Quiet Power by Susan Cain | Book Review

“Don’t let anyone tell you that introverts are anti-social – we are just differently social.”

Susan Cain sparked a worldwide conversation with Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking. She inspired millions of people, and permanently changed the way we see introverts – and the way introverts see themselves. Now she takes the Quiet Revolution to a younger audience.

Childhood, adolescence and your early twenties are times wrought with insecurity and self-doubt. Your search for your place in the world can seem daunting. Focusing on the strengths and challenges of being introverted, Quiet Power is full of examples from school, family life and friendship, applying the breakthrough discoveries of Quiet to readers that so badly need them.

58. Quiet Power

A friend recommended Quiet, the author’s first book, a few years ago. I’d meant to read it but kept putting it off in favour of other books on my TBR. If I’m honest, I think I finally picked it up now because I loved this cover. It was after I’d started reading I realised this was focused on kids and teens.

Quiet Power explains what it means to be an introvert and how introverts function in a world that is loud and impulsive. The world is made up of all kinds of people and being an introvert is not a personality flaw as you may have been made to believe. If you’ve been subjected to comments like: “You should speak up”, “take an active part in the discussion”, “make an effort to meet people”, “make more friends”, this is the book for you.

Cain points out what makes an introvert tick, what irks them, and how one can focus on little things to convert their introvertism into a strength.

“You cannot let fear become a thief. It will steal so many precious things and rob you of so many incredible moments.”

The book uses real world examples kids, teens, and even adults can learn from to foster strong relationships with people without changing their inherent quiet nature. Be it in the classroom, in the cafeteria, in group activities/projects, you can be an introvert and still make yourself heard.

When being in large gatherings makes you nervous, you can find comfort in a close group of as little as one or two friends and gradually expand your circle.

No matter where you are, the important thing is to not stretch yourself beyond your capacity and find a moment/place to return to your quiet state – your true self – to recharge your batteries.

That isn’t to say being extrovert is bad. The author does not judge one or the other. Rather, she shows ways where both can co-exist and have a win-win partnership in every relationship.

How I wish I had this book to help me when I was growing up. My personality assessments back in school were always the same: needs to speak more, make herself visible etc.. I began evolving into an ambivert when I started working and I continue to see it as a work in progress. But my natural state remains the introvert where I am most comfortable and productive.

Quiet Power is not only insightful but an empowering piece of writing that will guide you to find strengths in your introvertism and use them to surge ahead in your personal and professional life. Even though this is tailored for kids and teens, there is much to learn for the adults as well. If you haven’t read the author’s original work yet, I recommend giving this one a try. Grant Snider’s illustrations are a bonus 🙂 .

Quiet Power: The Secret Strengths of Introverts by Susan Cain. Illustrated by Grant Snider. Published in 2016 by Dial Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

Book 58 of 2021.

Aquamarine Flavours Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.

Available on Amazon*.

About Photo: Introverts are not comfortable in large groups for long periods of time. So it is important for them to retreat into a quiet place where they can recharge their batteries. I find that at home in the company of my books and craft supplies. I’ve never needed a door sign but if I did, it would be this.

This is hand-lettered using a white Sakura pen on 220gsm cardstock.

About the Author: Susan Cain is the author of the bestsellers Quiet Journal, Quiet Power: The Secret Strengths of Introverts, and Quiet: The Power of Introverts in A World That Can’t Stop Talking, which has been translated into 40 languages, is in its seventh year on the New York Times best seller list, and was named the #1 best book of the year by Fast Company magazine, which also named Cain one of its Most Creative People in Business. LinkedIn named her the 6th Top Influencer in the world.

Susan has partnered with Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant and Dan Pink to launch the Next Big Idea Book Club and they donate all their proceeds to children’s literacy programs. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. Her record-smashing TED talk has been viewed over 30 million times on TED.com and YouTube combined, and was named by Bill Gates one of his all-time favorite talks. Cain has also spoken at Microsoft, Google, the U.S. Treasury, the S.E.C., Harvard, Yale, West Point and the US Naval Academy. She received Harvard Law School’s Celebration Award for Thought Leadership, the Toastmasters International Golden Gavel Award for Communication and Leadership, and was named one of the world’s top 50 Leadership and Management Experts by Inc. Magazine. She is an honors graduate of Princeton and Harvard Law School.

She lives in the Hudson River Valley with her husband and two sons.

Learn more about the Quiet Revolution at quietrev.com and follow Susan Cain on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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