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Who Makes a Better Public Speaker — An Introvert or an Extrovert?
Who makes a better public speaker — an introvert or an extrovert?
Most people would immediately say, ‘that’s a no-brainer — the extrovert.’ And it seems like common sense, right? The extrovert is more comfortable with large crowds, more energized by groups of people, and happier talking rather than listening. Introverts prefer alone time, small groups, and introspection. That makes for an easy decision — the extrovert wins by a country mile.
And yet. Over the years, as I have worked coaching speakers, a surprising number of the top professionals have turned out to be introverts.
How could this be the case? Introverts, because they are more inwardly focused, can have more awareness of their own psychological states. This awareness allows them to more easily work with, develop, and even control their emotions. And focused emotion is the basis of charisma. And there you have it — some of the most charismatic speakers I’ve worked with are introverts.
To be sure, it costs an introvert more energy to give a speech with a strong emotional subtext. As a result, they need more recovery time afterward.
I first realized the possibilities of the introvert-as-charismatic-speaker when I started asking my clients about how they recovered from a…
