Extroverts are social animals. They love being around people. Because they may come on strong, some people aren’t sure what to do with them. They are often misunderstood. So, what are 20 habits of extroverts that most people misunderstand?
How you can tell if you are an extrovert
If you are an extrovert, you have some common characteristics that all extroverts share. Those who have this personality type display the following traits:
- Love to communications and talking, they often think out loud.
- Love being the center of attention, it’s in their nature.
- Can be impulsive and tend to leap before they look
- Love group activities
- Can’t stand being alone too long
- Get inspired by others’ thoughts and ideas.
- Like to talk out your feelings
Common Traits of Extroverts
Here are some often shared traits among extroverts.
1. They like to talk and listen
Extroverts like to communicate. Talking is essential to them because they love to relate to and learn from people. They want to express their ideas, but they also want to hear other people’s thoughts. Extroverts make great listeners because they understand communication.
They value your ideas and will often grab hold of something you’ve said. And, they will share with you how much they love your stories. This is why they have an abundance of friends. They’re just so doggone fun to talk to because they like to listen to other people.
2. Extroverts are private people
You may think that all extroverts are open and share personal things, but that’s not true. They have deep feelings that they won’t always share with a crowd. They have close friendships with people who know them the best. They are apt to be fun and outgoing with most people, but those closest to them know their heart and what’s important to them.
3. Extroverts love attention in public
If you know an extrovert, you know they love getting praised in public. It’s just who they are. They love attention. Because public settings are vital to them, they feel more valued when appreciated in public. So, if you have an extroverted friend, be sure to tell others how great they are when you’re in public. Of course, like all of us, they also love affirmation in private, so do that too.
4. They are excellent on teams
Studies found that extroverts learn best in group settings. They love study groups and group activities at school or work. These people enjoy being on a team because they love to be with people. They like discussing ideas and listening to other’s ideas. They’ll work hard on their team and often rise to the top as a good leader for the team because they’re good at drawing people into the group.
5. Get energy from being with people
You know they extroverts at the bar, they’re the ones moving from table to table talking and laughing with every person. They’re having fun just being with people. Extroverts get energized when they’re around people. Talking, sharing their ideas, and listening to other people inspires them to the point where they feel more energetic.
Being alone too much will cause them to feel out of sorts and depressed. Interacting with people is like air to an extrovert, too little, and they’ll begin to feel lifeless.
6. A person can be shy yet still an extrovert
Believe it or not, some extroverts are shy. Just because you’re an extrovert doesn’t mean you don’t feel reserved when first meeting new people. If you are slow at getting to know people, it could mean you’re shy. That’s okay. Generally, though, most of them don’t mind meeting new people. While introverts find this exhausting, an extrovert like people enough to not mind being with new people even if they’re on the shy side.
7. Need to problem-solve their problems
If you’re an extrovert, you like to solve your problems out loud. You wish to discuss, reason, question, and wonder by talking.
For this reason, these people are often also auditory learners or processors. Auditory learners like to talk about problems. They enjoy listening but can’t wait to share ideas. Here are some other characteristics of an auditory learner.
- They’re better at remembering someone’s name but not their face.
- They get distracted by noises easily.
- They don’t like long narratives in books or plays.
- They love plays and lots of dialogue in books.
- They do the best listening to explanations from the teacher.
- They like to recite poems, lists, or readings.
- Talk to themselves or others
- May read moving their lips since it feels like they’re talking
- Like to listen to music while learning
- Like lectures
- Love it when their teacher praises them in front of the class
- Good oral speller; needs to hear how to spell more than see it.
- Gives lots of detail when the teacher calls on them
Of course, not all auditory learners are extroverts, but it’s more usual for these personality types to be auditory learners. They may lean towards other learning styles, but this is usually the most pronounced one.
8. Like to hang out with a group
Extroverts love a crowd. They don’t do well being alone, but love groups. They feel at peace in a group and can find interesting discussions and opportunities to learn and share ideas. They function well on teams and in groups at school or work.
9. May try to draw introverts in to help them
If you’re an introvert, you may have had an extroverted friend try to “help” you get involved in a group Extroverts think that if someone is alone, it’s a bad thing. This is because they don’t like being alone. It’s easy to misunderstand their motives, but it is because they care that they’re trying to pull you into the group.
10. Do get bored
If there aren’t enough opportunities to communicate, an extrovert will get bored. They get tired of doing activities that don’t require discussion or interaction. You see this in classrooms where the extroverts want to keep talking or clowning around when the teacher has told them to work alone. Extroverts can’t resist trying to get their neighbor’s attention to speak or be funny. They just need to interact.
11. Share a lot of detail
Extroverts are talkers. They can talk and talk. They often go into in-depth detail about a subject because they have been thinking about it assume you want to know as much about it as they do.
They will give descriptions from different angles, list the pros and cons, and then give a detailed account as to how they came upon all these thoughts. It can be exhausting for those listening unless, of course, they’re also extroverts.
12. They doubt themselves at times
It’s easy to assume that extroverts are completely confident all the time. This is a common misunderstanding. Extroverts are so outgoing. They often get lots of criticism. This can be unnerving as they try to change and figure out what would work better. They tend to be overly eager to change up things they think people won’t like to the point where they doubt themselves.
13. Not all extroverts are the same
There are different types of extroverts. Some extroverts are more ambitious than others. All extroverts do like social situations, but they will use them differently. Shy extroverts will surround themselves with a group of outgoing extroverts to make themselves more comfortable. No one size fits all, and this is a commonly misunderstood thing about extroverts.
14. Brains sense pleasure around people
Studies found that an extrovert’s brain reacts differently to seeing people. Their brain senses pleasure when they get around people. Being around people is what makes them happiest. They will find great pleasure in friends and family interactions. Extroverts rarely meet a stranger and enjoy talking with them.
15. Socializing can make an extrovert tired
Believe it or not, socializing can make extroverts tired. They need to recharge, just like introverts. But an extrovert will probably recharge with a small group of people instead of by themselves.
16. Not all born leaders
These folks can be good leaders, but so can introverts. It’s easy to stereotype personalities. Some extroverts prefer to follow rather than lead. Extroverts do like people, but being on a team or in a group is just fine with them. They don’t always need to be the leader.
17. Enjoy noise
Extroverts like noise. They don’t like it when it’s too quiet. They say that when it’s too quiet, they get distracted. Whether it’s playing music while they study or being in a loud restaurant for a meeting, extroverts prefer this over a quiet atmosphere.
18. They’re good teachers, public speakers, or salesmen
It only makes sense that people who love to talk will enjoy professions that require lots of talking. Of course, extroverts can be in any profession, but some jobs just lend themselves to outgoing, talkative people. Sales, speaking, and teaching are perfect professions for extroverts because they get to do what they love most-talk and discuss ideas.
19. Not great planners
Extroverts can be impulsive. They jump at things before they’ve thought through the details. They may say yes to everyone without looking at their calendar first. But because of this, they’re huge doers. They love staying busy and helping others. So, if you display these habits, be sure to keep your calendar with you and take a look once in a while, so you don’t over-commit yourself.
20. Love it when people drop in to say hello
This personality type loves it when someone drops by. Where an introvert would find this overwhelming, an extrovert is in heaven. They love people, and being surprised by an unexpected visitor adds energy to them because they have someone to talk to.
Final Thoughts on the Traits of Extroverts
Rest assured, when you meet an extrovert, you will know it! Their bubbly personalities and ability to make friends are dead giveaways.
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