Life

Embracing my extrovert-ness

I know I annoy a lot of people (if you’re one of them, why on earth are you torturing yourself by reading my blog, you weirdo)!

The reasons are many-fold, but mainly I believe it’s because;

a) I am cynical about everything (evvvvverything) and I make sure everyone knows about it.
b) I am très sarcastic.
c) I respond to almost every single situation in life with humour; the more serious the situation the more compelled I am to become Eddie Izzard at the Royal Albert Hall. (Oh, and I laugh at my own jokes, and sometimes do a piggy snort because I’m so pleased with my own hilariousness).

OK, so none of this sounds particularly horrendous – and it can be reasonably entertaining if you catch me on a good day. If though I was sent on a U.N. mission to me (in a purely observational capacity) I would report back (probably in PowerPoint form) about someone who was hard work to spend time with, majorly ‘full of themselves’, possibly a bit on the insane side and a total show off. The truth is I am, I’m all these things (and more – believe me I have many, many more ways of annoying you than the three I’ve mentioned above).

I’ve found many, many articles out there with helpful advice for introverts, which is great, but they all seem to imply that us extroverts have it easy, that we always succeed, always get the happy ending. Uh, firstly, no we don’t! Secondly, it’s not always easy being like… this. Half the time I feel like I have some sort of brain disease – my mind races and races and I can’t keep up, I feel physically giddy with ideas, thoughts, possibilities. I talk out loud to try and help me focus – sometimes there are people within earshot to hear me ramble on, often there are not. I very rarely finish a train of thought before I’ve moved onto a completely different topic, I feel a bit bewildered when the people I am conversing with seem to be having trouble with the five conversations at a time we are having and I’m totally impatient about EVERYTHING. it’s all about broad stokes, I struggle with detail. Oh, and I can only really get on with people who are clever, funny and friendly (in that order).

So why am I mentioning all this? Well, I have realised after (almost) 43 years that I feel more alive and more ‘me’ when I can forget the social niceties and just ‘be’ like this. I have a scary suspicion that I am turning into a shouty old person…. but NO not old! Man alive, I don’t feel old at all. Just shouty.

I don’t plan on being deliberately offensive or anything but you have fair warning that I’m going to experiment with leaving the safety-latch off my personality for a while to see how much trouble I get into. I’m going to stop listening to that voice in my head that bangs on and on saying “shhhhhhh, people might hear you”, “people might not ‘get you”, “I don’t think they like you standing on the tables in this establishment” and just get on with things, with life. I think it will help me be more creative and more ‘me’.

I’m going to unrepress myself. (I may swear more, too).

try and stop me

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21 Comments

  • Reply
    Eva
    17 May 2012 at 21:28

    I don’t think you’re annoying! You make me smile :)

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 20:58

      Thanks, Eva :)

  • Reply
    Carol
    17 May 2012 at 21:58

    Me too!. You were right here in the room standing on the table in this establishment … and it was allowed!

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 20:58

      Yay!

  • Reply
    Victoria Smith
    17 May 2012 at 22:02

    Fabulous! I always feel like I have five conversations going on at the same time with people too! I love that you are embracing what makes you you. Huzzah!

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 20:58

      Thanks Victoria – it’s feeling good so far!

  • Reply
    Amanda
    17 May 2012 at 23:10

    You G.O. Sister! More power to you! If the rest of the world caught up up and were more themselves rather than more, well, more someone else, then this world we live in would be a far more harmonious, compassionate, giving place. Oh! And we just might get some meaningful shit done and have a good chuckle along the way. Be shouty, be creative, be inspired. Be. You. Hurrah! x

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 20:59

      I will, I will! You’re so right (and thank you) x

  • Reply
    Roxanne
    18 May 2012 at 01:53

    you go grrrl!

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 20:59

      I do! I do go.

  • Reply
    Lindsay Drya
    18 May 2012 at 13:23

    Amen to that! I found your blog through Blogging from the Heart, nice to meet you! I know the feeling and I soooo enjoyed reading your post… :)

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 21:01

      Hi Lindsay! Thank you :)

  • Reply
    Jen {The Wholehearted Life}
    18 May 2012 at 20:23

    Helllooooo from Blogging from the Heart and yeah YOU for unleashing the inner you. You sound absolutely fabulous (I say that as an out-of-the-closet introvert, lol) and I can’t wait to get to know you more!

    Oh yeah…I like swearing…bring it sister!

    • Reply
      Angie
      19 May 2012 at 21:01

      Helllooooo to you too Jen! :)

  • Reply
    Cass
    21 May 2012 at 11:19

    You know what? I’m painfully self-consious and not confident but-at-all so I think out every word I type (or speak) and every little punctuation mark I use until it hurts. It can take me over an hour to leave a two-sentence comment on a blog. And I STILL manage to upset people. Because, somehow, some people will always just assume the worst of others. So I say: YES. Be you. Don’t be who other people want you to be because they’ll find fault with you anyway. I say: be shouty. Swear. Dance on tables. Dare to like what you like and to walk away from the rest. You may make fewer friends, but those you do will be ones that love you for you (anyone who only liked you when you said what they wanted you to say basically only ever loved one person anyway, and it wasn’t you).

    • Reply
      Angie
      22 May 2012 at 19:43

      Here’s to upsetting people (but not on purpose) and being ourselves! x

  • Reply
    Rhianne
    24 May 2012 at 16:41

    Ha, we really are alike you and I (you mentioned it before on one of my posts…) I always feel the same way – that I’m restraining myself all the time rather than having to push myself… I can not wait to see more of your personality personally – I think we would get on (haha, as I’m clever, funny and frieendly ;D)

    Also I swear much more than you would think, I have a filthy mind/sense of humour (also, quite an immature sense of humour) and I am easily distracted by everything! :)

    • Reply
      Angie
      24 May 2012 at 22:14

      We would, we would! Easily distracted? I know a blog about that! 😉

  • Reply
    Magali
    24 May 2012 at 17:13

    First off, Thank you for your comment on my SX-70 post! And I think people with strong personalities are slightly annoying but even more fabulous! Can’t wait to see more of the real you. Subscribed to your blog via bloglovin’. :)

    • Reply
      Angie
      24 May 2012 at 22:16

      Welcome, and thank you!!! 😀

  • Reply
    Angela
    30 June 2012 at 19:39

    Have only just found your blog via a link from someone else’s. Good for you :-) I wonder sometimes if I’m a mix between introvert and extrovert, though I’m not sure that’s possible!

    Here’s to being more “me” :-)

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