Persistence Isn't Very Glamorous. If Genius Is

In A Way, Education By Its Nature Favours The Extrovert Because You Are Taking Kids And Putting Them Into A Big Classroom, Which Is Automatically Going To Be A High-stimulation Environment. Probably The Best Way Of Teaching In General Is One On One, But That's Not Something Everyone Can Afford.

I Worry That There Are People Who Are Put In Positions Of Authority Because They're Good Talkers, But They Don't Have Good Ideas. It's So Easy To Confuse Schmoozing Ability With Talent. Someone Seems Like A Good Presenter, Easy To Get Along With, And Those Traits Are Rewarded. Well, Why Is That? They're Valuable Traits, But We Put Too Much Of A Premium On Presenting And Not Enough On Substance And Critical Thinking.

Introverts Need To Trust Their Gut And Share Their Ideas As Powerfully As They Can. This Does Not Mean Aping Extroverts; Ideas Can Be Shared Quietly, They Can Be Communicated In Writing, They Can Be Packaged Into Highly Produced Lectures, They Can Be Advanced By Allies. The Trick For Introverts Is To Honor Their Own Styles Instead Of Allowing Themselves To Be Swept Up By Prevailing Norms.

The Other Thing Aron Found About Sensitive People Is That Sometimes They're Highly Empathic. It's As If They Have Thinner Boundaries Separating Them From Other People's Emotions And From The Tragedies And Cruelties Of The World. They Tend To Have Unusually Strong Consciences. ... They're Acutely Aware Of The Consequences Of A Lapse In Their Own Behavior.

As A Young Boy, Charles Darwin Made Friends Easily But Preferred To Spend His Time Taking Long, Solitary Nature Walks. (as An Adult He Was No Different. “my Dear Mr. Babbage,” He Wrote To The Famous Mathematician Who Had Invited Him To A Dinner Party, “i Am Very Much Obliged To You For Sending Me Cards For Your Parties, But I Am Afraid Of Accepting Them, For I Should Meet Some People There, To Whom I Have Sworn By All The Saints In Heaven, I Never Go Out.”)