Advice on starting a new job as an introvert

Use it to your advantage.

When starting a new job, meeting new people is inevitable. Unfortunately, if you’re an introvert like me, it can be one of the most overwhelmingly tiring aspects of beginning a new role.

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If you find yourself in this position, thankfully there are some tips you can try to ease the uncomfortable feelings that tend to arise. I spoke to Leah Lambart, careers and interview coach and founder of Relaunch Me, for tips on how we introverts can preserve our energy during the process of starting a new job.

Allow yourself time to get your bearings

Entering the entirely new social environment of a new job can be overwhelming, especially for introverts, so it’s important to exercise self-compassion and patience while you’re settling in. Leah recommends allowing yourself “to spend the first few days or weeks observing what is going on around you and taking it all in”.

This way, if you’re “required to meet a large number of new people, interact in large groups or work in a noisy, busy work environment,” you can ease yourself into it.

Take it slow socially

Often a new job requires meeting a large group of new people, which can be daunting for introverts. Introverts tend to “build relationships far easier one-on-one… rather than when in a large group,” Leah notes, so “focusing on building a relationship with just one or two people will take away the overwhelm of having to get to know everyone immediately”.

Leah recommends starting with smaller social goals. “Focus on just connecting with one to two people, rather than feeling you need to get to know everyone at once.”

She recommends starting by using your “listening and observation skills to choose one person,” who shares “common interests… [or] a similar working style” and building a relationship with them. This can help you establish a solid foundation, which you can use to “slowly build on other relationships over time,” Leah says.

Pre-prepare your introductions

“As the new person, you are likely to be introduced around the office and may even be asked to introduce yourself in team meetings to the wider group,” Leah tells me. She notes that this can be particularly daunting “for an introvert who doesn’t like being in the spotlight”.

Luckily, as Leah points out, you can easily “prepare for this before you start”. She recommends you “write out a script that is around one to two minutes” which introduces who you are and says a little bit about you, so you can “practise what you will say before your first day”. This can help you feel more prepared, so that “if you are put on the spot and asked to introduce yourself, it won’t seem so daunting and nerve-wracking”.

Make time for yourself

“Starting a new role takes a lot of energy [for anyone],” Leah notes, from “getting to know new people, learn[ing] new systems and processes [to]… understanding the company’s products/services and the workplace culture.”

Meeting so many new people can be incredibly taxing for introverts since these interactions often “take up a significant amount of energy”. To combat this, Leah recommends you “try and carve out some ‘me time’ during your day or on your way to and from work. This will allow you to reset and re-energise,” she explains, especially “in the first few weeks when there is so much to learn and take in”.

Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need

It can be difficult to ask for adjustments you might need in a work context, especially when you’re new to a workplace. Leah emphasises the importance of “ask[ing] to change your work environment to make it work for you”.

She explains that, for introverts, this could be as simple as “request[ing] a quieter corner desk rather than sitting in the main thoroughfare” if you are working in a “loud, open-plan office space”.

Play to your strengths

It might not always be possible for your workplace to accommodate your needs as an introvert, so it’s important to assess how you might be able to shape your role and your work habits to accommodate your introversion.

Since introverts often prefer environments “without interruptions… to get through work tasks that require deep concentration,” Leah tells me it might be useful to take “advantage of working from home days” for tasks that require more energy.

Delegate interactions where appropriate

While it’s not always possible, if you’re an introvert in a role that requires constant meetings, Leah suggests you may want to “see if you can make any changes… to only attend meetings that are really important for you”.

“See if you can delegate to an extrovert in your team who will gladly take up the opportunity,” she suggests. Leah also recommends that all introverts “adapt[ing] to working in an extrovert world” read Susan Cain’s book Quiet. “I highly recommend this to younger and older introverts… to better understand how they can find work, and work environments that suit their personality.”

For more advice on dealing with introversion in the workplace, head here.