You’re damn good at what you do. But you’re also an introvert, which means that you’re probably more comfortable working individually than you are in a group. Most of the time, it’s no big deal…until your boss schedules a department-wide meeting for this Tuesday. (Crap.)
Unfortunately for introverts, collaborative meetings are inevitable at most offices. And while you always have a ton of ideas you’d like to contribute, it can be tough to actually articulate what you mean in front of other people. Especially when the extroverts in the room are all jumping in and talking over each other.
So instead of paying attention to what’s going on in the moment, your mind starts racing: Do I have something valuable to add? When do I say something? Is everyone thinking I’m slacking off and not paying attention because I haven’t said anything yet?
We turned to Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy,, authors of the book No Hard Feelings: The Secret Power of Embracing Emotions at Work, for help. Their advice? Set a goal to speak up within the first ten minutes of the meeting. Yep, you heard us. Just dive right into the deep end.
