Finding your voice: Reflections of an introvert

Many content designers I’ve come across are introverts. I don’t know what it is about the content design profession that attracts so many of us.

Personally I think I’ve always turned to writing to express what I struggle to say aloud.

Feedback throughout my school life was always the same:

“Alysia is a hard worker but could contribute more in group discussions”.

I’ve been reflecting on this for a few weeks as I’m trying to find my voice at Royal Greenwich.

Things I struggle with and how I work with it

Thinking on my feet

I am not a blagger. If I’m put on the spot I won’t be able to eloquently string together a response like others may be able to. So I have a Trello board that I list all my questions and thoughts before and after a meeting.

For particularly important meetings, workshops or presentations, I’ll script every word I plan to say in advance. But I write it in a conversational tone so it sounds less robotic and I don’t sound so panicked — even if the red creeping up my neck kinda gives it away.

The more comfortable I am with a set process or a workshop format, the less scripting I feel I need to do. When I’ve been at RBG a bit longer, I’m hoping it’ll become second nature again.

Active listening if I need to speak up

I struggle if I know I have to chip into the conversation part way through as I’ll already be trying to anticipate what will be said, how I should respond and what follow ups might come up.

This is why I tend to stay quiet during meetings. It allows me to take in and process what is being said before I speak up. This ensures I’m able to listen actively without the distraction or anxiety of trying to construct a response.

If I’m honest, part of it is anxiety. I’m not just thinking about what I’ll say but what others will think. What if no one responds? What if people think what I’ve said is stupid? What if someone has already made this point? What if I’ve subconsciously stolen this thought from someone else and am taking credit of it for myself? I know, that’s a lot of ‘what ifs’, there’s lots going on in this head.

Speaking in large groups

A big group means more people whose thoughts and reactions I’m trying to anticipate.

The more people there are in a group meeting, the quieter I’m likely to be in off the cuff conversations. I don’t have a problem speaking in large meetings if I’m prepared for it or I’m familiar with the structure of a workshop or meeting.

I find it useful to have smaller debriefs after large group sessions. This way I can share any ideas or thoughts without worrying that I’ll interrupt others or take the meeting off track.

Approaches I’m testing

Using the chat to find an entry point in meetings

I have a lot of questions but often don’t end up asking them as the conversation has already moved on before I find an entry point.

Many people (including introverts) find the ‘hands up’ function in Teams really useful at helping ensure their voices are heard. Personally, if I put my hand up in a meeting I’ll be thinking so much about what I want to say and panicking, that I’ll end up totally losing my train of thought. It’ll also make it harder for me to actively listen and keep track of the conversation.

I’m planning to start weaving my pre-meeting questions and on the spot thoughts into the chat more to ensure I’m contributing. The aim is that once I’ve made a point in the chat, I can elaborate on the point or question verbally.

Learning how others like to work

In the product team we’ve all written user manuals to help other team members understand how we like to work and how to get the most out of us.

I’d like us to do something similar in project work. Emma did this for the Intranet kick off which helped us to understand each other a bit more. I think this is particularly important for the Greenwich Community Directory work as there are so many stakeholders involved and lots of different personalities that need to work collaboratively together to get the best outcome.

Setting boundaries and sculpting time for questions

It’s natural to get nervous presenting work to others. It can leave you feeling exposed and vulnerable which is why it’s important to set boundaries that can reduce some of the pressure.

I struggle to quickly shift my own thoughts if a conversation goes off topic. So if I’m presenting, I find it easier to get through sharing all of the findings before opening up to discussion and questions. This way I can shift my mindset easily to the next task at hand and contribute more freely to the conversation as I’m not focusing on what I need to say next.

This isn’t always possible. I’ve also got to learn to be flexible in workshops as it’s important to let conversation flow naturally and take a step back from rigid exercises.

It’s also okay to ask for help. If you know there’s a lot of multi-tasking for a workshop you can always ask someone else to take the notes. In the facilitation workshop Philippa ran last week, she suggested setting timers and quiet time for activities to give myself time to read through the notes and prepare.

What I’ve learned about my introversion

1. My volume goes up and down — at one point I thought I’d overcome my introversion (this isn’t a thing, it’s possible I was combining introversion and imposter syndrome). I found myself contributing in every meeting, helping others who were struggling to get their voices heard, leading workshops and mentoring new content designers to do the same. Then the pandemic hit, I started a new job remotely in 2020 and I found myself back where I started. The good news is, I am in such an open and supportive team at RBG that I know I’ll find my ideal volume once again.
2. It doesn’t mean you’re not good at your job or you’re not confident — I often have to remind myself of this. I’m a good content designer. I’m confident talking about content design, explaining why we do certain things and giving advice on how to get the most out of content. But I can struggle in big groups of new people, getting confident following new formats, and thinking on my feet.
3. It’s not something to “fix” or overcome — introversion isn’t a character flaw, you just need to find techniques to make yourself comfortable and find your voice. Once you’ve done that you can make it your superpower.

A quote from Chidera Eggerue’s book ‘What a time to be alone’