{"id":11094,"date":"2019-10-10T06:00:27","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T10:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/?p=11094"},"modified":"2019-10-07T06:52:41","modified_gmt":"2019-10-07T10:52:41","slug":"living-with-an-introvert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2019\/10\/living-with-an-introvert.html","title":{"rendered":"Can an Introvert and Extrovert Get Along?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-11098\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/258\/2019\/10\/woman-2773007_1920-1024x689.jpg\" alt=\"woman-2773007_1920\" width=\"1024\" height=\"689\" \/><\/p>\n<p>My boss is an introvert. I am an extrovert. We are very different in our approaches to problems and life. For example, when there is conflict, I want\u00a0to work it out immediately. I want to turn up the volume on the issue and get it resolved relationally.\u00a0My introvert boss wants to turn down the volume and have time to\u00a0think. He doesn&#8217;t like conflict.\u00a0He goes internal and wants time to process the issue. Often, I need to remind him to come back to the issue. It&#8217;s not that he doesn&#8217;t want to resolve it, rather he is more uncomfortable talking to me as I process things out loud. Eventually, we get to the problem, but not as fast as I would like.<\/p>\n<p>Introverts are quiet and I used to think that meant they are disengaged. I now realize that introverts take time to process their thoughts <em>alone<\/em>. This\u00a0doesn&#8217;t mean they are not interested. They engage in a different way.<\/p>\n<p>One of the biggest differences I notice is how introverts and extroverts energize themselves. Introverts want personal space. They need time to process what you are saying and think. This means I often pause and give them time before filling empty spaces with my words. I will admit, it is harder to figure out when an introvert is processing or if\u00a0the person might be mad and avoiding conflict. It helps to\u00a0pay attention to body language. If the arms are crossed or the brow goes down, it might mean the introvert has\u00a0discomfort with conflict. On the other hand, he could be thinking. The point is to give time for reactions to occur.<\/p>\n<p>Introverts need time alone to regroup, whereas the extrovert regroups with people. I like small talk and getting to know people. I meet strangers and engage in conversations. My introvert friends have little interest in either small talk or engaging strangers. They want personal space. I am energized by people. We recharge in different ways.<\/p>\n<p>As an extrovert, I say what I think and struggle when an introvert does not. I can&#8217;t mind read and need the introvert to tell me what he or she is thinking. And my asking what the introvert is thinking is not aggression. It is an honest need to understand the\u00a0person. And here is another difference. My introverted boss doesn&#8217;t like to be interrupted and doesn&#8217;t like unplanned activities or visits. Good to know, as I have no issue with interruptions\u00a0during my day. My door is always open.<\/p>\n<p>Please understand that one of these personality styles is not better than another. However, you can see how the differences affect interpersonal relationships. When an introvert and extrovert date, marry or work together,\u00a0it helps to understand how these differences impact communication and relationships.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My boss is an introvert. I am an extrovert. We are very different in our approaches to problems and life. For example, when there is conflict, I want\u00a0to work it out immediately. I want to turn up the volume on the issue and get it resolved relationally.\u00a0My introvert boss wants to turn down the volume&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":419,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[917,1057],"tags":[4517,3415,4518,1060],"class_list":["post-11094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-friend-relationships","category-work-relationships","tag-extrovert","tag-introvert","tag-personality-styles","tag-work-relationships-2"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Can an Introvert and Extrovert Get Along?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, nofollow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Can an Introvert and Extrovert Get Along?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"My boss is an introvert. I am an extrovert. We are very different in our approaches to problems and life. For example, when there is conflict, I want\u00a0to work it out immediately. I want to turn up the volume on the issue and get it resolved relationally.\u00a0My introvert boss wants to turn down the volume&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/2019\/10\/living-with-an-introvert.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Doing Life Together\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/drlindamintle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-10-10T10:00:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-10-07T10:52:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/files\/2019\/10\/woman-2773007_1920-1024x689.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Linda Mintle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@drlindamintle\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Can an Introvert and Extrovert Get Along?","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"nofollow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Can an Introvert and Extrovert Get Along?","og_description":"My boss is an introvert. 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Dr. Linda\u2019s fun personality and expertise comes through whether she\u2019s helping her audience stress less or make peace with their thighs! Dr. Linda has her Ph.D. in Urban Health and Clinical Psychology and is a national expert on mental health. She has specialized in the treatment of eating disorders, anxiety, depression and pain management. With 30 years of clinical experience working with couples, families and individuals, she brings her common-sense approach to people who want to live in positive mental health. Dr. Linda is also a bestselling author with 21 book titles to her credit, a radio host of the Dr. Linda Mintle show, professor, national speaker, winner of the Mom\u2019s Choice Award, a national news consultant, featured writer for Beliefnet and hosts her own website. Her academic appointments keep her abreast of current research in her areas of expertise. Her media experience includes seven years as the resident expert for ABC Family\u2019s Living the Life television show and regular appearances on network television and radio. It is often said that being with Dr. Linda is like having coffee with a friend. She makes the complicated issues of relationships and mental health easy to understand and applicable to everyday living. The ease she has with people, coupled with her clinical training and experience makes her a sought-after speaker on college campuses, conferences and special events. Whether she is doing a TV skit with Tim Conway or discussing teen violence with Queen Latifa, Dr. Linda will entertain, educate and integrate faith and mental health in everyday living. Check out her latest book Hope and Healing for Anxiety, a whole-person approach to eliminate anxiety. .","sameAs":["https:\/\/drlindamintle.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/drlindamintle\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/drlindamintle\/","https:\/\/x.com\/drlindamintle"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/author\/lmintle"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11094","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/419"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11094"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11094\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11100,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11094\/revisions\/11100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11094"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11094"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/doinglifetogether\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11094"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}