I’ve been an introvert all of my life. As a child, my mother would push me to go introduce myself to people, to say hello to someone who we saw while out in public. My sixth grade teacher would constantly push me to speak up in class, to raise my hand and provide answers and contribute to conversations. I hated that. It felt unnatural. It felt phony. It felt forced. It was just not me.

Now that I’m grown, I don’t care one bit. No more being forced to meet people, no more being forced to contribute to classroom discussions, no more being forced to date someone’s friend, and no more being forced to be someone who I am not. I refuse to put myself in the position to be judged by others. I just don’t care anymore. I’m an introvert and I’m proud.

It took years to embrace my introversion. After spending so much time being unhappy with people pushing me to jump outside of my comfort zone, I just decided that I’d had enough.

My sixth grade teacher, Ms. Brody, was a nice enough lady. She was from the Midwest and seemed to genuinely like the students. But she seemed particularly interested in me. Somehow me being quiet, not speaking up in class was on her radar. Save an introvert. After class, she would ask me why I did not raise my hand, ask me why I did not contribute to the class discussions or provide answers to the math problems. I knew the answers. My grades were A’s and B’s; I just did not contribute, and for the life of her, she could not figure out why I chose to sit there quietly, barely speaking in the classroom for entire day.

I spoke to friends during recess and lunch and participated in kickball and basketball. I did not speak in class. Ms. Brody spoke to me after class one day and made a verbal contract with me that I would speak up in class once per week. That was a fail. I would watch the clock anxiously, waiting for the end of the class period, and raise my hand on a Friday at 2:45 p.m. The bell rang at 2:50 p.m.

It did not work then and it does not work now. I am an introvert and will continue to have difficulty speaking in public, going out to meet new people, and being coaxed out of my shell. I like my shell. I am happy there and will make a great living for myself.