Last night as part of the Biznik Innovators Series, I had the joy of watching Warren Etheredge interview John Hagel and John Seely Brown, co-authors of the amazing new book The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big Things in Motion
. I’ll be doing a full write up of the book shortly but the short version is, if Drive
, by Daniel Pink is the most important book you could read all year, The Power of Pull is the most important business book you could read all year. They are the perfect compliment to each other. Read Drive then The Power of Pull.
The authors make the point in the book that the ability to build networks and create serendipity are key elements to creating Pull. In the most simplest terms, Pull is the ability to attract talent and resources to your cause. This goes for individuals, businesses and organizations.
One of the questions that came up was, how can an introvert succeed in a world that seems to favor extroverts?
I took the opportunity to chime in but I also wanted to take this opportunity to expand more on this idea.
Over the last 6 years or so that I’ve been trying to convert businesses to adopting social media I’ve noticed a trend:
Extroverts may adopt social media faster but introverts tend to be more successful.
By success I mean real success in business and life not the amount of followers you have.
If you know me this isn’t an easy thing to say because I’m an extrovert. But what I’ve noticed is that extroverts turn social networking into a popularity contest. We think success in networking means having the most connections. This approach can work but after a while this approach doesn’t scale anymore.
Take for example this mornings post by MS Siegler on TechCrunch where John Mayer has declared Twitter to be dead. The post points out that this is not the first time a celebrity has quit Twitter. John hasn’t quit Twitter yet but apparently he thinks about canceling his account every morning. Somehow I think we’ll see him active again when his next album comes out. His, and many other celebrities have brought up the amount of negativity and hatred they are subjected to on Twitter.
Even in our own tech corner of the world I’ve watched as some have either consciously or as a result of being really talented, risen to “A-list” status. The amount of resentment and fandom they have to put up with is often enough to make many of them quit. Or they they turn into micro celebrities and are either inaccessible (have you ever seen Robert Scoble at a conference, the guy is constantly swarmed by a dozen people, half with cameras) or are unbearable because their egos have taken over.
What makes introverts better?
Simply put they are more deliberate. Introverts are more likely to look for relationships that are mutually beneficial. They don’t want to waste their time or the other persons time.The relationships they do build are more sincere and more likely to result in something meaningful.
This doesn’t mean that all introverts are successful networkers. Extroverts usually do well by shear force of numbers. Introverts have to first get over fear, apathy and/or lack of confidence before they can begin to successfully put themselves out there and network.
John Hagel made the point that he is an introvert. The way he overcame this was through finding his passion (a major theme of the book) and that passion drove him to seek out and connect with other people who shared his passion. He started by writing which was an easier way to put himself out there. This is why social networking can be such a powerful tool. You can put yourself out there with minimal risk and exposure.
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- Are You Inspired By Your Work? If Not You Are Wasting Your Time.
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