I’ve been yakking up a storm on the radio lately, answering questions like: How can an introvert promote herself without bragging? If working a room isn’t your forte, is there something wrong with you? How did you get to speak with Bill Clinton and Warren Buffett and what advice did they give for introverts?

What’s a radio interview like for an introvert? Fun and terrifying—not necessarily in that order! But, oh, so rewarding. As with any public speaking situation, radio is efficient because it enables us to reach many more people than we could by speaking with them one at a time. So it’s an effective way to spread our message. After all that verbal output, we can plan to catch our breath and take a snooze between gigs! And with a little preparation and practice, it can be much less scary than spiders, snakes, heights, riding the Cyclone, or entering a noisy cocktail party with nothing to say.
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Meet Larry Underwood*, the founding father of Enterprise Rent-a-Car in the Desert Southwest. We’re chatting about his 26-year experience as an irreverent senior corporate manager who some people might be surprised to learn is an introvert.

He doesn’t like meetings. But he likes to make people laugh. He inspires his staff, takes care of his customers, and knows how make an operation wildly profitable. And he doesn’t always go with the flow.
Underwood’s most recent achievement is his book, Life Under the Corporate Microscope, which offers a glimpse behind the curtain from his days at Enterprise.

Here’s how I connected with Underwood. I recently launched my first book, Self-Promotion for Introverts®. A few weeks before my book was even available at bookstores, I found my first customer review on Amazon, which Underwood wrote.
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Here’s an excerpt from a recent article titled “Shy? Stand Out Anyway?” by Adelia Cellini Linecker in the Investor’s Business Daily: “How do shy people achieve business success widely associated with extroverts? By quietly applying their strengths and boosting their visibility. Nancy Ancowitz, author of Self-Promotion for Introverts: The Quiet Guide to Getting Ahead, says the key is to be true to yourself—avoid trying to be an extrovert as you learn to showcase your talents. ‘Working a room like a chatterbox won’t work for introverts,’ she told IBD. ‘It’s better to concentrate on a few meaningful conversations.’

Check out “Does Your Occupation Fit Your Personality?” on the Savvy Sugar blog. Here’s an excerpt: “I definitely consider myself an introvert. I love being around people and I can turn on my social side when I need to, but I really do my best work and feel the most recharged when I’m alone. My job, happily, strikes the perfect balance for me. How about you? Does your role at work mesh with your personality?”

Photo courtesy of NBC

With six applicants for every job opening, unemployment climbing over the 10 percent mark, and 36 percent of unemployed Americans currently out of work for at least six months, it’s easy to become defeated if you’re searching for a job—especially if you’re an introvert. Why? Since we’re less likely to be out and about seizing every networking opportunity, we may have a harder time competing in this job market. But is working the room at every social function the only way to find a job?
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I just wrote the following article for the e-newsletter of the Association for Psychological Type (APT)—New York Metro Chapter:

I get Google Alerted whenever “introvert” appears in news stories about wallflowers, gadget heads, mad scientists, and social outcasts. The APT community understands that an introvert is someone who recharges her or his energy by doing solo versus social activities, but misconceptions about introverts in our society abound.
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I just got home from my fourth holiday gathering this week. While I enjoyed each gathering—because I arrived rested, paced myself, aimed for just a few good conversations, took breaks when I needed them, and stayed the right amount of time for me—I’m happy that I’ll have some downtime for the rest of the weekend.

Sheryl Nance-Nash offers five useful pieces of advice in her article “How to Make the Most of the Company Holiday Party,” in The Faster Times. Here’s how each of her points applies to introverts:
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If you’re a small business owner, you probably need to spend a fair amount of time pitching your ideas and selling your wares. If you’re an introvert, you’d probably rather provide value to your customers than talk about the value you provide them. While you may not be programmed to toot your own horn, you can use your quiet strengths to build your business. Check out the tips for introverts I share during my interview with Karen E. Klein on the BusinessWeek – Smart Answers Small Business Tips and Advice podcast.

It’s quiet here in New York right now. As an introvert, I enjoy the eves of major holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s—and even the eves of the eves, which have crept into our collective consciousness as unofficial semi-slacker days too.
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Are you more of a slow and steady achiever than a speed demon? If so, you can probably relate to the tortoise in Aesop’s fable, The Hare and the Tortoise. Remember how the tortoise beat the hare to the finishing line by putting one foot in front of the next at her own pace while the overconfident hare took a snooze and woke up too late to win the race?
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