I read a book in which a violinist said that he needed 2/3 hours to himself for every hour spent with people. I really get that.

But it’s really interesting that some social situations drain me and others do not. If I’m a networking event, I’m more likely to get drained as I’m putting on a persona and keeping that up is tiring. I’m acting a part.

If I go on a personal development retreat, then i find that I’m a lot more sociable and energised, because I’m with like minded folks and feel that I can be myself and that is energising.

So I wonder if the labelling of all social situations being draining for introverts is correct. It feels as though it depends how authentic I feel safe being.

Importantly, ASD has a major genetic component. When people with Asperger’s marry other people with Asperger’s, their children are even more likely than baseline to have Autism Spectrum Disorders. This is well known in Silicon Valley and at JPL, where people get all Conspiracy Theory about why nothing is being done about an Epidemic.

This is not funny. Though my friends with ASD and I have had many laughs together, which left mundanes baffled.

This quote says it best: “Everyone thinks I’m a quiet person. My friends only wish that were true.”

I know that I’ve always wanted to see the world through someone else’s eyes, and so writing/performing is one way to do that.

I wonder though, how many introverts actually find larger groups easier to deal with than smaller and more intimate groups? The larger the group, the better it is, but the harder I crash afterwards!

In a meeting, we got to swapping M-B classifications. I said I was consistently an INTJ, every time I took the test. One of the other folks flat refused to believe it. “You can’t be an introvert. You’re a great public speaker.”

Introvert does not automatically mean shy and antisocial. As John said, it means that social interactions, while often lots of fun and enjoyable, are also draining. For me, the “alone time” afterwards is essential.