10 Struggles That Every Young, Hard Working Introvert Faces

1. Your friends decided to attend a new club’s opening event and all of a sudden your head went into this frenzy of crazy ideas fanning from the Holocaust, Black Death, Great Fire of London to 9/11. And to make the matters more terrifying, they ask you what you’re going to wear at which you dropped the subtle yet obvious excuse: “Nah, I’ll just pass. My mom’s asking me to be home early. Important personal matter.”

2. It’s payday and you are itching to go out and explore with the wealth you just acquired. You started texting your friends to go with you, but they’re all “sorry man, can’t go out today” or “I’m going out with Amanda” (like you know who Amanda is) or “we’re having a team outing.” So you decided to go out alone and get that “everyone’s watching you like you have some funny thing on your face” look from the people around.

3. Due to a sudden—spur of the moment—elation, you invited a friend to go out hiking because you know she likes anything that involves backpacks and the great outdoors. But when the day comes, you realize that you’d rather curl up in bed and contemplate life and how to face the wild world while listening to some Spotify playlist while concocting the perfect excuse for canceling the plan… at the last minute.

4. You got squared off and have no choice but to attend a party with friends. At first you’re kind of enjoying it, bobbing like a cork screw up and down in sync with the beat and a drink at hand. But when you start to feel suffocated and inhibited, you start to sweat and get that feeling that everyone’s whispering about how stupid you look and you just want to run away.

5. You are walking alone at the mall in search of whatever it is you are looking for while waiting for a friend and you start to feel claustrophobic and you feel like the whole precipice is caving in on you. You immediately snatch your phone, pretend to dial a number and act like you’re talking to someone even though you don’t have any cell credit. Bummer.

6. Most introverts are asocial—they don’t feel comfortable around a crowd and panic when confronted with real-life situations like getting lost in the city. Then, when you finally summon the courage to ask someone for the direction, they didn’t quite catch it. So you pretended to know and got lost even more. Shame.

7. So you finally met someone and that someone is really really cute and funny and carefree and nice to talk with. The problem is you don’t know how to make the conversation keep going. You have ideas in mind spanning from Taylor Swift’s cats, to slam book-esque type of questions, to new Colleen Hoover novel, and coffee. Good luck with that.

8. You wanted to make a change in your life but you don’t know where to start. It’s a struggle to decide on something and really stick to it like your life depends on it. I suggest you read “For The Introvert That Wants To Make A Difference In The World.” I think it’s a good guide.

9. You want to belong, but you are clueless how. People say you have to define yourself first before you’ll know how to belong. But this I say, don’t even try to do it. Defining yourself means you are setting boundaries, parameters, for yourself. That will only limit you.

10. Getting caught up in a situation where you can’t quite comprehend the feeling that you should feel. It’s a real struggle when you’re awarded with something real and special and yet you don’t know if you should feel happy or ashamed or anxious.