Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking Audiobook (Free)

At least one-third of the people we realize are introverts. They will be the ones who prefer hearing speaking, reading to partying; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favour working on their personal over brainstorming in teams. Although they are often labeled ‘peaceful,’ it is to introverts that people owe lots of the great contributions to society–from van Gogh’s sunflowers to the invention of the non-public computer.

Passionately argued, impressively researched, and filled up with about Quiet: THE ENERGY of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking indelible tales of real people, Quiet shows how dramatically we undervalue introverts, and just how much we lose in doing so. Taking the audience on a trip from Dale Carnegie’s birthplace to Harvard Business School, from a Tony Robbins workshop to an evangelical megachurch, Susan Cain graphs the rise from the Extrovert Ideal in the twentieth hundred years and explores its far-reaching results. She foretells Asian-American students who experience alienated through the brash, backslapping atmosphere of American schools. She questions the dominant beliefs of American business tradition, where forced cooperation can stand in the way of innovation, and where the command potential of introverts is often forgotten. And she attracts on cutting-edge study in mindset and neuroscience to uncover the surprising differences between extroverts and introverts.

Maybe most inspiring, she introduces us to successful introverts–from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who silently taps into the power of questions. Finally, she gives invaluable guidance on everything from how to better negotiate differences in introvert-extrovert associations to how to empower an introverted kid to when it makes sense to be a ‘pretend extrovert.’

This extraordinary book has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how introverts see themselves.