Erudite Roulette: Just an Ambivert - TM Manoj Guru, Mysore Toastmasters

Hey You! You are an ambivert man.
When I used to hear the comment above, I started to think about types of personalities, Personalities can be categorized in many ways. Psychological theories say that it can be categorized into three types.  Extrovert, Introvert and Ambivert.
Extroversion tends to be manifested in outgoing, talkative, energetic behavior. Extroversion is the state of primarily obtaining gratification from outside oneself. Extroverts tend to enjoy human interactions and to be enthusiastic, talkative, assertive, and gregarious. They take pleasure in activities that involve large social gatherings, such as parties, community activities, public demonstrations, and business or political groups. They tend to be energized when around other people, and they are more prone to boredom when they are by themselves.
Whereas introversion is manifested in more reserved and solitary behavior. Introverts are typically perceived as more reserved or reflective.
Introverts often take pleasure in solitary activities such as reading, writing, using computers, hiking and fishing. The archetypal artist, writer, sculptor, engineer, composer and inventor are all highly introverted. An introvert is likely to enjoy time spent alone and find less reward in time spent with large groups of people, though they may enjoy interactions with close friends.

The psychological character in between extroversion and introversion is Ambiversion. Although many people view being introverted or extroverted as mutually exclusive, most contemporary trait theories measure levels of extroversion-introversion as part of a single, continuous dimension of personality, with some scores near one end, and others near the half-way mark. An ambivert is moderately comfortable with groups and social interaction, but also relishes time alone, away from a crowd.
Below are some signs to identify oneself as an ambivert.
1. Your friends have a hard time classifying you as an introvert or an extrovert
2. Your energy isn’t drained when you’re alone, nor do you feel exhausted after lots of socialization (or maybe you tend to be drained by both equally)
3. You are usually satisfied with your weekend plans
4. During conversations you know when to keep quiet and when to talk, and you do them both relatively easily
5. You are emotionally stable during a concert, a yoga session and everything in between
6. You don’t relate completely with posts about introverts and extroverts
7. You can’t empathize with people who are not able to sit through loud social gatherings or are uncomfortable with time spent alone
8. You meet more people who are like you
9. You are shy or stable and hence mistaken about your introvert or extravert status.
When I am called as an ambivert, I went through the test with all the above questions. I could see myself in all of the above, except the fourthlh one. So far I have never able to shut my mouth…. LOL
Being an ambivert I have always enjoyed togetherness, fun with people, loved reading into the personalities of people, found it exciting to lead a team, have been comfortable sharing my thoughts and feelings with fellow members. During travel, I have guided and supported teammates.
Nevertheless, I am not taken aback when I don’t see soulmates around me. I even enjoy reading a book alone in a dense forest, going on a trek to the top of a hill alone, playing a video game, thinking deep and being a researcher. During travel alone, I learnt a lot as a wanderer.
So to summarize I could engage my body and mind equally both when I am alone and when I am with company.
Enjoy both being public and being alone.

Thanks to:
Wikipedia, Forbes.com, The psychology-Influence of persuasion by Robert.

Topic by TM Shriya