65% of 1500 execs surveyed saw introversion as an impediment to advancement, but there are plenty of big examples, big examples, of successful introverts including Larry Page of Google, Ian Cook of Colgate-Palmolive and Douglas Conant of Campbell’s Soup.
Wharton School professor Adam Grant studies the issue. He believes that introverts can be better at deliberate decision making and also may be more empathetic, better listeners and excel in dynamic times.
As you might expect consultants and coaches have emerged to help out. Atlanta leadership coach Jennifer B. Kahnweiler has written the book, The Introverted Leader. Still, Richard Branson, Jack Welch and other high-profile leaders fuel the myth that extroversion is an essential characteristic of effective leaders.
Douglas Conant, the Campbell’s Soup CEO, learned something that made his life as a leader easier and more satisfying, “The more transparent I became, the more engaged people became.”
Maybe introverts have to work harder at transparency than extroverts. Introvert or extrovert, however, transparency makes character visible as does a contrived, phony facade. I’m the Outsider and that’s what I think.
