A book for anyone working in teams and interacting with fellow humans

Background setting?

My subtitle of the "background setting" (as above) generally means the book background setting but not this time. I am talking about the actual background setting i.e., my reading place.?

Just like the title of the book, I read it?QUIETLY?in the corner of my room. I chose this place because of its closeness to the balcony ensuring enough fresh air and plenty of sun rays touching me the whole time I was engrossed in the pages. A bonus was the empty house which gave me an added layer of quietness. So, after the ambience was all set, I was ready to embark on a short expedition. It was an expedition of understanding a world I may know nothing of.?

And there we met each other?

Considering books as the best companion of humans, I really wish to share how I met this gorgeous (not girl) book. I still remember when a few years back, when my eyes accidentally got stuck with?a?TED talk?delivered by Susan Cain talking of the power of?INTROVERTS. At that time (and probably still) I was unaware of what category I fall into – introvert or extrovert. But I got curious about the topic and planned to read her book. It’s been years but I finally executed my plan now.?

(Image - The cover of book QUIET)

The credit for our meeting goes to the presence of a nearby second-hand book market. I also feel lucky to get the original book at half price. On one random weekend, I was riding near the book market and finally got this 600 rupee beauty at the minimal cost of 200 rupees.

I was so excited that…

Meeting this gorgeous book, I got so excited that I started?reading RANDOM?for the first time in my life. It is a well-known advantage of non-fiction books that they can be read without following the chapter-wise sequence (against the case of fiction). After finishing the book in one day, I feel this option of reading random really helped me finish it fast. I am going to try this option with my new books also.?

(Image - A snapshot of the table of content with my personalized beautification in pursuit to explain tactic of RANDOM READING)

I recommend this style of reading random especially for those who lose concentration after reading a few pages. The reason is we read random when we accidentally get excited by a particular chapter or topic of the book. Because of this, we leave all the chapters behind and directly jump to our chapter with?full focus. This focus arises because there is some curiosity or query or question which came to our mind when we first read that chapter name and now when we are on the chapter, we are reading it with rapt attention to find the answer.?

Hence, I am recommending this style for non-fiction lovers.?

But, what’s so special about this book is…

The special thing about this book is that it mesmerized me in multiple sections. I opened the?CONTENT?section of this book and directly jump to the chapter titled?“Why did Wall Street crash and Warren Buffet prosper?”

(Image - I have filled the pages with handcrafted infographics summarizing the learnings (Oops!))

The answer to the above question amazed me. It lies in the concept of?AWARD SENSITIVITY. It means the tendency to get excited for seeking rewards. Some of the research suggested that extrovert people are more likely to be reward-sensitive. This attitude of seeking reward also leads to instant gratification resulting in (sometimes) irrational decision making. This is what happened in the?2008 Financial Crisis?also when a lot of decision making power was concentrated in the hands of aggressive risk-takers (or extroverts). But on the other hand, introverts are more likely to pay attention to warning signals.

(Image - Look at my attempt to explain the 2008 financial crisis and how EXTROVERSION is a key reason behind it…)

The real learning for me out of this chapter was not about the factual correctness but a perspective which we often ignore – the perspective that if a person is not talkative or calm in nature may not be good for working in a team or taking important decisions. We need to realize the differences in the characteristics of extrovert and introvert people and assign the tasks accordingly.?

The same thing happened with Warren Buffet also once. Buffet is the person having characteristics of introvert such as intellectual persistence, prudent thinking, and ability to act on warning signs. In 1999, Buffet was invited to deliver a speech in front of the many businessmen involved in the technology sector. He gave a speech on which he spent weeks for preparation. With the brilliant analysis done, he said that?the tech-fuelled bull market wouldn’t last long.?He said this after analysing the data, noticing the danger signals and then reflecting on what it meant. It was the first public forecast he made in 30 years. Nobody believed him until the following year when the dot-come bubble actually burst.?

I was thrilled while I passed through the above passage. I took a pause for a while and realized that I have never considered this angle of introverts.?

But this thrilling point was just the start. I kept on jumping chapters, unfolding many more aspects of introverts and how they are so crucial for the world in the pursuit of making it a better one.?

I don’t want to talk more even though there is a lot to share. I believe it is better if the reader themselves explore this book. I can bet on multiple shots of amazement for the readers while they are flipping the pages.?

Do give it a read and if time permits, do watch the TED talk by Susan Cain too.?

(Disclaimer?– Many of the facts presented above are based on research that is subject to change with the passage of time.)