In this episode of the Impostor Syndrome Files, we examine the challenges facing introverts in workplaces that favor extroversion. My guest, Terrance Lee, the Introvert Leader and author of Quiet Voice Fearless Leader, shares his story of embracing his introverted style. We also explore ways in which introverts can more authentically engage at work and how extroverts can better understand, support and leverage the strengths of their introverted colleagues.
About Terrance Lee:
Terrance Lee, AKA The Introvert Leader, had always avoided taking on leadership roles in his life. At the age of 13, an experience occurred which caused him to doubt his ability to speak in front of people, and caused him to shy away from the spotlight. This worked for Terrance until he eventually had to learn leadership skills by necessity at his first engineering job out of college.
When he had been working in his first role for a short time, his mentor put in his two-week notice. Terrance then found out that he had to take his place presenting to a group of experienced engineers and pilots for a highly technical review. Despite feeling extremely nervous, the meeting that Terrance led went well; which gave him a giant confidence boost.
Since then, Terrance has taken on many leadership and management roles as an introvert at several Fortune 500 companies in the defense industry, with proven results. He utilizes his platform to empower introverts to tap into their own inner leadership potential and is never shy about sharing the tips that he has learned throughout his journey.
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Transcript:
Kim Meninger Welcome, Terrance. I’m super excited for this conversation today. I’ve been looking forward to it for some time. And before we jump into it, I’d love to invite you to introduce yourself.
Terrance Lee Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you so much for having me on. I’m excited to be here. So, my name is Terrance Lee. My platform is the Introvert Leader. And our purpose is to help people that are introverted to overcome self-doubt and limiting beliefs and step into their authentic selves. And so, just a little bit about me, when I was growing up, I was a very loud kid, I moved around a lot, my dad took a number of different jobs in accounting. So we went to a lot of different cities. And I was kind of the new kid in school all the time. So I would make new friends. I was the first one, you know, raise my hand in class, I was loud in the lunchroom and all that stuff. And when I was in the seventh grade an experience with the choir director really changed that. So one day, long story short, I was really into singing, I love choir, I love writing music, and had poetry and a lot of things like that. And one day, my choir director, after several weeks of contention between me and her, in the middle of me singing, she basically stopped the music. And she told me in front of the class to stop singing, she basically said, Terrance, you are off-key, you need to just stop singing right now. Okay. And it was a very traumatic experience. I didn’t realize how much at the time but over just the years, I noticed my confidence in the way that I viewed myself really started to change. I became a lot more just sheltered, a lot more reserved, I stopped speaking up in class, I stopped raising my hand, I just really kind of drew into myself. And I started to lose a lot of confidence in terms of speaking. And a lot of that carried from that middle school incident into high school in to college, and even into my professional career. I’m in the defense industry. So I started out as the engineer working for a company, Lockheed Martin in Texas. And through various situations, people began to tell me they saw leadership potential in me. And I’d think to myself, I don’t know who you are talking about. I’m the quiet guy. I’m the reserved guy. That’s just not me. And what I realized over time is that there were certain things about my more introverted personality that were actually strengths. And so the reason I created the Introverted Leader is I want to highlight and show people that, people that are more introverted can not only lead effectively, but they can lead extremely well. So that’s the reason for the platform and just a high level of how I got here today.
Kim Meninger Wow. So I’m wondering, I’m just thinking about that traumatic experience in my mind and wondering how you process your identity as an introvert today, does it feel to you like it would, like, had that not happened, you would have been a totally different person than you are today? Or do you feel like you, you are more authentically an introvert now? Like, I guess I’m just trying to understand how you think about that now.
Terrance Lee Yeah, excellent question. So it’s interesting. In the research that I’ve done on introversion and extroversion, I’ve realized that everyone is somewhere on the continuum of introversion, extroversion, you know, no one is truly 100% introvert or 100%. extrovert, we’re actually just all somewhere on the line. So with me, when I used to write those songs, even when I was talking a lot in class, and I had a lot of friends and everything, even back then I still had a very introverted side, because I enjoyed being by myself to write my music and, you know, write poetry and do these things. At the time, I just didn’t realize what that meant. I just knew that when I would get that time alone, I really cherished that. And so I think when that incident happened, what it did, it really shifted me just more on the continuum more toward introversion, in a way, so I always had that in my nature. But I think when that happened, that’s when I really went more in, you know, that introverted direction, which, by the way, again, a lot of people, unfortunately, associate introversion as negative or bad. And really, it’s not, you know, it’s just, it’s just about personality and the way people are wired. So I think the incident did change that in me in some ways.
Kim Meninger It’s interesting to hear you tell the story of moving too because that was my experience. When I was growing up, my dad would always move for work and so I was always the new kid, too. And I think that I started out as a very extroverted child too, a very confident child maybe, maybe too much. So I think, I think moving, and especially at a certain point of my in my life, really softened some of my edges and definitely moved me more so into myself. Over the years I’ve become more comfortable with my own natural style, but for a long time, because of that situation where you always feel like, especially as a child you want to fit in, you want people to like you, that I was so focused on what the expectations were of others as it related to my behavior, as opposed to who I would naturally be, that I kind of lost myself in the process. And that was always a really tricky part of, you know, getting to a place where you can, you can sort of claim your authentic identity, right, like, am I doing this because this is who I want to be? Or am I doing this because I think that’s what other people would want me to do?
Terrance Lee Exactly. Yep. Exactly. And, and that’s, I can identify so much with that because for so long, I thought that something was wrong with me. I was like, okay, why am I like this? Why am I not like everyone else that always wants to be around people and, you know, talks more and does these things? And I thought it was a problem. But I didn’t really know what introversion meant, or extroversion meant, right? I just knew what everyone else was doing. I needed to try to be like that. And so I would try to put myself in certain situations to talk more, or to do certain things. And what I realized is it just felt very draining. It felt forced, I didn’t feel like I was being myself. And it wasn’t until honestly recently the past few years that I’ve become comfortable in who Terrance is, like, this is me, I’m okay with that. Doesn’t mean that we don’t change and adapt and try to grow in certain areas, right, that just add my core. I know who I am. And I’m good with that now, but it took a while to get there.
Kim Meninger Do you, are you able to name anything that led you to that point? Was there something that in particular that happened? Or what would you attribute that to?
Terrance Lee It was in the process of writing my book, honestly. I started writing my book at the beginning of 2020. And all I knew at the time was that I wanted to help people with more introverted personalities and make them realize they’re not alone, give them tips for growing into who they are. And I was writing a book about it. But at the same time, I was going through the transformation myself. I mean, I hadn’t fully embraced my authenticity. But as I began writing through it and writing some of my life story and giving these tips, and, you know, really starting to act it out, that’s when I realized, like, you know, I’m okay with being the like, I’m good with this, this is, this is okay. And when you get to that point, it is just so freeing. It’s very freeing when you don’t feel like you have to be like someone else anymore, or you’re not comparing yourself to other people. There’s just a certain freedom that comes with that. But yeah, literally just the past few years. I just got there.
Kim Meninger That’s wonderful. I’m so glad that that has been the way things have evolved for you because I would, that’s my hope for everybody listening, right is that we can all get to that place. And like you said, it doesn’t mean that we won’t hit bumps along the road, or that we won’t change over time. But to just have that, to be at peace with your core self. I’m curious because you had, you, you made a comment about how sometimes we think of introversion as bad. And I think that a lot of times, at least in my experience, having worked in a big corporation, there was definitely a bias towards the extroverts or just the people who were loudest or most visible. What was it like for you? Did you get any kind of explicit feedback on your style from managers? Did you ever get any kind of messaging that said, that made you feel like you weren’t good enough in that world?
Terrance Lee Yeah, so I know that one thing I was in a leadership program at my first company coming out of school. And when I was in that program, one thing that I got some feedback from one of our coaches was essentially, I used to not go to lunch with the team, you know, so when it was time to go to lunch, they would all like get together, go down to the cafeteria and everything. And I would just kind of stay at my desk and, you know, do my work. I also would just do a lot of my work by myself as opposed to wanting to be in these like group meetings or going to their desk all the time asking questions. I was a lot more, I would sit there and do what I had to do. And I got feedback that that was not the approach I should take, that I needed to, you know, network with my coworkers, I need to talk to them more, I need to ask for feedback, need to collaborate more and things like that. And it just didn’t feel natural at the time. I will say that I have changed my stance on that somewhat. I do have, actually, tips for introverts in the field of networking and in the area of networking, because that can be you know, a tough thing. But yeah, that was some feedback that I got that at the time was very counter to kind of who I was. I was like why do I have to go to lunch with people? I’d rather just sit here and eat my sandwich, you know? So yeah, that was some feedback that was a little tough and just in general, yeah, I agree with what you said. I mean, I think in a lot of workplaces, extroversion is celebrated. And it’s expected. And sometimes the strengths that the introvert brings to the table are just not noticed or not understood. So I think there’s a very big misunderstanding of that.
Kim Meninger Yeah. And it’s really unfortunate because I say this as an extrovert who really works hard to try to be sensitive to introverts, to try to create space. I’m not perfect, but I really do try to try to empathize. And I’m very clear that just because you’re comfortable speaking up in a group does not mean you have better ideas. And I think it’s unfortunate that we don’t have more flexibility in the way that we engage the workforce to account for more introverted styles because I think that people feel lost in those spaces sometimes. And it’s not a function of their intelligence or their value. It’s really just… people. Some people are more comfortable in that space and others.
Terrance Lee Yeah, yeah, exactly. And unfortunately, what happens in those scenarios, because now I’m in leadership positions, you know, so I’m a program manager at a Fortune 500 company. So I lead these large teams. And what I noticed is, I’ll be on these calls, or I’ll be in rooms for these meetings, and there’ll be someone in there, and maybe they’re not saying anything, maybe there’s you know, 10 people in a room, and eight of those people are doing like a lot of talking, exchanging ideas back and forth. And then it’s me, and there’s this person. And I’ve been in this scenario a number of times, and that person’s not saying anything. And when they do say something, it’s like, amazing, you know, it’s like, wow, why didn’t we think of that? And I can so identify with people like that, because I understand that brain, I understand that thought process, while everyone else is talking, they’re sitting there observing, sitting there thinking, they’re sitting there catching all of it, right? They’re just, they’re noticing the things everyone else is missing. And these are some of the strengths that introverts have. And I think that it’s not that introverts are better or extroverts are better it’s how do we learn to work together? How do we learn to use each other’s strengths, to build good companies and good organizations? So I think there’s a lot of positives on both sides.
Kim Meninger So as an introverted leader who has such awareness around this, when you are in a situation where you notice that maybe extroverts are sucking up all the oxygen in the room or that introverts are, you know, sort of not being included in the conversation, are there things that you deliberately do? Are there things you would recommend that people do to try to equalize the playing field a bit?
Terrance Lee Absolutely. So that’s one of my favorite questions to answer. So one of the things that I’m very big on is getting feedback from everyone in the room. Now, some people just aren’t going to feel like talking some days, they’re not going to feel like giving feedback. And we have to respect that. But in general, you know, what I’ve noticed, I’ve noticed that a lot of times someone is quiet on a call or quiet in a meeting because no one even asked what they thought about anything, right? Like someone’s in a room. And it’s because the person, our personalities are so dominant. And the conversations are going back and forth, that this other person is just kind of sitting there waiting to get their words in, or they’re trying to figure out what they want to say, or they have something but it’s just how do I, how do I put it out there, right? And no one is even noticing them. And they end up just getting lost. And eventually, they just say, well, that’s okay, I did they got this meeting. I won’t say anything, right. But that’s a tremendous loss, not just for the company, but for that person, because they might have had the one idea that could have totally shaped everything. So I’d say the first thing is asking people what they think, you know, if you notice that someone’s on a call, or on a meeting, and they’re not saying anything, they’re not sharing, it might just be because they’re being overtopped, and they’re trying to get their words in right. So that’s one thing. I think the other thing that’s very, very big, is not interrupting and letting people get their thoughts out. I’m very big on that one. So like, if there’s a conversation going on and somebody is trying to get their words out, it might be that they’re thinking through it as they’re talking, right. And some people are just very quick to just interject. someone starts talking and they jump in, right? And that person wasn’t able to complete their thought and so I just I really am big on not interrupting, letting people really get their words and say what they have to say. So I know that can be tough, you know because sometimes people have a thought that comes they just want to get it out. But you know if someone else is in the middle of talking you really miss on getting that full thought when you don’t let them really share what they have to say.
Kim Meninger Do you feel like things are different? I mean, that’s probably an obvious, it’s obviously different. But I’m curious what your thoughts are on how virtual meetings have changed the experience?
Terrance Lee Yes, yes, it has changed a lot. So for people that are more introverted, I think that introverts have tended to thrive in a way, in this environment. When you’re in the offices, a lot of offices now we’re going to more of a group collaboration style environment. And so trying to get alone time just to do your work, or be alone with your thoughts was very hard. I think in today’s office environment, where now with virtual, it’s a little different, you know, so, although there are, I don’t know, my company, there’s a ton of meetings. I mean, we have meetings, like all the time, but at least after a meeting, if I want to just break for a minute, just get my mind together, you know, I can do that. And so I think for introverts, the virtual environment actually tends to work well, from a lot of the research that I’ve read and studies, articles that have been done on it. Where for the extroverts, I think it’s kind of been the opposite. I mean, a lot of times people that are more extroverted feed off of people, they feed off of that energy, right. So it’s been very draining. For most people that are extroverted, I have a number of co-workers and friends that are extroverted. And it’s been very tough on them. So I think it’s been an interesting dynamic, just seeing the way that that’s played out.
Kim Meninger Yeah, absolutely. And I’m, you know, I feel like this conversation is really important because as you and I were talking about before we pushed record, right, the, the idea that there are many of people in the workforce who identify as, as introverts and extroverts, and like you said that continuum, and it’s really, to our own detriment, and to the organization’s detriment, that we not be more aware of whose voices are lost in the mix when we’re meeting or having conversations, when we’re doing our work more broadly. Because there are people with different styles, different backgrounds, different perspectives, that all have the potential to contribute something really important. But if we are not creating the conditions that allow for that to happen, then we will, we will miss it. And it won’t just be the individual who doesn’t get the chance to speak up that, that loses. And so I’m curious if you have thoughts for those of us who are extroverts on how to be more sensitive to, to introverts?
Terrance Lee Yeah, yeah, definitely. So I think that a lot of it goes back to you know, what we were talking about in terms of listening. And just realizing, really knowing your people, right, so knowing that people that you work with are the people that you know, work for you, if you’re in leadership roles, and observing them and understanding their, their style, and the way they are, right? So if there’s somebody that’s in a room, not just labeling somebody, because they’re not talking as oh, they don’t have anything to add, because I think that happens a lot, right? You know, people just naturally see someone not talking and it’s, oh, that person’s shy, that person’s quiet, or they may not, you know, have anything to add, which is to their detriment, right? Because now when you’re thinking about roles in an organization, they get put in this box, and it may just not be a fair situation, right? So it’s very important, I think, to understand who the person is first. And then the other thing is to, I think, really play on the strengths of someone. So if someone is more introverted, well, maybe they’re not going to be the loudest voice in the room, maybe they’re not going to have a certain style that their more extroverted coworker does. But maybe they’re extremely analytical. Maybe they are a great problem solver, maybe there’s something that they’re very good at that, that’s their strength, right. So play to that, because that might be someone else’s weakness, you know, so really trying to tap into the strengths of the person, I think it’s key. And that’s the way that you know, we can really have better organizations that way.
Kim Meninger I think that’s a really great point. And unfortunately, I think a lot of whether it’s, I’m not suggesting that the people are necessarily doing this with negative intent, but I do think that when we’re busy and distracted by so many other things, it’s harder to be a good leader and to really take a deeper look at people and, like you’re describing, to really look at what’s a way to perhaps bring out their strengths in a new way. And so one of the things that I often hear from my clients is that they’ve been given feedback along the lines of you need to take up more space, right? You need to take up more space in a meeting and that message alone sends so many different, it conveys so many different things to the individual of, yeah, you’re not good enough the way that you are, you need to show up in ways that are inauthentic in order to be seen as meeting my expectations, at least right. And so it creates layers of self-doubt that I think, yeah, don’t do it. Create an environment where that person can do their best work.
Terrance Lee Yeah, absolutely, absolutely authenticity is so key. Because you know, as I was talking about earlier, I’ve tried to act like an extrovert, I’ve tried to have a different personality style, way of doing things. And ultimately, it just doesn’t last. And it’s not good for organizations, either. Because people are going to feel burned out, they’re going to feel drained, and they’re going to want to leave ultimately, you know, because it’s just not, when you’re not being your authentic self, you can’t do your best work. So it’s not productive for the organization. And it’s not good for the person, you know. So I think just an acceptance of who people are, what their strengths are, it goes a long way, it makes a big difference.
Kim Meninger Absolutely. You know, I think that it takes extra work, right? I mean, it’s, it’s much easier to demand conformity from your team than it is to have a style that acknowledges differences and tries to promote that across your team. And so I think for, for leaders, that’s a really important lesson, to have, checking our ourselves and our own feedback, is that really an appropriate way to motivate someone to say something like that right to essentially convey that being an introvert or being anything other than what you are is not good enough? Or instead think about, like you said, oh, maybe this person just doesn’t feel comfortable in that environment but can do really well, here.
Terrance Lee Yeah, yeah. Yeah. The other thing that I’ll add to this, too, and this is something that, you know, I say, I say it from experience working with a number of different leaders with different personality types and styles. But just because someone is talking the most doesn’t mean they’re right. Or it doesn’t mean they have the best ideas. You know, you kind of said something similar to that earlier. I mean, sometimes there’s just this misperception, oh, this person is the loudest in the room doing the most talking. So they’re the most on top of it, they’re the one that and that’s not necessarily the case. I mean, it could be that there’s someone sitting back in that room, that again, has the best idea out of everyone there. It’s just they’re waiting for that opportunity to get it out where they need to be in an environment where they feel encouraged to get their ideas out. Right. So these are the kinds of conversations that I think as a society we need to really have. Because it’s not that being louder and more extroverted makes someone a better leader, right? They might be a better leader, or they might not. And these are the kinds of conversations I think that are, that are lacking, and I try to bring as much awareness through as possible.
Kim Meninger Yeah, and I was sharing with you before we pushed record too of how I’ve been doing a lot of speaking about allyship more broadly lately. And that, because that can be somewhat intimidating or emotionally charged, I’ve been introducing the concept of the introvert/extrovert dynamic as a way for extroverts, in particular, to show up as allies to one another. And what’s interesting to me is that as soon as I bring up that dimension of identity, everyone starts talking. It’s so quiet until we get to the point where we start talking about introverts versus extrovert, when we’re talking about gender, we’re talking about race, we’re talking about any other aspect of, of identity, everyone closes down. But there’s something about this introvert/extrovert dynamic that people feel a sense of connection to the conversation, and it feels like an opportunity for them to more safely do something different than what they’re doing. And I find that encouraging because I think that the ability to raise the awareness and hopefully, you know, even in the course of the conversation that we’re having today, give people actual steps that they can take, things that they can do differently, will help to make some, some shifts. Change is never as fast as we want it to be better. But hopefully, that does prompt people to think differently and start to show up a little bit differently.
Terrance Lee Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And you know, and it’s not an overnight thing. I mean, like you said, it takes time, but I think something as small as somebody looking at their organization, or looking at the people they work with, and just identifying who’s who, you know, like kind of looking at the organization and thinking about people’s personalities, their styles, how they like to work. And if someone is more introverted, realizing it’s not a problem, like it’s not a negative thing, it’s not a bad thing. They don’t have to conform, like you said to everyone else, you know, how do you use that person’s strengths in the best way possible? You know. So I think that’s a real actionable step there is just realizing who’s on your team kind of starting there.
Kim Meninger One question I have for you is that I think sometimes what happens is that extroverts come across as very readable, right? We can see and hear what’s in their head. And there’s not a lot of mystery there. With introverts, sometimes people project onto introverts, it’s like, well, maybe you’re not interested in this conversation. Or maybe you’re not, you’re, you’re not as friendly as somebody else, right? There’s all kinds of stories we tell ourselves to fill in the gaps of information. Would you advise people who know that they are more introverted and may, you know, may not show up in the same way some of their extroverted colleagues to name that? Would you recommend sort of saying to your colleagues, hey, just want to let you know that I, I do my best work when I have the chance to prepare? Or when I can think about it a little bit more carefully? Or, you know, I mean, I think what you’re saying about the leaders, and the team’s really understanding each other is important, but do you think it’s worthwhile on the part of the individual to offer up that information as well?
Terrance Lee Absolutely, absolutely. So one thing about me is, I’m definitely not one of those where I just beat up on the extroverts, and it’s like, yay, you all need to change this and change that. No, as introverts, we have some onus as well, right? I think that it’s fair to our extroverted colleagues that we communicate how we are, and we communicate what works best for us. So one thing that I, you know, typically advise and say, is, when you have an initial meeting, let’s say that someone is brand new to a team, they’re getting to know their leaders and their co-workers and everything, to have open, honest conversation about, you know, how you work, right, like what your best style is, what your best work environment is Now granted, you know, you may not 100% be able to work in what your best situation is, right? So somebody may prefer to work alone, well, sometimes you may have to work in teams, or someone may prefer to work in teams, but then, you know, vice versa, right. So, you know, there has to be some flexibility there. But I think it at least starts with having the conversation and letting people know where you stand. Because if you don’t have that conversation, then what happens is from the extrovert perspective, you know, just like you said, right, it can be perceived as this person isn’t interested, you don’t have anything to say. And now there’s a lot of misperception there. So I do think that I talk a lot about you know, speaking up as introverts how we can effectively do that. And so I think that is important.
Kim Meninger Is there anything else that you would add to the speaking up piece? Because I know there are a lot of introverts listening that are thinking, oh, what else would you tell them?
Terrance Lee Yeah, so speaking up, the other one that I am very big on, is do not compare yourself to anybody. And don’t think you have to be anything else. Because I think a lot of times as introverts because you know, the workplace is very extrovert driven. There was some research I was reading recently, some workplace consultants, and they surveyed over 300,000 business professionals, and out of them over 75% said that they thought there was a negative stigma with introversion and leadership. So over 75%, thought that being an introvert was like a bad thing as a leader. So I mean, when you think of numbers like that, and you just think in general of the way society kind of views introversion, it can make a lot of introverts feel like they have to change. Like they feel like I need to be something else, I can’t, I can’t get promoted, if you know, I have this kind of personality, right? So I think it’s very key as an introvert to first realize nothing is wrong with you. And don’t compare yourself to the way someone else is or what they’re doing. Just learn to work in your authentic self and do the best work you can that way. And so I think that’s one of the main keys and tips that I talked about quite a bit.
Kim Meninger I love that you said that because that ties directly into impostor syndrome too. And that sense that I’m not good enough, that I need to be more or different than I am today in order to succeed. And I think just normalizing the experience of being an introvert, especially in an extroverted world, is so important and to your point, really reflecting on how that makes you really good at what you do and that it’s not a deficiency that you need to workaround. It actually serves you well in ways that you know, if I am an extrovert, I may not have access to that level of listening or thinking and so I think we would compliment each other really well. And that’s an, unfortunately in if you feel like you’re not good enough, you’re not necessarily going to proactively think about the ways in which this is an asset.
Terrance Lee Yeah, absolutely.
Kim Meninger One question I bookmarked here on my notes to make sure I went back to, I think that there are a lot of people who would want more insight around this too, as you had mentioned early on, networking tips for people who are more introverted, because that pressure to just always be out there interacting with other people, even if it’s not interesting, or you don’t have the energy for it. What would you say? Are there some more authentic ways to think about networking?
Terrance Lee Yeah. So protecting your energy is very important. And when I say that, what I mean is when you’re in these, you know, if it’s a happy hour, or to get together with coworkers, or whatever the case is, again, just going back to authenticity. So not feeling like, when you’re at these functions, you have to act like anyone else, or be like anyone else. That’s, that’s very key. And the other thing is balance, you know, so let’s say that you have some new co-workers and they want to go to lunch every day, right? They want to eat lunch together every day. Well, maybe as an introvert, that’s just too much. Like, maybe for you, it’s once a week, maybe it’s twice a week, right? But there is something again, you know, putting the onus on us as introverts as well, there is a lot of advantage in networking. And you don’t want the perception out there, that you just don’t want anything to do with the team. So you do want to get to know your co-workers, but you want to do it in an authentic way that’s comfortable for you. So again, balance, you know, if they’re going out every day, maybe for you, you just want some alone time at lunch, to just think through your thoughts. Maybe not think about work at all, you know, whatever that is. So maybe you scale it back, you do once or twice a week or something like that. So I think finding the balance and just protecting your energy and realizing that you don’t have to be like anyone else, just be yourself. Because we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. When we’re, when we even think about networking. It’s like, okay, I have to network, it means I have to meet new people, oh, my gosh, I have to introduce myself and introduce themselves. And you know, and just let all the pressure go. Just be yourself, be who you are. And when you do that, people are drawn to authenticity, can typically kind of smell out when someone is not being real and not being authentic. So it’s just not worth doing it that way. So definitely being authentic and finding your balance, what works for you.
Kim Meninger I love that. And I also think that if you are interested in serving in this way, you could be a great role model to others, too. Because I think that there are probably a lot of other people that are going every day and feeling like they have no choice. And if you say, hey, you know what, I’m gonna join you two days a week. But on the off days, I’m gonna do my own thing, maybe there are other people thinking, Oh, thank God, I can say that too.
Terrance Lee Absolutely, because some of those other people, they’re probably going every day because they just feel like it’s the thing to do. Right. So
Kim Meninger that’s right. Well, this has been such a great conversation. Terrance, I can’t thank you enough for bringing this insight here to this audience. Where can people find you if they want to learn more?
Terrance Lee Yeah, so on social media, I’m at The Introverted Leader on Instagram, Tik Tok and Twitter. And also my website is quietvoicefearlessleader.com. So I wrote a book, Quiet Voice, Fearless Leader, 10 Principles for Introverts to Awaken the Leader Inside. And that’s available on my website. So yeah, would love to connect with everyone out there, and talk more.
Kim Meninger Great, and I will make sure that all of those links are in the show notes as well, for anybody who would like to follow up with you. Thank you again, Terrance. Any final thoughts before we wrap up for today?
Terrance Lee Yeah, no, I just appreciate you having me on. And you know, and I would just say, in closing, you know, again, introverts and extroverts, I think can work extremely well together. And I think the key is for us to just accept each other and not try to change each other, play to our strengths. And we’ll be okay. So I think just as a society, we need to learn to just work better together and accept who the other person is. And that we’ll be good.
Kim Meninger That’s such a great message to wrap up on. Thank you so much. It was great to talk to you today.
Terrance Lee Yeah, thank you.