Now that many of the measures have been removed, more and more people are returning to the office. As an introvert, that can be quite difficult at times. How do you ensure that you work in the office in a pleasant way? A few tips.
Your workplace
As an introvert, you benefit from a quiet workplace. An open-plan office is therefore not such a suitable working environment, because you quickly become overstimulated as an introvert. Make sure you find a nice place where you can concentrate. That means a place where people don't pass by all day and where you can do your work undisturbed. Does your company have special spaces to work on your own? Make sure to use it every now and then, because as an introvert you naturally feel the need to recharge on your own.
Schedule me time
You may have already started it during the working from home period, but it is certainly something to (continue to) do if you work in a busy office: schedule time for yourself. This way you prevent yourself from being fully booked with meetings and not having time to recharge. You can do this, for example, by blocking a certain time in your calendar Use that time to do something that energizes you, whether that's a walk, a one-on-one conversation with a coworker, or a task that you can do all by yourself. That way you make sure that you have enough energy to do your work during the day.
Take advantage of quiet moments
Within every company there are times when fewer colleagues are present. Wednesday afternoon and Friday are usually times when it can be relatively quiet in the office. Take advantage of that peace of mind by scheduling tasks that you have to work on with full attention. This prevents you from getting easily distracted during your work. Moreover, as an introvert, it is also nice to work alone every now and then, so that you have some time to recharge.
Tell what you need
Introverts often have the idea that they are different and therefore find it difficult to really stand for what they need. However, this is very important to feel comfortable in a workplace. Be clear about the fact that you like to think about the topics of a meeting in advance, that you sometimes like to work alone and that conversations work better with you when they are one on one. Extroverts are often not very aware of this and by making them aware of it, that awareness will increase. If there is more understanding for your introverted side, it will be a lot easier for you to stay true to yourself.
Want more tips on how to work with extroverts as an introvert? Or how to work with an introvert as an extrovert? You can read all about it in my book Introverted Leadership.
