The unapologetic introvert: I had to leave the U.S. to stop pretending to be an extrovert

[davidthegnome]

8. My advice to fellow introverts is...

don't bother pretending - not for anyone's sake. You are who you are, to deny that, to attempt to be someone else... is a recipe for pain, failure, disaster, and unhappiness.

It may be cliche to say just be you - but just be you. If it's not good enough for someone else, that's their problem, not yours. That's not to say that we don't benefit by having more exposure and some social activity and whatnot... - and introversion, particularly isolation, can be greatly overdone, especially as introverts tend to think far too deeply on their own. There is no reason though, to ever be ashamed for being an introvert.