Good employers and bosses want to hear your voice at work. They understand that the open sharing of views, opinions, and experiences leads to a happier and healthier workplace for everyone. In particular, many employers are now asking young people specifically to share their views on how things could be improved.
But what can you do if you’re shy or introverted? Don’t panic–you can still have your say! Here are just a few of our favourite strategies to ensure shy people and introverts can get their voices heard at work.
Let People Know You’re Shy
Sometimes, if one person in a group or team is quiet, their coworkers will assume that they do not have anything they want to say or that they prefer to listen without speaking. Proactively letting your boss and teammates know that you’re shy can help them to be aware of your needs and take steps to include you in the conversation.
It is easy for shyer people and quieter voices to be drowned out by the louder and more extroverted members of their team. Clearly expressing your needs and your desire to be included can nudge them towards being more considerate and intentional in making space for your voice.
Try this script: “I wanted to let you know that I’m shy and introverted. So if I’m not speaking up during meetings, that’s usually why. I do often have things
I want to say but I find it difficult to assert myself around the more confident members of the team.”
Identify Which Environments Make You Feel Comfortable
For many introverts and shy people, a big group meeting or whole-team brainstorming session is a nightmare. If this sounds like you, then it’s okay to understand and acknowledge that these are not environments in which you can thrive.
Perhaps you do better with smaller group meetings, one-on-one conversations, or asynchronous methods of collaboration such as email threads or Slack discussions. If you want to contribute but find some environments more effective than others, speak up and let your boss and teammates know.
They might not always be able to facilitate this for you, but considerate managers and colleagues will take your concerns on board and strive to provide at least some environments that make it feel safe for you to share your views. After all, it is beneficial to the entire team and organisation to ensure that everybody has a chance to get their voice heard.
Put Your Thoughts in Writing
Many shy people and introverts struggle with face-to-face communication, particularly in larger groups, but excel at written communication. So why not put your thoughts and opinions in writing? This can help you to organise your thoughts, think the problem through from multiple angles, and be confident about what you want to say before you say it.
This could include sending your thoughts to your teammates before or after a brainstorming meeting, contributing opinions in your company’s Slack channel, or emailing your boss privately to discuss any concerns.
If you do need to share your opinion verbally, you may find that writing yourself notes helps you to get your thoughts in order and feel more confident speaking up when the time comes.
Practise What You Want to Say
If you’ve ever had a job interview, you have probably tried this technique. You might have had a “practice run” beforehand so that you could rehearse what you wanted to say and feel confident during your interview.
You can use this same strategy to help you speak up at work. If you have something you want to say, practise it beforehand. This might involve standing in front of the mirror (you’ll feel silly but don’t worry, no-one can see you!), trying it out with one trusted colleague or friend, or simply saying it a few times in your head before you speak up.
Push Yourself a Little
Stepping out of our comfort zones is how we grow, and it’s important to do so. This doesn’t mean you have to completely overcome your shyness or swap your introversion for extroversion. However, pushing yourself a little bit can do wonders for your confidence as well as helping to ensure your voice gets heard.
Why not set yourself small but manageable challenges? This could include things like letting someone know that you’re shy but have ideas to share, speaking up with an opinion in a team meeting, or assertively but professionally disagreeing with somebody. Later on, you could give yourself bigger challenges such as presenting a proposal or even leading a meeting.
Go slowly, take baby steps, and congratulate yourself every time you push through the fear to get your voice heard. You might be surprised at how quickly you feel more confident and comfortable when you start to challenge yourself.
Recognise Your Strengths
Being shy or introverted is not a weakness! In fact, we often find that shy people and introverts are some of the most thoughtful people, with a tendency to share their opinions only when they have been carefully considered from multiple angles. This is a great strength and you should recognise it as such.
Introverts are powerful and bring unique skills and attributes to the workplace. So find your strengths, play to them, and celebrate them. Because you’re amazing!
