magical yet dangerous power?!?!?! Forget the girls loving the movie! The plot resonates with so many women that, like me, they’ve seen it repeatedly with or without kids in tow. While there are some imperfections to the movie, I love the empowering message for women to break free of the cultural constraints that limit us and “let it go!” Recently I looked at Elsa’s plight and transformation through the introverted lens and thought “hmm . . . she is a heroine for our cause as well.” Here is how I see it.
In our hyped up culture we wear our ability to multitask like a badge of honor. Introverts often feel stretched and squeezed – like there is something we forgot to do or did half-baked. The cultural pressure encourages us to eat lunch at our computers and answer emails while on conference calls. Yet this is too much stimuli to process all at once. And we can’t. At least not effectively. Research shows that multitasking makes us less productive and accurate.
This morning I was listening to an introverted mom describe her experience with her extroverted family: the kids need something from her every moment of every day, right away, with repeated reminders. As she spoke I had an image of her being a dart board and the overwhelming needs and demands of her family as the darts. She often felt depleted and discouraged – berating herself for not navigating the family dynamics more skillfully. Does this sound familiar? How do we work with the different temperamental styles bumping up against one another? 
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