5 Bright Ideas for Introverts
Invaluable tools that can be catalysts for our journey forward
We all get implanted in our own comfort zone. So shaking off the cobwebs to progress our own personal journey often needs a bit of help, a change of routine. Many introverts find these 5 tools invaluable. They help temper our introspective voice, embrace our true wonderful selves, and boost our self-confidence.
I've pulled this blog out of the archives because it fits so well into our February theme of 'Enlightenment,' the 3rd Phase of Introversion.
Check out the links in each section for articles, websites, and other resources to help you get started.
Which are you using regularly? Which will you start today?
1. Journaling
Make Journaling Part of Your Self-Care
Mari McCarthy's 'CreateWriteNow'
Writing down your thoughts, fears, celebrations, and plans can be calming and uplifting. As introverts, we have lots of thoughts swirling around in our heads. Regardless of whether they are happy or worrying thoughts, it's good to deal with them so they don't get overwhelming.
Journaling is custom-built. You can journal daily, weekly, or whenever you start to feel overwhelmed. You can write for a set period of time or pages but I prefer to just write until my mind feels satisfied. You can celebrate a meeting well done, socializing efforts, your initiative to monitor and manage your energy level or get worries of upcoming activities off your mind, or whatever moves you. Journaling acknowledges your thoughts so you can move on.
Try to start your journaling with a positive. Give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back. Daily affirmations are so powerful in replacing the common internal critiques with confirmation of your value and efforts. Finally, be sure you keep your journal safe and secure. Confidentiality will release you to journal freely about anything.
2. Calendar
Goals & Planning: Tips and Tricks
I first employed a calendar in my early days of working to note my meetings - pretty simple. I found later that the calendar can be so much more.
It is like the hub for us introverts. Generally, we like to plan out our days and prep for big events like meetings, projects, and socials. So the calendar is not just to record meetings and appointments, but it is to block out prep time with others and by ourselves. Often, if we don't do that, our calendar gets full with obligations without any time to actually prepare. Being unprepared can definitely throw us off our game.
Ultimately, I realized calendars serve an even higher purpose. Introverts, by definition, need to reenergize throughout the day. Meetings, socials, and contentious discussions can be in our wheelhouse, but they zap our energy quickly. Rather than wait until the end of the day, we need to inject recharging time during the