Over the last few weeks, since I’ve started following a daily writing regimen, I’ve come across a few realizations about the relationship between personality and creative endeavors that have startled me. A few months back I met a film maker who said he wrote for ten hours a day, five days a week. This sounded incredibly difficult to me, but I believed him because I was working on his first feature film. Being the ambitious, anything-is-possible person that I am, I decided to follow his example and pursue my own ten hour a day writing regimen. I learned a big lesson: what works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another, at least not without some training and development. I usually burned out around 6-8 hours.
I noticed that I was having trouble working in my house for long periods of time. At first, I didn’t think about the fact that being an extrovert made it harder for me to write in solitude for extended periods of time. But the longer I worked at home, the more I began to realize that what I needed was to get out and be around people. I concluded that the film maker I met was probably an introvert. My first reaction to this realization was annoyance. I felt annoyed at the fact that an introvert had a definite advantage over something that I, an extrovert, wanted to do.
This annoyance motivated me to do some online research, which led me to examine personality types more closely. Being a big proponent of the Myers Briggs Type Indicator Test MBTI , I decided to examine extroverted and introverted tendencies to see which personality type has a greater advantage when it comes to creative work. My conclusion has led me to believe that, unfortunately, introverts, in general, have the advantage when it comes to creative and intellectual pursuits. I will explore four advantages that introverts have over extroverts when it comes to producing creative work.
In case you aren’t familiar with the Introversion/Extroversion distinction, here’s a basic definition taken from Wikipedia: People with a preference for Extraversion draw energy from action: they tend to act, then reflect, then act further. If they are inactive, their level of energy and motivation tends to decline. Conversely, those whose preference is Introversion become less energized as they act: they prefer to reflect, then act, then reflect again. People with Introversion preferences need time out to reflect in order to rebuild energy. The Introvert’s flow is directed inward toward concepts and ideas and the Extravert’s is directed outward towards people and objects. There are several contrasting characteristics between Extraverts and Introverts: Extraverts desire breadth and are action-oriented, while introverts seek depth and are thought-oriented.
1. Introverts Thrive in Solitude -
As a moderate extrovert, I often find myself in need of external stimulus to help me work productively. I usually can’t write for long periods of time in an isolated environment. To remedy this, I travel to my local bookstore or cafe to write. While needing external stimulus may not seem like a disadvantage, in any creative endeavor such as writing, painting, drawing, composing etc., where one needs to be able to focus and work in solitude for long stretches of time, it can be a limiting factor.
Solitude is the ideal place for an introvert. It is a place of strength and well spring for creative energy. For an extrovert, solitude is enervating. Too much solitude can sap an extrovert of their creative juices. When it comes to most types of writing, especially creative writing, the introvert has the advantage because they can not only endure, but actually enjoy the time spent alone writing.
2. Introverts Excel at Focus
Because introverts draw their energy from within, they are better equipped to focus on creative work for longer periods of time. Extroverts, on the other hand, need to refuel their batteries by engaging in social activities. These activities are time consuming and distracting and without the proper discipline, an extrovert could easily detract from their creative work. Thus if we were to compare the productive capacity between an introvert and extrovert over a set period of time, I would wager that the introvert would produce more high quality creative work than the extrovert. In creative writing this would amount to a greater page count and quality of prose.
3. Introverts Think Deeply
Since introverts tend to think and reflect before taking action, it is natural that their thoughts are more developed than the typical extrovert. Extroverts tend to speak first and think later, which leads to more superficial statements and thoughts. Exceptional creative work is almost always the work of deep thought and reflection. The works of noted artists or thinkers such as, Pablo Picasso, Monet, Mozart, Hemingway, or Einstein are products of great reflection and thought. This is why they can move us deeply, challenge paradigms and invite us to look within. A piece of work that evokes reflection can only be the result of deep reflection.
4. Introverts Stand Alone
Introverts, unlike extroverts, have the tendency to see themselves as apart from the greater whole. This does not necessarily mean that introverts are social recluses or hermits, rather it means that introverts are comfortable identifying themselves as individuals and not necessarily as tied to some greater entity. Introverts are more inclined to make bolder statements and take stances that would set them apart from the norm. Extroverts, on the whole, would not because society is where they thrive. The ability to stand alone is invaluable to any creative endeavor because it allows one to forgo the norm and pursue something novel and unprecedented. The avant garde is not an extroverted movement.
While extroverts have a clear advantage in careers that revolve around social settings such as business and politics, introverts take the cake when it comes to artistic endeavors. Being an extroverted artist, I’ve come to realize that my process of creation looks a bit different than introverted artists. I need to supply myself with external stimuli as much as I need to provide enough social interaction to keep my batteries flowing.
All this talk of advantages and disadvantages can be a bit discouraging. But fortunately, extroversion and introversion aren’t black and white; people tend to fall within a spectrum and exhibit both qualities to varying degrees. While my dominant function may be extroversion, I have, through practice, developed the ability to exhibit introverted qualities as well. Through practice, I’m now able to sit in a room and write for a couple of hours without losing my wits and sanity.
The bottom line?
Introverts and extroverts have different advantages and disadvantages when it comes to creative work. While introverts may have the advantage in more solitary creative pursuits, such as fine arts and writing, extroverts may have it easier in more socially focused creative work such as acting and performance. However, what you’ll find is that across the spectrum of artists there are introverts and extroverts in every field. I think I read somewhere that Mark Twain has the same MBTI (ENFP) as I do. That was comforting. 
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1 response so far ↓
Yo! Interesting post. I definitely fit into one of those categories.haha.
This reminded me of a piece in the Atlantic written by Johnathan Rauch about how extroverts tend to dominate politics while introverts are regarded as arrogant and aloof.
At times it might read like a treatise against extroverts, but it has some interesting nuggets of how introverts are generally misunderstood.
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200303/rauch