Review: Quiet - The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain is the probably the best book I could start off the New Year with. Of all the books I have lined up to read this year, Quiet was definitely something that I reserved a special place for, right at the start of the New Year.

I first came across this book in an airport bookshop and it had immediately caught my attention but I refrained from buying it because I knew it would end up lying untouched on my bookshelf like most of the books I had bought over the last few years. I then came across the book again last year when I was browsing Goodreads. The fact that it was the '2012 Goodreads Choice' winner again aroused my interest in reading this book. Luckily I was gifted the book as a Christmas present so I saved it to read right at the start of 2016.

Right, so my review – Not only is Quiet excellently researched but it manages to succeed in touching the right emotional chords by mixing the right amount of illustrations and stories along with the studies done on introversion. In the first part of her book ‘the extrovert ideal’ she traces the history behind extroversion and why extroversion is such a valued trait in society today. The subtle way in which advertisements and books have played such a major role in shaping our society into one that is so extroverted came as a shocker to me. This part of the book largely deals with trivia and history so it keeps the reader interested.

Part two of the book, ‘Your biology, your self?’ deals with questions like “Is my introversion hereditary?” and “Can I be an extrovert for short periods of time?”. My favourite section in this part was where she examines the role that extroverts played in the financial crisis of 2008 and what could have been done to avoid it. She also talks about Warren Buffet’s investment strategies which in large part were influenced by the fact that he was an introvert himself. Part three, ‘Do all cultures have an extrovert ideal?’ talks about various different cultures around the world and how they deal with extroversion and introversion. Slightly boring since she mainly focused on the US and on Asian countries like China. Being an Indian, I didn’t quite relate to a lot of what was said.

Part four: ‘How to love, how to work’ is my favourite part of the book. It deals with precisely the sections that I had the most questions about. Over the past year or so I’d been dealing with a lot of issues relating to self-doubt where relationships and work was concerned. In the case of relationships I often found myself apologising for the type of person I was, often considering myself the boring types. This book made me realize my comfort zones and what would work best for me. Most importantly it gave me confidence just to be myself. Even where friendships were concerned I realized that I didn’t need hundreds of friends to be happy and my own small social circle was enough. The part which deals with work also made me realize where my strengths lay and how best to use them while interacting with other team members. “Can an introvert be good at Sales?” was a very important question that I got answered in this section.

Overall I absolutely loved this book and it was exactly what I needed right at the start of the year to face the coming year with confidence and the understanding to make some difficult decisions that I know are about to come my way. If you think you’re an introvert then this is an absolute must read for you. If you’re an extrovert then it would do you a great deal of good to understand how best to harness the power of introverts. Whether you’ve got an introvert spouse, parent or team members, this book will certainly help you. No one should miss reading this absolute cracker of a book!

My Rating: 4/5