Would you rather crunch numbers than mingle at a cocktail party? Are you more comfortable in a lab or library than you are at lunch with your coworkers? When you present a new product or explain a problem to coworkers or leaders, do you have trouble holding their attention because of your slower-paced, more deliberate speaking style? If so, you might be suffering from the curse of the introvert. Sure, you're über-intelligent and have great ideas, but you're either too reserved to share those ideas or you prefer less attention-grabbing methods for communicating them than your extroverted coworkers.
Accoring to Maribeth Kuzmeski, founder of Red Zone Marketing and author of “The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win Clients for Life,” in today's tough economy, it's no longer enough to be a genius with great ideas. To get ahead, you have to be able to communicate them effectively and use them to influence others. You have to be able to connect.
"You don't have to have a big personality to be a great connector," said Kuzmeski. "But unfortunately, too often the great ideas of introverts go unheard because the extroverts make their voices heard first.
"The bottom line is that some professions lend themselves to introverts — scientists, accountants, and engineers, I'm looking at you. But you can't rest on your ‘smarts’ laurels. You have to learn to show your value whether it's to your employer or to your clients. If you don't, rest assured there is someone else in your profession who is ready to take your place."
A key message in “The Connectors” is that your level of influence is directly connected to how good you are at connecting. Kuzmeski teaches that if you are able to truly connect with feeling, purpose, and honesty, you will experience more success and much-improved relationships, receive better promotions or more clients, and become known as a great leader.
Kuzmeski is quick to assure even those who consider themselves hopelessly inept at communicating that there’s hope. "Not to worry," she said. "With the right tools, strategies, and tactics, you can change the way you develop relationships and forge a network of colleagues and contacts who will stick with you through thick and thin — and best of all, voluntarily recommend your great work to others."
Kuzmeski offers eight straightforward, easy-to-apply tips that will garner immediate results.
